The Sun.
London, England, 1842-06-07 00:00:00

SUMMARY OF NEIVS

AND
Vittbitc Optuton.

" Who runs may read."

POREIGN.
There is no important news in the French Journals. Dur-
ing a discussion in the Chamber of Deputies on Saturday, on
the• linen thread question, the Minister of Commerce declared
that whatever might be the conclusions of the Committee,
whose report had not yet been made, he had nut retraced
the engagements he had lately entered into ; that is, to in-
crease the duties on English threads 20 per cent.
Toulon letters of the 2d announce that the Pere Poule,
Didon, and Atalante, put to sea on that thy. Vice-Admiral
Hugon's squadron had left the anchorage off the islands of
Hycres for tome days, and had sailed towards the Balearic Is-
lands with a fresh breeze. It was imagined that it would

anchor at Port Mahon, and then eruize off the Corsican coast.
Accounts from Algiers of the 30th ult. reached Marseilles on
the lit inst. Letters from Philippeville of the 24th, published
in the Semaphore of the '2d, claim a decided advantage on the
21st, over a corps of 4,0C0 Arabs, who had attacked the camp
at El Elarouche on the Constantia road,, defended by Com-
mandant Montaubon, with 500 infantry and 114 cavalry. The
Arabs lost 300 killed, and the French cue officer and a ser -
grant slightly wounded.
By aclvices from Alexandria to the 25th instant, we have
received the most disastrous intelligence from Syria, brought
by the Emmertee. About 3,000 Atbanians had landed at
beyrout, and committed the most terrible excesses. Among
other things they shut three Europeans. Omar Pacha had
seized treacherously another Druse chieftain. The Druses mus-
ter 5,000, and the Maronitei 25,000 fighting men, and it is not
thought that Omar will succeed in disarming them.

PARLIAMENTARY.
The Lords had a b ief conversation list night about locking
in on railways, from which it results, that from this day forward
the Directors of the (ireat Western will not lock in their pas-

sengcrs, but trust therm to their own discretion.
Lord Denman brought in another General Affirmation Bill,

which was read a first time.
The Commons forwarded a good deal of private business.
. .

Mr. O'Connell presented a —petition froin an individual of
Belfast, pointing out how he had been bribed by Mr. E. Ten-
nent, which was ordered to be printed, that it may be taken
into consideration.
In reply to Mr. W. 0. Stanley, Sir H Hardinge said that
some of the correspondence relative to rejecting a tablet from
the church at Quebec never reachdeEnghnd. Sir Henry paid
a handsome compliment to the memory of the gal:ant officer
whose memorial the Bishop of Quebec excluded from the

church.
Mr. Adderlev moved that a new writ should be issued for
Newcastle-under-Lyme. Mr. Hurne moved to postpone the
issue for a fortnight, and he would, in the meantime, move for
a Committee of Inquiry into the bribery ractised there. After
a short debate the writ was ordered to be issued, atter a divi-
sion of 143 to 97 votes, the Ministers supporting the motion to
issue the writ.
Lord John Russell obtained leave to bring in a Biil for the
more speedy and better prevention of bribery at elections. The
Bill of the Noble Lord will have for its object to prevent com-
promises. From the few words said by Sir Robert Peel, we
may infer that the Noble Lord may be able to carry the Bill
through the House this Session.
In the Committee on the tariff, which was proceeded with
after Lord John Russell's motion, the timber duties were dis-
cussed. The Committee divided on Mr. Roebuck's mo-
tion to render the duties on foreign and colonial timber equal,
which was lost by 243 to 16. Mr. P. Stewart's amendment,
to reduce the duty on colonial timber to 55., and on foreign
to 355. par load, was also discussed, but no division taken on it.
At half-past one o'clock Sir Howard Douglas persisted in
bringing forward his views on the propriety of fixing the duty
on foreign timber at 305., and on foreign deals at 385., after
the 10th of October next, and in negativing Sir Robert Peel's
proposal. The Hon. Member said he did so from conscien-
tiously believing that Sir R. Peel's. plan would injure the co-
lonies. It was impossible, however, to discuss such a question
at such an hour, and the Gallant Officer bad to address a list-
less and inattentive House. The Gallant Officer did not even
press his objections to a division, but allowed the Government
proposition to be agreed to. The scale of duty on timber, as
proposed by the Government, was accordingly adopted, and at
a Quarter-past Two the House adjourned.
PUBLIC OPINION.

