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Northern Star (1837-1852), 15th May 1847, Edition 2 of 3, Page 7, „„„a MONDAY, - Mat 10. MOUSE OP LORDS. —...

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      May I F. 1847. The Northern Star.

      May i f . 1847 . THE NORTHERN STAR .

      Fonim Ihobtnwnts

      fonim iHobtnwnts

      "And I Wih War, At Least In Wards, (And—...

      "And I wiH war , at least in wards , ( And—• fcould my chance aa happen—deeds , } With all who war with Thought ' . "

      «1 «I Think I Hear A Hide Bird, Who Sing...

      « 1 « I think I hear a Hide bird , who singi Tl Tha people Dj-and-hyvruTbe the stronger . "— -Biaow .

      We Are Indebted To The Freest (Paris Jou...

      We are indebted to the Freest ( Paris journal ) for tl the followingdetails of the Prussian Administration , f ( forming an interesting supplement to the ** Statists tics" given in a former number . OBQANISATTOS OF THE GOVERNMENT OP PRUSSIA .

      Frederick William IT . was bora on the 15 ih of Oet toner , 1785 , and hat consequently entered his 51 st year . 2 Harried in the year 1823 to Elizabeth Louisa , daughter « of the King of Bavaria , born in 1801 , he has no children . 3 Me has reigned since June 7 th , 1840 , the day of the death c of his rather , Frederick William IU . His brother , 1 Srteieriek William Louis , bord the 22 nd of March , 1797 , I Is Prince Royal ot Prussia . In Prussia the government I belongs to tha Kin * exclusively ; he exercises the Sores' reign power with the assistance of a Council of Statt , « of a Minister of State , and of Privy Councillors . The < Council of State is composed of a president and a vicej president , of the Princes of the Royal Family having at-( Cained the age of eighteen years , of the Ministers of { State , of the commanders-in-chief and presidents of

      proi winces , of sixty officers who attain their seats in the < council througu tha confidence of the government . The ; Ministers of State are composed of the Prince of Prussia . and of all tha Privy Councillors on duty . The private Ministries are nine is number , viz ., the Ministry of tbe King ' s Household , divided into two departments ; 2 , the Ministry of War divided into two departments , under the i direction of General Ton Boy an ; 3 , the Ministry of Pub lic Worship , of Public Instruction , and of Medical Affairs , three departments , under the direction ef Dr Bichhorn ; 4 , the Administration of the Treasury and the Mint , directed by General Ton Thile ; 5 , the Ministry of the Revision of the Laws ,- directed by Dr Savigny ; « J , the Minister of Foreign Affairs , of which the head is the Baron de Canitz : 7 , the Ministry of the Interior ,

      directed by Baron Ton Bodelsch wing—Velmede , at present Eoyal Cemmissloner to the United Diet ; 8 , the Ministry of Justice , under the direction of the Privy Councillor Vfcden ; 9 , tbe Ministry of Finance , divided into four ¦ compartments , under the control of the Privy Councillor Duesberg . There are , moreover , certain central -or superior authorities subservient to tha departments of the Ministry . The first are—the Genera ] Tribunal of Censure attached to the Ministry of Justice , the Direction of Public Works , the Consulting Committee of Arts and Finances , the G eneral Direction of the Lottery , the Committee of Examining Commissaries attached to the Ministry of Finance , the Archives of the State aud of the Cabinet , under the special direction of the Ministers of the Boval Household and of Foreign

      Affairs . Tbe stcond are tbe Court of Accounts , the Fost-OSca , tbe General Administratioa of the Debts o < the State , the Commercial andStatistical Offices , aud the 'General Commission of the Royal . Commands . The ¦ Court has likewise its officers—the grand chamberlain - -and tbe grand marshal , the master of the Boyal hounds , - generalinspector of the Aulic music , a grand butler , ¦ » grand master of the ceremonies , a marshal of the court , and inferior officers , such as prefects of the castles of Kcenigsberg , Stolzenfelds , Breslao . The state budget for the year 1847 presents the most perfect equilibrium . The revenue and the expenditure amount equallytto # , 033 , 687 dollar * . Direct taxation figures for 19 , 319 . 966 dollars ; the indirect taxes amount to 26 , 782 , 334 dollars ; the salt monopoly to 4 , 992 200 dollars , and the produce Of the courts of justice to 4 , 032 , 215 dollars . In the expenditure , the national debt figures far 7 , 219 , 320 dollars , the ministry of pnblic worship and instruction for 25 , 770 , 302

      dollar *—nearly one halt the expenditure exclusive of the national debt . The remainder is absorbed by the other administrations . There does not appear to be any fund lor secret service m > mey . The army on the peace establishment is composed of the infantry of tbe royal guard , 11 , 203 men ; 40 regiments of the line , 63 . 334 men ; cavalry , six regiments of the guard , 8 , 764 men ; 32 regiments of the line , 19 , 360 men ; artillery , a brigade of the guard , and eight brigades of the line , 15 , 691 men ; engineers , 2 , 644 men . Total army ot the line , 115 , 905 men . To these must be added the Landwehr of the first class , 70 , 643 infantry and 10 . 400 cavalry ; and tbe Landwehr ot the second class , 259 , 561 men . The war establishment consists of 205 , 009 troops of the line , 1 S 0 . OQQ of the first class of the Landwehr , and every man between the ages of 32 and 39 of the second class of tbe Landwehr , and , in fine , the -Landstnrm , which comprises every man from 17 to 59 years of age capable of bearing arms .

      A series of articles baa recently appeared in tbe Morning Advertiser , nnder the title of" England and German v , " reported to be from a memoir of Dr Frederick lost , tbe eminent German writer- These articles , the first of which , we give this week , were Written to show the value and conditions of an alliance between England and Germany ; they contain some curious speculations concerning the destiny of ibis country , highly interesting to the political thinker : —

      ENGLAND AND GERMANY . I . Thk Potior of the Pbesext and or the Fitum It is our fall conviction that on the subject which w « propose to treat in this essay , depend not only the furorshappiness of both nations , but for a large space of time that of all mankind . The statesmen of prosperous and mighty nations usually prefer dealing with , the interests present rather than these of tha future . They have that in common with the prosperous and the powerful . It is more pleasant to enjoy the future , than to give way to ideas of possibility or probability of future vicissitudes . But if we reflect maturely on the mode in which prosperous and pewerful nations have attained to the possession of their present power , we cannot refrain from making the observation that their present prosperity , their present power , is a pleat , whose seeds were placed in the earth by the men of old .

