7 MARCH 1846, Page 14

SCARCITY OF BUTCHER-MEAT.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SPECTATOR.

Westminster, 2d March 1846.

Silt—In your paper of Saturday last, tinder the head of " Free-trade Con- tagious," you assume that the English Corn-law has created scarcity and de- teriorated the quality of food; and you show "s parallel case " in France, where the consumption of butcher-meat has diminished eleven per cent in ten years, owing "to. the duties levied at the frontier on imported cattle ; and you say that there are " thus indissolubly associated in the public mind of France two ideas— scarcity of animal food, and duties on the importation of foreign cattle." In another that of the same paper, you state from the Smithfield report of the Times, that the prospect of an extraordinary rise in the price of mutton and meat generally is no longer a question of doubt but clear certainty, unless some means he taken to meet the consumption"; which means appear, for the reasons specified, to be unattainable. Now, Sir, I never heard or read of any such scarcity or extraordinary rise in price in this country while the importation of foreign cattle was prohibited; and now that they are admitted all but duty-free, and it seems certain that total abolition of duty will not prevent the scarcity and rise in price, there will be indissolubly associated in the public mind of England, if your ideas as to France be correct, wo ideas—scarcity, and abolition of duties! I doubt not you can reconcile this obvious contrariety of the cases of France sad-England: and, apart from this point of contrast, I entreat you, as one of the few real reasoners on the Free-trade question, to give your most serious con- sideration to this amazing announcement from Smithfield. I have the honour to be, Sir, your very obedient bumble servant, Iononamos. [The Smithfield rise in price lea thing of a week or a month, or it may be a year: but the deficient supply and rise of price in France had been going on steadily for a long course of years.]