The Herald ha; the following remarks on the subject of the
Income-tax and the tariff:—" The Income-tax is now the
law of the land; the tax papers will quickly be in the hands of
every one whoi is blessed with 1501. a year and upwards; the
new tribunals for investigating the affairs of all who are re-
moved from want will shortly be in operation ; a new and un-
avoidable pressure on the means of all, save the poorest, is
created ; a fresh subject of thought and uneasiness is esta-
blished; and a most vexatious and oftentimes injurious disclo-
sure of individual property is not to be escaped from. Will the
announcement of compensation be realised? That the new
tariff will do good—great good—we do not doubt ; that it will
of itself compensate the income tax payers for the expenditure
of four millions sterling, we greatly doubt ; it may be made to
produce compensation, if proper means be taken to increase
the demands for our goods—if new commercial treaties be
negotiated on principles of reciprocity with regions and peoples
from which we are now excluded, or with which our commer-
cial intercourse is greatly restricted ; but, spread as are the
reductions of the tariff over such an infinity of articles of
sumptuary consumption, and those not of the first necessity,
we fear that the diminution of cost prices, consequent on
diminished customs duties, will find itself more frequently its
the packets of the wholesale and retail sellers than in those of
the consumers."
The Post says :—" We are aware that this journal has been
of late blamed in more than one quarter for what is called its
"presumption," in differing upon the question of free trade
from the opinions of leading statesmen on both sides of the
House of Commons. We have something to say in reply, and
we are anxious that attention should be given to our defence,
because to be presuming, or dogmatical, or in any way unrea-
sonable, is the last thing that we should wish to be. We plead,
not guilty. We desire to leave these characteristics to the
Whigs, and not to make any approach towards that party,
either in this or in any other way. It is true that, upon the
principles of free trade lately assented to by the leading states-
men on both sides of the House of Commons, we maintain a
difference of opinion. We do so from a thorough conviction
that such principles are not consistent with generosity to the
poor, who require all the employment that can be given to
them by those who can afford to pay for labour, nor with justice
to the producing classes of our own country generally, who
since they pay so much in various ways to the owners of money
capital, have a fair claim to a limited monopoly of the supply
of such things as they produce. But may it not be " pre-
suinption " to act upon our own conviction, however sincere,
if it be opposed to the views of leading statesmen on both sides
of the House of Commons? Perhaps it would, if we rested
upon our own conviction merely ; but we do not. We merely
hold the same views, and maintain the same views which our
party appeared to be perfectly unanimous in holding this time
twelve months."
The Times professes its inability to understand the recent
proceedings of the House of Commons on election matters,
observing:—" The decisions of the 'House of Commons on
issuing writs to boroughs in which the sitting Members have
been displaced for bribery arc somewhat remarkable, nor do we
profess to understand the principles upon which those decisions
are regulated. First, Sudbury is to be disfranchised for gross
and extensive bribery—so far so good: then Ipswich, convicted
of the same crime by the same authority, on the same kind of
evidence, is to elect its two Members as if nothing had hap-
pened. Then the Nottingham writ is suspended sine die, be-
cause Mr. Roebuck has heard and believes something about a
corrupt compromise ;' and the Southampton one for a fort-
night, because after the close of the examination and the un-
seating of the sitting Members, a Mr. John Wrenn promises
further disclosures ; and now, finally, the House falls back into
its former indulgent habits, and allows Newcastle-under-Lyme
to proceed to a fresh election, though proved guilty to no ordi-
nary or limited extent of the same crime as Sudbury, South-
ampton, and Ipswich. Truly, we wish we could understand it all."
The following remarks are from the Chronicle : As Sir
Robert Peel is hot and cold by turns in matters of bribery,
his speech and vote last night in the case of Newcastle-under-
Lyme, might have been anticipated without difficulty. Having
voted for issuing the writ to Ipswich, he of course opposed
the issuing a writ to Southampton; and Southampton having
been refused a writ was a rc ison for Newcastle-under-Lyme
experiencing a different treatment. The borough of New-
castle-under-Lyme is a not oriously corrupt place—drunkenne a,
bribery, and perjury prevail at its elections. It was reported
against in 1838 and in 1842: there are no signs of amendment.
Under sue', circumstances, to issue a writ to a place noted for
profligate drunkenness, gross bribery, and the most abandoned
disregard of oaths, would, in the language of Mr. Chalks
Buller, ' be the sante thing as sending down an order for so
much drunkenness, and for the distribution among the electors
of so much head money, and so much market money.' The
House of Commons lies under the suspicion of not being sin-
cerely desirous of putting a stop to bribery at elections. As
the higher classes have in all countries great influence in deter-
mining the public morality, it is hardly.assuming too much to
place to the account of the aristocracy of this country the very
lax notions with regard to bribery which are prevalent in most
of the cid constituencies."
:VI 0 IVEY—TRADE—C O Yrier ER. C .
At the meeting of the Shareholders of the Llanelly Railway
end Dock Company, held yesterday at the London Tavern,
the Report stated that twelve miles of the railway towards
Llandilo are completed, and in the several branches fourteen
miles and a-half, making altogether twenty-six miles and a-
half of railway. The total receipts to the Ist of May, 1842,
were 222,858/. 3s. 10d., leaving, after all expenditure, a ba-
lance of 261. Os. I ld. in hand.
At a meeting of the holders of Spanish Treasury Bonds
yesterday, a memorial was drawn up for presentation to Es-
p Hero, rrayin an immediate liquidation of these claims.
1N1A.V.1114 /XIV D ...taxx,ravirtic .

A splendid military ball was given by the officers of the last
division of the 84th Regiment at the Bull Inn, Rocliest?r.
yesterday. The Mag:strates and gentry presented a letter of
thanks complimenting the regiment on its excellent behaviour
during their stay in the borough, after which they embarked
for Madras.