      That the wants of the present are far more pressing than those of the future , and , moreover , of a yet remote future , can as little be disputed , aa that be who lets his views wander too far into the future , exposes himself to the risk of losing the right path in the present ; we will also willingly allow that in ordinary times the care for the future is comprised ia the care for the present . It is , however , otherwise in times ha which the political aud social condition of nations , as also tbat of humanity In general is in a complete state of reorganisation . In flnch epochs , statesmen who limit their views exclusively

      to the present wants and advantages of their country , incur the danger of paying for their narrow-minded exertions after the applause of their contemporaries and their country , with the reproach of after generations that they have contemned the future , and posterity will the more severely judgs them , the greater tbe influence of their nation an the affairs of the world , andmost severely When they stand at the head of thefse nations on whose policy depends for a long series of coming centuries tbe happiness or misery of mankind , Such a decisive movement is the present , aud that nation on whom the decision depends is England .

      n . The Taassrrios Period . —Since the year 1770 , the earlier condition of the world has been in a state of dissolution . Iu this comparatively brief period ( 1770—1 S 40 ) the following great changes aud events are included . North America , formerly a thinly populated colony of England , obtained its independence and grew to a nation , which , after the lapse of a few decenniums , will in power aad wealth range itself by the side of the greatest aations of the earth , even if sbe do not surpass them . France effected , in this period , her moral , political , and economic regeneration , aad although as regards maritime power and colonies , commerce and industry , -she is now in comparison with England , she is infinitely "weaker than before , and destitute of aU bope of ever -again attaining her former importance ih these respects , the baa grows , within this period , to a land power in--Cdmparablj greater than before .

      Germany has certainly , after the fall of her long super--annuated constitution , not yet been able to attain her poUtiro-aationalregeneration ; but the German people , in its agriculture and industry , as well as in its gsueral , aud especially in its political intelligence , has now soade ammaasureable progress within this short period . As however , the in Germany still so powerful Bureauocracy , which certainly bos done good service in its time , but has now brag outlived itself , has rather retrograded than advanced ; and as this half oriental excrescence , like a parasitical weed , gradually enveloping in its growth the Whole fabric to which it has attached itself , now holds Within its embrace every member of the State , the momrrhical as well as the aristocratic and the democratic

      element , fettering their every movement , while it regards and treats as revolutionary movements every effort of individuals for the attainment of nationality and political institutions corresponding to the degree of culture attained by the nation , a wide abjss must for the time exist in this country between tbe people and the governments , an abyss which must appal the clear-sighted Statesman , did he not perceive that the axUteace and future destiny of Prussia rests on the political regeneration ofGermany , and that the high spirit of the present ruler of Prussia is fully adequate to the solution of this great problem . —[ This was written before the issue of the Prussian constitution by the Sing- ] The Ottoman empire , after forming for centuries the wall of division between Africa and Asia , on the one aiue , and Europe on the other , as regards religion , politics , ana commerce , is nowinttrnallyso corrupted , that it cannot , by its own strength , hold itself erect , and is advancing towards its inevitable dissolution .

      Asia . Africa , and Oceania , have been opened to the European spirit of enterprise , and now weigh heavily in the balance of power , while formerly they scarce came into consideration . Bussia has within this period risen from a barbarian country to an European power of the first rank , and now menaces Asia on the one band , and Europe on the other , with her unceasing craving after aggrandisement . The French revolution has in this period shaken to tbe foundations the political institutions of every attenuation of Soman descent—Italy , Portugal , aad Spain—and laid ^ bare their deep , moral , political , and economic decline . The two latter countries bare in their struggles for political organisation , not only lost their possessions in South America , but also almost all their political iu . flaenea ia Europe . The South American States , uniting to the moral .

      We Are Indebted To The Freest (Paris Jou...

      Political , and economic weaknesses which they , inherited f rom their mother-coaatries , also the ' weakness peculiar to themselres ; of an intermixture . witn inferior and unci . viBsed races , were unable to make any reasonable use of theft-independence ; they are and will remain a ball for the sport of more powerful nations . : While these immeasurable changes were taking place , science effected a vast number of discoveries in the modes of production and transport , which completely transformed ' commerce and industry , and particularly the economy of nations .

      England lastly , she having placed herself at the head of these discoveries , and especially of everj other species of economic progress , as she already for centuries had been the first country of the earth as regarded the moral , religious , aud intellectual condition of her people , but still more as regarded her political institutions and poli . tical advancement , rose in this period to a height of national strength and national wealth , which cannot be compared with that at which it stood at the commencement of this period , and above all cannot be compared with the condition of any nation of ancient or modern times .

      V Coumtal Attjj /Omgtu

      v Coumtal attJj / omgtu

      West Indies. Jamaica. —.The Legislature ...

      WEST INDIES . Jamaica . — . The legislature has been prorogued after a donble session of twelve weeks . Bsbhotav—The colonial parliament met on the 21 st of April . The Highland costume of tbe 42 ndthe battalion of whom landed part at Hamilton and part at Ireland ' s Island on tbe 15 th—had created quite asensation amengthe'ilaxKdn * . Subscriptions had been raised for the relief of the distressed in Scotland and Ireland . Barbadoes . —The colonial legislature met on the 30 th of March . Fine showers bad fallen in April , which had much reliered the young crop , without interfering with cutting operations . Immensequantities ofsugar have been manufactured .

      Grenada . —In this island the weather has been most propitious , and the crop much larger than that of the preeeding season . Airriar / a . —The only item of news from this colony relates to a riot among the labourers . The vestry of St John ' s parish proposed to levy a tax on lands and tenements , unattached to estates . Hereupon , from 300 to 400 labourers collected , and by their riotous and threatening demeanour within the courthouse , compelled the meeting of 5 th April to adjonrn without transacting the business before them .

      Thb Ghabiisi Lao t Pias in Guiana Governor LLht opened the combined court , for the dispatch of the financial business of tbe year , on the 23 rd of March . The combined court is composed of the College of Financial Representatives , sitting in conjunction witu the Court of Policy ( the legislative assembly-of the colony ) . The governor stated mthe course of his address , that within the last few days seventy native labourers had bought an " estate , Den Amttel , for which they laid dewa , as a first instalment , 10 , 000 dols ., secured 2 , 500 more in two months , and bound themselves to pay , with interest , 12 , 000 additional in two years .

      FRANCE . ' AMotstbbiai Carers . —The Parispapersof Saturday brought the intelligence of the resignation of the French Minister of Finance ( Lacave Laplagne ) , of War ( General St Yon ) , and Marine ( Admiral Mackau ) . On Friday the Chamber had refused one of the credits demanded by the Minister of Marine . M . de Mackau had previously declared tbat if that Particular credit were not granted , he would resign . M . Molinede St Ton declared , on Friday , in the salle des conferences , that the treatment he had recetved j „ the Chamber was such , that hewonld throw up the war department . M . Lacave Laplagne was unwilling to " resign , " and appears to have been therefore dismissed . The Moniteur of Monday contained the following nominations : — ' I

      M . Damon , Secretary of State for the department of Public Works , to be Minister of Finance , in the place of M . Lacave Laplagne . M . Treiel , Peer of France , Lieutenant-Genera ] , commanding the 12 th military division , to be Minister of War , in the place of Lientenant-General Moline de Saint Yon . Tho Duke de Montebeuo . Peer of France , Ambassador at the Court of the Kinsr of the Two Sicilies , to be Minister of Marine and Colonies , in the place of Admiral Baron de Mackau . M . Jayr , Peer of France , Prefect of the department of the Rhone , to be Minister ef Public Works , in the place of M . Dumon , nominated Minister of Finance . The fifth ordinance charges M . Guizot , Minister of Foreign Affairs , with the ^ interim of the Ministry of Marine and Colonies , during the absence of the Duke de Montebello .

