The Statesman.
London, England, 1823-02-27 00:00:00

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Lisbon 0
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PRICE OF STOCKS TIIIB
Beek Stook 238 9 .
3 per Ct. Reit
3yer Ct. Cons .... 744 73f
*4 per Ct.
4 per Ceuta 93f
Now Tows 7411 I

DAY AT ONE &DIODE.
India Stock . 4311 334
Ditto Bonds ..s.26s9lts.
South Sea Stock
South Sea Old Ana.' •
Ez.Bill.4d. (9s Its 9s s pm.
IMO/.

err Ct. 17"7..
s,onsf Ann.. 19 9.10
Imp. 3 per Ct.... ......
Irish 8 per Cents.

300/.91 11 s.9s. s pm.
Small 9s. I 15.94 spm
Cou.far fieet 7 7441 731
GotseryTieksts 19.1. 19s.

tke atattontan.

THURSDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY In, 1823.

PARLIAMENTARY COMMENTARY.

Ist Tat Commons.—The most interesting matter that
came before the House was the SURREY PETITION,
which was *presented by Mr. Dennison. Mr. Miserly
object •1 to that part of the petition which contained a
prayer for an equitable adjustment of contracts. Mr.
Ricardo followed him, in somewhat the same ?train.
This was the. on•set! Not a very furious one, indeed.
Nothing late so furious as the on-set last year upon the
two little word*, " just reduction," contained in the pe-
tition of the county of Kent. Here, in the Surrey Pe-
tition was a Prayer for a general adjustment of contracts
private a.; well as public, and specifically with regard to
what is called the National Debt; and yet„, so help us
Galt, Mr. Calcraft sat still and said not one single word.
It is curious, too, that this proposition, though it came
this time out of Surrey, carne originally from the same
shop with the Kentish proposition. Mr. Calcraft, in the
case of the Kentish proposition. said that he would have
made the propo'er take Iris horse and gallop off. Goo
knows what he would ant Lave done to him. While the
discussian last niaht was going on, a friend of ours rigs
he sat trembling, expecting every moment to see Mr. Cal-
craft rise; but the 4601 of one word did Mr. Calcraft
av npon the subject!—This shows how we are getting
wt. It marks the progress of the thing ; and admonishes
tl.e fund-holder to ►ecome a gold-hoarder as quickly as
posibl►; for, blind indeed mast that man be who doth
nut see that the end approachetb.—•Mr. Ricardo
made bat very poorly out. He talked of the phe-
nomena of increasing revenue; and he called upon
his opponents to account for that upon any other
ground than that of the prosperity' of the country.
He did not know how there could be an increasing re-
venue and flourishing commerce, if Peel's Bill had been
so destructive.—Now. has Mr. Ricardo forgotten how
the merchants were slaughtered in 1319? Has he forgot-
ten, too, what has passer! 'titbits these twenty days; or
(="that lie understand the last Register and the last Re
;sister but two, where it is shown as clear as day-light,
that a revenue may go on increasing ; that commerce and
manerictures may go on flourishing ; end that, u bile
these "phersomees," or by whatever other nonsensical
n ure they may be called ; while these are going on, all
the landlords in the kingdom may be stripped of their
estates, the farmers of their capital, and that the agri-
enitural labourers may be reduced to beggary ? Mr.
Ricardo seas called an Grade, by Me•:srs. Brougham'
and Wilberforce; at the time when Mr. Cobbett return-
ed from bong Island, very soon after the passing oil
Pe.l's Bill. Last night the gentleman seems not to have
been so confident as he was at the time that we are alluding I
to. He seemed to think that hi. doctrine stood in need
orate/trap of authorities ; for, he read a letter, it ap
pears, stating that Peel's Bill lead had no effect, or very•
litt:e erect, npon prices. Some o.e said that this letter
was from dlr. P. Steullongh of the kingdom of Sco Lat I;
but, we imagine it came from Mr. Gladstone, or some
such person at Liverpool; for Gladstone has, in a Liver-
pool newspaper, unequivtvally asserted, that Peel's Bill
sots had no miect at all upon prices, and has even in•
sited that it has sot caused the gold to appear. In short,
that it has had no effect at all in any way what-
c..er ; and that prices would have been just the
same, and gold come out, just in the same manner and in
the same quantity. if Peel's Bill bad never been passed,
and no leeislative measure whatever had been a•lopted
with regard to the currency. This, to be sure, is as
little short of &dim as any thing that one cm well
intestine; but, the bleb scene will be, when Peel's Ili

shall be repeated! If that should take place; and take
place it will to a certainty, if we go to to war ; then will
come the high scene ;• then will Mr. Ricardo and his au-
thorities cut a brilliant figure. Not less than twenty
shillings will buy a bushel of wheat in six months after
that Bill shall be repealed; and then we shall bear what
Mr. Ricardo has to say about the phenomena. Lord
Folkestone followed Mr. Ricardo, and in the course of
his speech, reminded the latter of his four and a half per
rent. Ilia Lordship explained a little, the wonderful
phenomena that so surprised Mr. Ricardo, and exposed
the folly, the supreme folly, of relying upon the tables
of Mr. Mutate. In that he showed, which Mr. Cob-
belt has show° 1 long and long enough ago, that the
price of gold compared with that of the paper, was no
standard at all whereby to measure the general depre-
ciation. After Mr. Sumner had said something tending
to make the house believe that it was a poor little meet-
ing in Surrey, though we are very sure that he newr
saw each a one there before in his life, Mr. Bennet rose,
and having done justice to the rneetirg; having defend-
ed the yeomen of Surrey against the observations of
Mr. Sumner, proceeded, not to defend the prayer of the
petition, for the prayer of an equitable adjustment of
contracts, contained in it; for that, in fact, appeared

t) stand in need of no defence; bat to state that
the House pried Peel's Bill from ignorance, and

that that ignorance proceeded from Mr. Ricardo ;
that Lis doctrine was the foundation of all the
ignorance that led to the fatal measure : that in-
stead of such a measure, to consummate the ruin of the
laud, a measure for an equitable adjustment of contracts
ought to have been adopted at that time; seeing that a
breach of contracts, a breach of national faith had been
committed against the debtors, even before and long be-
fore that Bill was passed. He distinctly traced the igno-