      A most extraordinary scene was exhibited ih the Chamber of Deputies on Monday , on the occasion of the debate upon the proposition of M . ' Orernieux , that no member of the Chamber should hold the place « f director of a company , and especially of a railway company . M . Grandin ascended the tribune and declared that there were sixty-nine deputies who were directors of railway companies . This announcement produced a scene such as it is quite impossible adequatel y to describe . The worst disorders ever witnessed in the House of Commons , or even in the House of Representatives at Washington , were nothing to it . This concert lasted more than an hour . The rioters were not composed of either of the extreme parries , bnt of the conservative and ministerial members , who , steeped to the lips in corruption , bellowed against the exposure of their crimes .

      The returns respecting the Paris Savings Banks demonstrate the continual drain of money from those establishments . The lodgments in the savings hanks of Paris on the 9 th and 10 th instant , amounted to 653 , 03 Bf . and the withdrawals to l , 071 , 129 f .

      SPAIN . AmavKB » ABT of tbe Insubregtioh of 1803 . —The Madrid journals of the 3 rd came out with black mourning borders , in remembrance of the victims who , on the 2 nd of May , 1808 . were slain by order of Napoleon for having risen against the French . The day was celebrated with great solemnity . The leading columns of all the journals were filled with impassioned appeals to the patriotism of the nation , and with not less impassioned declarations of adetermination to maintain the national independence of Spain at any and every cost . The Progressista journals announce that Generals Rodil and Nogneras have been amnestied by the Queen . On theoth , the Cortes was prorogued , " without any day being named for its re-assembling .

      The newsfrom Catalonia is unfavourable ; Various manufacturing establishments have been closed , and disorders feared in consequence of the number of workmen thrown ont of employment . The Queen left Madrid for Arasjenz on the 5 th . An immense crowd was { assembled on both sides of the streets along which she had to pass . The ground was kept by the troops , and she was accompanied by a considerable military escort . She was in an open carriage with her uncle aid cousin , but was not accompanied b y her husband . She was very sad , and her face bore evident traces of long and bitter weeping . The King _ remained ia the palace . The removal of her Majesty to Aranjeuz has rendered more strikingly and offensively manifest the estrangement of her husband .

      PORTUGAL . ..,. ; The Civil War . —An arrival from Lisbon of . the 30 th nit ., brings news of an attempted revolt in that capital , which failed . A great number of prisoners were liberated , bnt most of them were recaptured . Donna Maria ' s soldiers are reported to have behaved with great brutality . A great number of the recaptured prisbners . thongh unarmed , and emaciated w ' . th starvation and dungeon-disease , were horribly murdered by the brutal soldiery . Colonel Wyld was still negotiating with the Junta , with what success was not known .

      GERMANY . . . ; DISTRESS OP THB PXOPLE . —FAMINE BIOTS . Accounts from Thorn , received at Konigsberg on the 1 st of May , say that the distress in the smaller towns on the frontiers—for instance , Gollerb—is exceedingly great . There is a want of work , and the people cannot live on their wages . Crowds of children , covered with rags , and many in a state of nudity , follow the travellers with lamentable cries . The accounts from Poland are not so distressing , but even there a famine is apprehended . Accounts from Lauenberg state thai a . famine is at hand , the bakers not being able to obtain any more com ; and accounts from Kolberg say that since the opening of the navigation , the exportation of corn , not only to the

      provinces , bat also to foreign conntries , continae without ceasing , and that provisions of all kinds are daily becoming dearer and more scarce , the prices keep up , and the bakers are partly in want of money , several have ceased working , and bread is still very dear . 'At Frankfort the honseof Rothschild has undertaken to pay the bakers a sum of 6 krentzer npon every loaf , so that the poor may be all supplied . That house has already placed 5 , 000 bread tickets at the disposal of the guardians of the poor . In the electorate of Hesse , the government has commenced taking an official account of the corn and potatoes . Very contradictory reports have been in circulation respecting the actual quantity in the country , and it is hoped

      that this official inquiry will furnish some definite results . So much is certain , that an immense eaantity of the harvest of 18 i 5 is kept stored np , with the view of ultimate gain . Heavy fines have been imposed upon several persons who have been guilty of this crime—one landowner in Cassel was fined 700 B . Poses , April 30 . —Riots caused by thedearness of provisions brokeout on tbe 29 th in this town . Several drinking-heuses , warehouses , and shops , were entered by the populace and plundered , and the mob gave themselves up to the wildest excesses . Thousands of women joined in the uproar , and assisted in plundering the carts containing corn and flour which were in the market p lace . Every thing is now compira . tively quiet .

      WtrnrsMBEBO , Siottgabdt , May 4 . —Most serious j disturbances have taken place at Stuttgardt , in consequence of the high price of provisions . Incendiary proclamations had previously been circulated ; aau the government , fearing some demonstration , had taken precautionary measures . The troops of the garrison , and a portion of the National Guard , , had

      West Indies. Jamaica. —.The Legislature ...

      received instructions . to be read / , andtroops . and artillery had also been ordered from Ludwigsburg . Oa the evening of the 4 th , the hou « t ^ a » akor , in the Hauptstaetten-strasse , was attacked flJ the mob , conlisting of workmen of every description At So clock the National Guard was called out , and v he governor of the town , Count de Leppe , accompanied by Prince Frederick of Wurtemberg at the head of the C * TalrT « and some detachments of infantry , made the . " appearance , but their exhortations to the mob .. only increased the tumult . The troops endeavoured - to clear the streets ; but they were assailed by a shower , of stones ; a barricade was thrown up and a shot fired . Some of the officers ' and men were wounded by the ; stones . The cavalry then charged , and the infantry

      stormed the barricade ; tho mob was dispersed , but speedily re-assembled in other quarters . Stones were thrown on the military from the roofs of the houses . The King , accompanied by the Prince Royal and his staff , proceeded to the scene of the disturbances . At the Masehbach-bridge a detachment of infantry fired upon the mob , which was approaching the person of the King . One man was killed and several wounded . It would seem that the emeute had a somewhat political character , for cries were ntteredinsulting to the King . and wishes were loudly expressed that he should yield the throne to his son . ' . LatbrNsws ;—Tha riots at Stattgardt have been out down , and calmness has been restored , at Ulm ;

      bnt Wurtemberg is not yet free from outbursts of this kind . Its university town ( Tubingen ) has also to deplore acts of violence . On 5 th May an attack was projected oh the mill of the brothers Sohweickhardt . Precautionary measures had been taken by the authorities , and the students of the University were called npon to co-operatein the maintenance of order . At ten jai night a considerable mob had assembled before the mill in' question , and on * of the doors was smashed inland the pillaging commenced . A body of students , armed with rapiers , interfered and compelled the pillagers to restore all they bad taken ; the place was then occupied by the military till four in the morning .

      The Magdeburg Gagette states that riots , occasioned by the high price of bread , have taken place at Seochningen . in the Duchy of Brunswick . Several incendiary letters were found , and numerous arrests were made . Riots have taken place in several parts of Bohemia at Rger , and at Leitmeritx . At the latter place the mob cut off both the ears of a corn dealer . Disturbances were also feared in Aussig . In thedistrict of Trantenau horseflesh was selling openly at a penny

      per pound . Food riots have taken place at Geisslingen and Blaubeuren . On the 3 rd instant , a number of citizens assembled tumultously before tho town-house in the latter place , crying out for corn . Further disturbance was , however , prevented by the head magistrate promising tbat a distribution of corn thonld be made . In several towns of the duchy ef Posen , the prevailing distress has also given rise to excesses ; amonpst the rest , at Gnesen and Rogaien . Bodies of military have been sent to restore and preserve order . ,

      ITALY ; Roue . —Concerning the late festival in commemoration of the foundation of Rome , held in the Baths of Titus , amid a concourse of 20 , 000 spectators , 800 sitting down to the banquet ; the correspondent ef the . Daily Newssays- " The speech of the evening was that of the Marquis Azelis , which eloquently denounced the presence and pride of" Goths , Huns , and other Vandals , in Italy , and elicited thunders of applause . The only other allusion was to England , which tbe speaker designated our ' elder sister in ' manufactures , commerce , and freedom . ' For obvious reasons no reference was made to France ; the ' recent instructions and conduct of Count Rossi having taken the gold off his gingerbread completely . Altogether , this awakening exhibition will not fail to tell throuehout Italy ; and if the founder of the Baths , "the beloved of mankind , " were permitted to hever in spirit over the scene , he could not repeat

      that "he had lost a day I " The new censors permitted the publication ef the speeches in a supplement to the * Cotemporaneo , but subsequently the copies of the said supplement were seized by the police . This was regarded by the Romans as another concession to Austria ; accordingly , the first time subsequently that the Austrian minister ' s carriage was seen in 'he streets , that worthy was honoured with a mob charivari . Private letters from Bologna mention a curious fact . The censor has authorized the publication in ' the Bologna Journal oi the identical speeches which the Austrian Ambassador at Rome had succeeded in having suppres ed ! During a dinner . given to Chekib Effendi , the Ottoman Ambassador at Vienna , on the occasion of his visit to Rome , the Pope ' s brother gave a toast to the Sultan's health ; he added , that the true dangers tor the Catholic religion did not at present proceed from those who are in possession of Constantinople , but from those who coveted its possession .

      GREECE . . Dissolution of the Chamber ov Rxprebkstativbs . —It appears by the official journal , the Jfom'ftur Grec , that the sittings in the Chamber of Representatives had become so stormy , that the ministry could find no respite except in a dissolution . This step was taken on the 26 th ult . The royal decree orders that the electoral colleges should meet within a delay of two months for the new elections .

      . UNITED STATES AND MEXICO . Boaaoas or the was bow veba cbuz was taken . — aOFHAaiSU OI THE AKEaiCAK SOtDIEEY . —ANOTHER VICTOBT CAINED BI GEN . TAtLOB . —MEXICAN BEVOLTS . A 3 CEBXCASa . TOBTUBEB TO DEATH ST INDIANS . INSTAUATION AND MANIFESTO OF SANTA ANNA . We have already reported the capture of Vera Cruz , later intelligence represents Major-General Worth as having entered upon the duties « f commanding officer and governor of tbe town and castle . The destruction in the city was most awful—one half of it is destroyed .. Houses hlewa to pieces and furniture scattered in every direction—the streets torn up , and the strongest Buildings seriously damaged .

      Wo present our reader * with an extract from a letter by a gentleman who was an eye-witness of the operating at Vera Crui . His account differs somewhat from that furnished by the American prints , hut having heard the statement of avowed partiiaas , perhaps it is well tbat we should read that of an impartial ( or it may be prejudiced ) observer : — "Ob board H . M . S . Daring , Sacrificios , 28 th of March , 1847 . —last night the town of Vera Cruz and the Castle of St Juau de Ulloa capitulated to the Americans . The terms I cannot ascertain with certainty , but of this lam satisfied , that the latter have gained no honour in the business . It has been a dastardly affair on the part cf

      the Yankees . Since the 9 th' mat . they have had Vera Cruz surrounded by 11 , 000 to 15 , 000 men , and , though it was only defended by 4 , 000 , one-half of whom were militia , they dared sot attack it like men , but from a distance threw shells into-it until one . fourthof the town was in ashes , vnd a great number of women and childrea destroyed . The Mexicans have shown uncommon pluck . The Americans gave it out that their batteries ou shore were to play only on the castle , whilst their fleet attacked it oh tbe other side . Theyhava not , however , had the courage to try their strength on the castle ( notwithstanding their heavy fleet ) , but have contented themselves with ingloriousiy shelling helpless Vera Cruz . "

      On the 3 rd of April appeared at vera Crnz the first number of a newspaper , entitled the American Eagle . ' ' - ' . Several facts mentioned iu its columns indicate that no very conciliatory temper , was shown by the bulk of tba invaders on the one hand , or by the natives on the other . ' ¦ On the 1 st of April Oeneral Scott found it necessary to issue a very emphatic order of the , day , ib which he appeals to the army not to allow themselves to be dishonoured by a handful of scoundrels , who scout all

      religion , morals , law , and decency . He states that many undoubted atrocities hava been' committed in' tbe heigh , bourhbodby afew worthless soldiers , both regulars and volunteer ! . . ... 1 'From the American ' Eagtt wVltamtbatitwasaimgeroasfor small parties of Americans to stray outside of their lines ., The case of a small party is mentioned who had advanced about seven or eight miles into the interior on the 28 th of March . They returned with an account of their having been attached hy Rancheros , who' had killed eight of their number .

      Gen . Scott , having resolved to leave 600 men to garrison the city and castle , was preparing to advance , by Jalapa , upon Mexico , wit h 14 , 000 men , 1 , 500 waggons , and a heavy train of artillery . Colonel Harney , of the Sad Dragoons , left Yera Cruz on tbe 2 nd of April , to take possession ef Ahtigus , a town about eight milei northward . Letters from Philadelphia of April 17 th , contain the following : —Advices frsm the Brazos , to the 2 nd inst ., have been received . It is reported that the advance of General Taylor bad overtaken that portion of tha Mexican army , under General T / rrea and Canales , near . Tula . A fight took place , which lasted seven hours , at the expiration of which'time General Taylor came up ,

      and a general engagement ensued . The ^ Hexicans ' were defeated with great loss . Both the generals , Urrea and Canales , were taksn prisoners . Colonel Doniphan is reported to have continued bis advance after oeeupying Chihuahua , and to have taken three other townsnames not mentioned . Ihe following is an extract from a letter of a gentleman attached to the company of Santa F 6 traders t—* ' This province is by no means subdued and the inhabitant * require bat little sttoulus . f ) rise en masse , and murder every American in the country . There is no lan d fit for cultivation extepta few acres ou the rivers . The vemainder is mouatainous . It will cost the government much money , and many lives to defend iteven from the Iadians . "

      , Risings of the Mexicans against the Americans have occurred at several places in California . A number of Americans iaeltt'ling Governor Bentof Santa F 6 have been surprised and put . to death by the Indians , who cruelly tortured them . * General Kearney ' s' expeaitisn from Santa Fe to San Diego , appears to have been exposed to the most frightful privations . The horses of bis dragoons perished in the desert from fatigue and want of water ; and in the absaaee of other provisions , the men were compelled to i aat the flash of tha dead animals . All the mountain passes were disputed hy the natives , and in forcing them [ twenty men were killed and fifteen ( including the general himself ) wounded , Being reinforced by several men

      West Indies. Jamaica. —.The Legislature ...

      from Commodore Stockton's squadron at San Diego , General Kearney succeeeed in Ve-bccupying Angelos , although opposed hy 700 men ( Mexicans , English , and even Americans ) , with sevsral pieces of artilsry . After sufferingall the horrors of anarchy for several days , the city of Mexico had been restored to a state of tranquillity by the arrival of Santa Anna and his assumption of sova . reign power . On bis way to Mexico he was svery where greeted with the acclamations of the people , and triumphal processions went forth from every village to meet him . . later accounts from Mexico concurred in reprssentlng . Santa Anna as present iu the city and at the head of atuurs on the 1 st of April . He had demanded from Con grew authority to raise a loan on any terms to the amount ef twenty millions of dollars . ' The receipt of the iuteuYjance of the surrender of Vera Crnz in the capital , had only elicited the expression of a determina . tion to continue the war . ''" .-: ..

      - we subjoin Santa Anna's noble address on assuming supreme power ; which H will be perceived was written after the captara of 7 era Crnz was known ;—Maninsto or Santa Anna . —Antonio Lopes de Santa Anna , interim President of the Mexican Republic , t # his Fellow-countrymen : "Mexicans ! Vera Cruz is already in the power of the enemy . It has fallen , not under the weight of American valour , nor even under tho influence of its good fortun e . We ourselves , shameful as it may be to say it , have brought upon ourselves this dire disgrace , by our interminable discords . The government owes you the whole truth ; you are to arbitrate on the fate of the country ; if it is to be defended , yoa will be those who shall stop the triumphant march of the enemy that occupies Vera Cruz ; if he shall advance one step

      more , tbe national independence will be buried in the abyss of the past . I am resolvsd to go forth to the encounter of the enemy . Whatis life ennobled by national gratitude if the country suffers a reproach which shall cast a stigma on the front of every Mexican ! M y duty is t ? offer mysdf as a sacrifice , and I shall know how to fulfil that duty . The haughty Americans desire to ob . tain possession of the capital of the Aztec empire . I shall not witness such a disgrace , for I am decided sooner to die in combat . It is a critical moment for tbe Mexican nation . It is as glorious to die in the struggle , as infamous to acknowledge a defeat without an effort , a defeat too by an enemy whose rapacity is as far removed from ' valour as from generosity . Mexicans ! have you a religion ! Defend it . Have you honour !

      Save it from infamy . Do you love your wives and your children ! Rescue them from American brutality . But it is' deeds ' , not vain demands , nor sterile wishes , which are to he opposed to the enemy . The national cause is supremely just . ' Why does God appear to ' have abandoned it ! His displeasure will cease if wc present , as an expiation of our crimes , the sentiments of a sincere union—of a true patriotism . Thus the Eternal will bless our efforts , ' and we shaU be invincible ; for , against the decision ef eight millions of Mexicans , how shall eight or tea thousand Americans prevail when they have ceased to be the instruments of Divine ' justice ? Ispeah to you for the last time ; for the sake of God , listen to me ; you mast not hesitate between death and slavery ; and if the enemy shall vanquish yoii . ' atleast let your resistance be respected . It is now time that there should be no thought but for the common defence . The hoiir of sacriflees has struck . Awaken ! the tomb opens at your

      feet . Win a laurel , that it may bo reared over it . ' But the nation will not perish : I will answer for the triumph of Mexico , nay , will swear for the result , if an unanimous and sincere cooperation shall ' only second my desires . Fortunate will be the humiliating affair of Vera Crnz . If tbe fate of that city shall inspire Mexican breasts with the enthusiasm , tho dignity , and the generous ardour of true patriotism , it will unquestionably have been the salvation of the country ; but should Mexico succumb she will bequeath her shame and her dishonour to those egotists ivho have sought not to defend her—those traitor * who have prosecuted their own personal combats , damaging the national character . Mexicans ; the fate of the country is in your hands ; you , riot tbe Americans , " will decide it . Vera Cruz cries for vengeance ; hasten to viipe out the foul blot of her dishonour , —( Signed , ) Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna . — Mexico , March 31 , 1847 .

      Dreadful Case Of Poisoning. Some Days Ag...

      DREADFUL CASE OF POISONING . Some days ago great consternation and excitement prevailed in Devonport , owing to a rumour that several persons had been poisoned at the Victory of China beer shop , Pembroke-street , kept by Mr W . M . Ackland , " and that one of the parties had actually died from the effects of tbe poison . The following are the particulars : —On Wednesday evening the deceased , at the above house , drank several pints of beer and porter , and continued to drink freely . In the course of the evening deceased becameacquainfed with a female , and with whom he remained in the house during the niorlit . The deceased slated to his companion that his name was Henry Gilbert , that he was twenty-one years of age , and that he was an officer : on board ber _ Majesty ' s ship Caledonia . The young man , on rising the next morning and coming

      down stairs , proceeded to call for beer , and continued drinking , with little intermission , till half-past eleven , when a seaman , called Pedlar , of the ( jueenj came into the room in which deceased and some femalej were drinking . Shortly afterwards Pedlar filled a glass with porter several times , and at the same time drew ^ from his trousers pocket some white powder , mixed it with the beer , and then successively handed fl glass of the mixture round to each of the company , including the landlady of the house . Unfortunately the deceased and one of the females , Kesiah Cook , drank the poisonous draught , the remainder of the company observing the movements and suspecting Pedlar ' s designs refused to drink . Shortly after drinking the poison , deceased and the female Cook . became exceeding ill . The deceased

      lingered till about three o clock on Saturday afternoon , when he expired . The girl Cooke is in a recovering state . Shortly ! after , the porter was administered , Pedlar , on hearing his name : mentioned in connection with the transaction / suddenly decamped . The borough policowere then brought and acquainted with the circumstances of the case , and several of tbat body immediately placed themselves on the alert , and active search was made to apprehend the murderer . The prisoner was captured in Cornwallstreet by four watermen , who had previously received information of the circumstance and a description of the prisoner . On being taketf into custody ^ the prisoner became flushed in countenance , and appeared suddenly seized with a tremor , which was taken by the bj-standers as indication of guilt , and therefore no time was lost in lodging him at the station-house . On being searched , a shilling , some coppers , and a letter were taken from his waistcoat pocket ; nothing

      was discovered which was supposed to have any reference to the transaction in question till theprisoner had divested himself of his waistcoat ' , when ^ the watch-pocket and a portion of prisoner ' s trousers appeared suffused with a white powder , answering the description of tbat which wits aaid to be put into the porter by the prisoner ! Three of the females who were in company ' with the prisoner in the afternoon at the Victory of China , were at'the station-house when the prisoner was brought ih , and immediately identified him as being the person who administered the fatal glass to the deceased . The prisoner , on being charged with administering poison to certain parties , gave utterance to something which was altogether unintelligible . He afterwards , however , anxiously inquired whether * 'the man who was said to have been poisoned wai dead ? " On * this point he was not then satisfied . The prisoner was then locked up . An inquest was held on the body , and the particulars detailed above were proved . ¦ - ¦ ¦

      Royal Loval Humbug.—The Quebk And Jbnnt....

      Royal Loval Humbug . —The Quebk and Jbnnt . Lind . —That beastly . journal ,. the . parsons' favourite paper , " John Bull , ' * on Sunday last , has the following disgusting morsel . We hope it will hot act as an emetic upon our readers ^ "'The Queen , as already stated , arrived before the commencement of the overture . ; Duririg the performance of the opera her Majesty gave frequent indications of the delight she experienced by bestowing her applause with on energy scarcely surpassedjby any lady in the theatre , and at the close of the opera , when the fair cantatrice was

      summoned before tbe curtain to receive the' final stamp of approbation from the audience , her Majesty so far threw aside her Queenly dignity as to cast a superb . bouquet , which'laybefore . her in the Royal box , at the feet of the debutante . The incident—certainly unparalleled onany former , occasion in this countrywas unobserved by thegreat majority of the audience all of whom were at . thismoment in an extreme state of excitement ; but 'the gracious act of condescension' did not escape the fair songstress , and a profound curtsey acknowledged the Royal recognition of her success . "

      An Atrican King and thb Qubbk op Spain . —The African King , Maria de \ Gallyna ,: has addressed a letter to her Majesty , in which he styles her his sister , and sympathises with . her Majesty and all Spaniards . He says that they are . tho only foreigners he permits to enter his vast realms . His epistle is rather a curious one—he requests her Majesty to send him » sugar-loaf shaped hat , with a long red feather : asurtoutwith the longest skirts , a cane with a gold head as large as an orange , and red trousers with a goldband . Her Majesty has determined

      on sending him all be applies ' for , and moreover , a scarlet mantle , witVgold embroidery on its collar . [ If his'woolly-headed Kingship will send' to his ' sister , " the Queen of England , there can be no doubt that" her Majesty " would forward him that duck of a hat , Prince Albert ' s Own . Such a frightful addition to his Kingship ' s head-piece would render his-Majesty invisible inwar ' . as at thesight of him , so accoutred , hi * enemies would be sure to take to their heels . Why , O Maria de Gailyna , sigh for a sugar-loaf hat , when you might be blessed with Prince Albert ' s immortal four-ananine 1 ]

      The •« Carlisle Journal" mentions that many persons on the borders have lately suffered from scurvy , which is attributed to the scarcity of vegetables . Pembboks . —Captain Child has declared his intention of again opposing Sir John Owen . Sir Jobs beat him by a considerable majority at tb / , last election *

      Irinpurai -Mvmnuw?

      irinpurai -mvmnuw ?

      „„„A Monday, - Mat 10. Mouse Op Lords. —...

      „„„ MONDAY , - Mat 10 . MOUSE OP LORDS . —Poor Relief ( Ireland ) Bat . —Their lordshi ps again went into committee on this bill , and the remaining clauses were after some discussion agreed to . , , ¦ Lord Stanm t then moved the introduction of a clause « mU « r . to tbat proposed by Lord George Bentmck in the House ot Commons , vi * ., : that it should not be lawful for any occupier of rateable property holding wu « any Uase or agreement to be made or entered into after the passing of the act , or from year to year after the 1 st of January , 1849 . to deduct from the rent to which hemsy be liable , any amount whatever In respect of any rate which may be imposed subsequent to-the date of such lease or agreement or subsequent to such

      , 1 st day of January , as the case may be . The noblo lord , in the course of a lengthened address , asked whe . ther any government would be prepared to follow out " tbe principle to its consequences bypassing a similar law for England after it had been adopted for Ireland , without a safeguard such as he proposed ! He oven doubted whether such a system would be safe in Scotland , with all tbe advances that agriculture bad made there . If , therefore , such a principle could not be trusted in England , and . was doubtful as regarded Scotland , he contended that , if applied to Ireland , it would lead to absolute and entire ruin . The only hope tor the restoration of Ireland was by making it the interest of the occupier to increase the amount of labour , which

      stimulus could only be supplied by requiring tbe occupiers to employ the labourers or support them when unemployed , and he called upon the bouse to beware how they rejected bis proposal . He sought to interfere with ho existing agreement , to violate no existing lease , but merely toaffirm a principle , sound and just in itself , that the occupier , who alone had the means of giving employment , should be made responsible for doing se . With the existing amount of pauperism in Ireland , reliel could only be expected from the : employment of an increased amount of labour , either by breaking up of new laud , or by an improved system of agriculture . That was the only safeguard ot the country ; and if his propoeition were rejected , the future improvement of Ireland would be impossible . ' ¦ :

      The Marquis of Lansdowne , in opposing the amendroent , characterized it as one which would be disastrous in every way to Ireland—hazardous to the peace of the country , and incompatible with the successful operation of the measure before tbe house . The object of the hill was to equalise the burden as between landlord and tenant , and it was essential to do this if they would carry with them the feelings of the people of Ireland in carrying out the measure . Would they be taking the best way in which to carry the feelings of the people with them , in throwing , when they were about to impose a " gnat and unknown burden ' upon Ireland , the whole burden upon the occupier , to the exemption of the laudlord ? He did not agree with Lord Stanley that they could safely or should be regardless of the imprestion

      which might be made by a measure of tbat or any other nature . ' It would be vain for them to attempt to convince tbe Irish occupier that it would be for his benefit tbat such an amendment should bo ' engrafted upon the bill . He thought that Lord Stanley would have the greatest difficulty in convincing an O'Sullivan in the county of Kerry , or an O'Brien in the county of Clare , that such would be the case . Even were the principle of the bill unjust , it mightbe expedient for the landlords to concede it to the occupier . In the matter of the Irish tithes , the church had already done this—in abandoning tbe tithes when they became difficult of collection and endangered the peace of the country . He trusted their lordships would refuse their concurrence to the

      proposition submitted to them by the noble lord . The experiment which they were about to make with regard to Ireland he could riot call a perilous , but an adventurous one , and he trusted that the house would consent to no amendment which would not only contraver t its working , out subject to unnecessary hazard the tranquillity of tbe country . After a protracted discussion , during which more than one noble lord who had voted for the limitation of the bill expressed himself opposed to the amendment before the house , Lord' Stanley , In consequence of ( Ho opposition lie oorroi i » yea against mm , wicuarewuis amendment , with the intimation of bringing it forward on the report , but not with the intention of dividing the house upon it , Tbe report was then ordered to be brought upon Friday .

      HOUSE OF COMMONS . — Use of Guiitr ik DismtEbies , and Suspension of Corn Laws . —Mr Baiihe said it had some time since been inquired of tbe government whether they contemplated introducing any measure for the restriction of the use of grain in distilleries . The answer at that time had been to the effect that no such measure was then contemplated . Since that , however , the price of corn had risen in the market some 30 s . per quarter , and thera was every probability of a further rise . Under these circumstances he thought hs might again repeat the question , whether there was any inten . tioh of prohibiting tbe use of grain distilleries ?

      Lord J . RnssEiL , —I was not prepared for thequestion , and ; therefore , I will not undertake to-day to answer it A . s it has been put , however , I may as well state that on an early day it is my ihtention ' to propose the continuance of the suspension of the duties upon the import of corn . ( Loud cries of " Hear , hear , " from the ministerial side . ) Tub Present Crisis , —The order of the day for the house to go into Committee of Supply haying been read , and the Speaker having left the chair , The Ciuncellob of the 'Exchequer submitted a resolution to allow discount at tbe rate of live per cent , to such persons as may make advances en account of the instalments of the £ 8 , 000 , 000 loan on or before the 18 th of June , and at the rate of 4 per cent , to such persons as may make advances on the instalments on or before the 10 th of September ! The Right Honourable Gentleman explained the reasons which induced him to have recourse to this measure , ' together with . the increase of the' interest on Exchequer Bills to threepence

      a day , with the h « pe of relieving the pressure on tbe money market . He said that these two measures were indispensable to maintain the credit of the government , and to ease bur monetary transactions , which they would do , not so much by the actual amount of money they will let loose , as by removing alarm and restoring eonfi dence . Ho asserted that , in all respects , the money market was easier than it had been , and he quoted tbe authority of the Governor of the Bank for saying that , considering the moderate demands made upon the deposit of Exchequer bills , considering the amount of Dutch gold that had been imported , and considering that the exchanges from America showed a likelihood of a cessation in the exportation of bullion , our monetary affairs are much improved in aspect during the last few days . But the rise in the price of grain was the cause of most serious apprehensions ; ' and to obviate tbe difficulties that might arise from that cause , the Prime Minister had taken a measure , notice of which he bad given to the

      house . ' . . _ .. ' Mr Home said tbat unless Sir R . Peel could give a better explanation of the working of the Bank Act of 1841 than the Chancellor of the Exchequer , it was full time to reconsider that measure . Mr Masterman proposed , as an , addition to the resolution , that tbe committee is of opinion that nothing would tend so much to relieve the pressure on the money market as an assurance given by the Chancellor of the Exchequer that he would apply to Parliament for powers to enable the Bank of England to make provision for any advances that might be required for the July dividends , out of the issue department ot the Bank of England , instead . of out of the banking department . The Honourable Member . declared that , in his opinion , it would be impossible for tho Bank ofEngiand , under the Act of 1844 , to meet the . demands of the government and to give the necessary public accommodation .

      . The Chairman of the Committee decided that this amendment could not be put . — Mr Brown expressed , in very strong terms , his sense of the extremity of the present pressure . Confidence , which was th « life of a commercial country , was almost extinct in the country . Men dared not enter into contracts with each ether . He'was afraid tbat the last accounts from the United States were not so flattering as to lend us to believe tbat there would be in that market a greater demand ' for our produce , or a" less demand for our gold . We must send gold to the United States or our people must starve .. He then proposed a plan for alleviating the present presfure on tbe money-market , but owing to the indistinct tene in which he spoke we are not certain that we understood it correctly ; but it appeared to us that heproposed to call in thoprecent gold circulation , and to substitute for it a portion of bank-notes , taking bullion as security for part of tbe notes so issued , and the security of the Bank for the remainder .

      Mr Newdegate observed that on tbe esperience of practical men , he had venturned topredict , in the year 1814 , that the results of the Bask Act which Parliament then passed would be such astheyhad been graphically described to be that evening . One of its most remarkable results was , tbat the Chancellor of the Exchequer had been obliged to discount his owa loan to meet the claims of tbe public creditor , and that he could not be blamed for having done * so . He ( Mr Newdegate ) had then stated , that the Bank A ^ t of-1844 was

      only a boat for fair weather , and that on the first appearance of a Btowi . it would be foand incapable of resisting its pres » ura . If the proposition of Mr Brown wers to be adoptftd , and if the Bask were to be allowed to increase the amount of its eirculatitm on securities , he hoped that that increase would be of a permanent , and not of a temporary character-, for if it were not , we should have a panic like : that which followed the ternporary issue of £ 1 notes in 182 S , and which developed itself in the course of t ' aa year 1825 . After spei-ches from Mr Porbbs aud Mr Finch ,

      Lord Q . Bentincs could only regard the expedients proposed ' by the Chancellor of the Exchequer as very miserable efforts to relieve tho pressvre of tho money market—expedients that seemed calculated rather te save the Chancellor of the Exchequer himself than to preserve the trade and commerce and monetary concerns of the country . The right honourable gentleman proposed to discount his own loan , but he had lain no foundation for thesupposHton that the contractors of the lean woul d have any desire to avail themselves of the discount of f tvo per cent , when at this moment meney was worth sev , » en and eight per cent . For his part , he was not very Sanguine of tbe success of the measure , and was of opinion that the right honourable gentleman would be compelled to call on the bank to assist h ' m with the July dividends . ' The noble lord turned to the condition of the grain market , and said he had hopoJ that the

      „„„A Monday, - Mat 10. Mouse Op Lords. —...

      . . % vernmentjWquld have . brought forward ^' mere efficient measures , seeingthat ' the price ofcorn ' h ' ad risen to 12 flt , a quarter in Mark-lane , and that stocks were very low ' in those places from whence our supplies usually come , Were they , he would ask , to go on endeavouring to bring back gold to the coffers of the Bank , at the hazard of diminishing the supply of food to the people t The Prime Minister thought tbat the re d uction of the duty on the importation of corn would remedy the latter evil ; but the noble lord should remember that , under tbe old Corn Law , no duty could at prestnt he leviable on cora .

      He could eee no early prospect of arkturn ofgold to this eountry , and yet to attain this objeet the trade and commerce of the country wsre perfectly paralysed . Lord George instanced the extraordinary fact within his own knowledge that one house , which bad in » its coffers £ 60 , 000 in silver coin , were yet wholly unable to raise money upon it . He maintained that by the . course the Government were pursuing they were starving the people in order to feed with gold the idol they had set up in the Bank Charter Act—an act that should be repealed without a moment ' s delay .

      Mr Casdwkl defended the Act of 1844 , which he contended , bad not yet had a fair trial . Mr T . Bartno asked , could the Act of 1844 be said to operate properly when respectable merchants were offering enormous discounts in order to raise even small sum ? , and when even good bills at a fortnight ' s date were refused discount ? / Was it a state of things to be permitted to continue when even the ; possessor of £ 80 , 000 of silver coin ceuid not raise money . upon it to meet his engagements , because the Bank ' of England was compelled by the Act to limit its ordinary operations ! : Without adverting to the policy of the Bank Act , he would say that it could n ' otbemade applicable to emergencies , and it could not be otherwise , at such times , than enormously injurious to the trade and commerce of the country .

      Mr Disbaem laughed at Mr Cardwell ' s assertion that the act , of 1844 had saturated England with gold , and showed , by various returns , that if England had been saturated with gold , tbe process of saturation had taken place before that act was P ^ MIiv In reply to the lamentations which some speakcrs-Maindulged , that the Bnulc had not contracted its issues ' when the danger first appeared , he showed , first , that tbe lamentation was not founded in truth ; and next , tbat by the Bank Charter , if tbe Bank had mismanaged its concerns , it was their affair and hot ours . Sir R . Peel , therefore , had no right to turn round upon the Bank as he had done ; for the conduct of the Bank was not liable to the imputations which he bad cast upon it , but was entitled to the highest praise . The Bank Act of 1814 was , however , in distress ,

      —a scape-goat must be found font ; tbe Bank of England was made that scape-goat , by an act o f injustice which could not bo tolerated and ought not to be defended . He then proceeded to show tbat it was owing to tho prudence of the Bank of England tbat we bad been enabled to import 6 , 000 , 000 quarters of wheat during tho last winter , and that we were now enabled to export to Prance some of that wheat so imported , and were thus bringing back gold to our own sbores . He then made a fierce onslaught on the act of 18-14 , contending tbat it had failed in every object which it was passed to accomplish , and that it prevented none of the mischief , but much , of the benefit , which occurred under the law in force before its enactment . Its failure had been predicted by all the great

      banking firms in Lombard-street ; and he was sure that there was not one of them who was how ashamed of the memorial which they had presented against it whilst it was yet in embryo , He further denounced that act as a great delusion , which only became a reality when it locked up that part of the . treasure of the Bank which was in the department of issue , in the coffers of the Bank . He left it , therefore , in the hands of the house to decide whether it would continue any longtr to support a measure which did not prevent fluctuations or panics—which did not regulate the amount of notes or ; bulliondid not control the arbitrary discretion of tbe Bank—and which only enabled the government to lock up £ 10 , 000 , 000 in the Bank vaults , and to throw the key afterwards into the river Thames .

      Sir R . Peei . would have been very glad if Mr DisraePreally had left it in the hands of the house to decide on the merits of tbe act of 1844 , for the house was at present discussing the treat Drjncirilp « and practice of currency in the most inconvenient form possible , and without the slightest chance of coming to any decision upon them . The Chancellor of the Exchequer made a proposition , of which he cordially approved . No sooner had he made it than Mr Masterman came to the table and proposed an amendment , which he was told could not be put from the chair without violating the ¦ usual forms of thehouse . He hoped that before tbe house consented to take a new course with respect to the currency , it would not only consider the nature of the evil with which it was called

      upon to contend , but also the great variety of the remedies proposed for it . He hoped that it would consider also whether it was a small modification of the act of 1844 which was wanted , or whether it was not a subversion of its great principle . He > then took a review of the present debate , and showed that Mr Masterman , Mr Browne , Mr Newdegate and Mr Pinch . had each proposed a different system of currency varying from a limited circulation of £ i notes for a limited time down to a per . fectly inconvertible paper currency . In the course of his comments Sir R . 'Peel called up Mr Masterman and Mr Newdf gate repeatedly to explain , and on each occasion amused the house by pointing out what he conceived thefallncy of their explanations , and by exulting over their repugnance to admit their own statements , when

      they were submitted to the house no longer obscured by rhetorical artifice . He warned the house to be cautious lest in seeking relief from the repeal of the act of 1814 it should not be incurring the risk of aggravating incalculably tb * e present difficulties of the country . We were now suffering from an unexpected scarcity of food—from a spirit of speculation which had run riot in 1843—and from an extraordinary failure of the cotton crop , which had increased to an unprecedented degree tbe price of the raw material of one of our staple manufactures . Now there was no country , exposed to the triple pressure of three such cases ; which would , not feel it aeverely , no matter what modification migh t be made in tbe charter of its bank , or what amount of £ 1 notes it might be entitled to circulate . He then repeated the declaration

      which be made on a former occasion , tbat , if experience had convinced him that the public interests required a modification of tbe banking law which he had introduced , he should ; be ashamed of himself if he wanted courage to propose the necessary modification of it . But he wanted that conviction , and therefore he eould not consent to propose any alteration in it . Had gentlemen considered what the law was to be if the act of 1844 were repealed 1 Were they anxious to restore tho law before thattime , by which thecountry hanks had tbe power of unlimited issue , and the Bank of England the powerto issue notes on its own responsibility and without reference to the exchanges ? In that case they would have no security against the recurrence of the disorders of 1838 andl 839 . The main object of the act of 1844

      wasteensure the convertibility of paper into gold , to limit the circulation ) and to prevent the temptation of giving accommodation by the issue of paper , thus purchasing temporary ease by measures which must afterwardsaggravate < every pecuniary difficulty , and lead to those ponies which inevitably produced a demand on the Bank for gold . That object even Mr T . Baring admitted that it had accomplished ; for he had told the committee tbat on the present occasion there had been no panic and norun on the Bank for gold . Heutterly denied theposition of Mr Disraeli that we had no right to criticize the proeeedings of tbe Bank , —that Bank to . which we bad granted large privileges and a great menopoly , and whioh exercised' se- much influence over . the . circulation of the country . He ¦¦ ¦ then repeated , that he gave hia

      cordial support to > the resolutions of the Chancellorof the Exchequer , but admitted that he shared in the apprehensions witb which some gentlemen viewed them . The rise in tha price of corn tbat day was not an encouraging circumstance . The pressune in tha corn market was not confined to this country , but extended to-every other in the northern parts of Europe . We must , therefore , expect an increased pressure within the-nest two or three months . He was- glnd to hear , however , of tbe prospects of improvement in . other quarters . He lamented that the difficulties of tie money market were causing embarrassment to . the-manufacturers , of

      Lancashire . If he thought that the-relaxation ef this act would afford them any . relief , he would offer no impedi . ment to it ; but it was his- firm belief that a temporary issue of 2 , 000 , 000 of . Bank notes , ' and an . advance of money on Exchequer-bills- to . tfce same amount , without an increase of capital ,, wouldi only purchase for them a temporary relief at the risk , of much greater-ultimate danger . He concluded b $ expressing a hope that we should be able to . pass- ' through the present , crisis without tampering with thoso sound principles , of curreacy which we had had so much , difficulty in re-establishing , after the long period of their suspension , in the . interval between the years 1 OT and 1819 ,

      The Marquis , of Grah & t moved the-adjournment of the debate . ' After some disoussioa the amendment % as negatived . The resolution wasagxesd to , and ordered to be reported on Tuesday . Heaub of Towxa . Bill . —Lend Morpeth ,, in post , poning the second leading of this hill to thia day , said it was not the inteation of the government to proceed with the whole measure , as he proposed it to the house , in the present session of parliament . After having many interviews on- the subject with members of the Metropolitan Health of Towns Association , they proposed tc confine the bill to those towns that had corporationa —to those , in fact , to which the Municipal Reform Act extended , and which had regularly-constituted bodies , by whom the powers preposed to be given by this bill mightbe applied . They would drop that provision of third

      tho hill which enabled tie crona to nominate oneof the commissioners ,. ( Hear . ) It was not their intention to include the metropolis in the till , not tbat he did not think it less requir ed it , but he thought with the Enrl of Lincoln that it was largo enough to form the subject of aseparate bill . The bill would give the com . missioned the power of constructing gas and water , works where none existed , and of contracting witti gaa and water companies where they did exist . They proposed that the value of the property should he . ftstim Aed as in the Land Consolidation Clauses Act . These n ire the chief points of the bill which excited opposition . He hoped that next session they vould have more leisure to apply themselves to the bill Jfor the metropolis than they could devote to . it at present , when more press , ing , though he could hard hardly suy more important matters demanded their attention . ( Hear , hears ) The house adjourned at a quurter . nast one J ,

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), May 15, 1847, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_15051847/page/7/