The impatience of the public to know the result of
the struggle in the House of Commons last night, between the Ministerial attempt to alter the Sugar, Timber, and Corn duties, and Lord Sandon's counterresolution not to touch the first of those imposts, has been disappointed; for the debate was adjourned till Monday.
The first who broached the subject, early in the evening, was Mr. O'CONNELL; who gave notice, that when in Committee on the Sugarduties, he should move a resolution to the effect that any diminution of the duty on foreign sugar shall be strictly limited to the produce of free labour, and may not be extended in any way to sugar the produce of slavery. [How would Mr. O'CONNELL distinguish between the two ? has he any chemical test by which a Custom-house officer might tell one from the other ?]
Before the contest began, there was a parade of the influences brought to the support of either side from without. Important petitions against the Government propositions were presented from the Society of Shipowners of London, the Chamber of Commerce and Manufactures of Glasgow, the merchants and inhabitants of Liverpool, the Colonial Society, the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, (the name of " Thomas Clarkson" being the first appended to it,) the Association of West India Planters in Glasgow,from Bath, from 400 planters, merchants, and others interested in the West Indian Colonies, and the West India Association of Dublin ; besides a petition from the merchants of St. Vincent, and twenty-six from Barbadoes and Jamaica, against alteration of the Sugarduties. Petitions in favour of the Government propositions were presented from the Brazil merchants of Liverpool, the American Chamber of Commerce of Liverpool, the merchants and manufacturers of Kendal, the sugar-refining trade of London, the Corporation of Gateshead, and from several places in the country.
Lord Jona RUSSELL then stated, that when the House went into Committee on the Corn-laws, he should propose to fix the duties—on wheat at 8s. a quarter, on rye at Sc., on barley at 4s. 6d., and on oats -at 3s. 6d.
Then began the fight. The order of the day, for a Committee of "Ways and Means having been read, Lord JOHN RUSSELL, as the question had been enlarged from its merely financial character to be a great political and national question, would not trust it to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, but threw all his own ability and energies into the first onset. He began a long speech, which comprised a forcible exposition of the common arguments in favour of the proposed changes, by declaring -that the imputation against Government, that the scheme was a sudden manceuvre, was most unjust : it had been determined upon early in the year—before Mr. Labouchere had brought forward his resolutions to alter the Imperial duties in the Colonies, and that was on the 11th March : and on the very day that the Budget was brought forward, Lord John received a letter from Lord Sydenham, in Canada, showing that he had been apprised of the intention of Ministers. In fact, long ago Government was aware of the increasing financial difficulties of the country ; and when the military proceedings in Canada, China, and Syria, with domestic insurrection at home, called for increased expenditure, they perceived that it would be necessary to devise means of augmenting the revenue, without adding to the burdens of the people. Lord John went on to argue against the affected humanity which was now opposed to a Government who had been the first to interfere to protect the females of the West Indies hom flogging, and to purchase the entire freedom of the slaves : under their measures the condition of the Negroes had been changed and improved ; they had turned to other occupations than sugar-growing, and to them that trade was no longer necessary. The Negroes having been thus benefited, let humanity turn its regard to the sufferers of Bolton and Manchester. He exposed the subtle artifice of Lord Sandon's resolution, which went to upturn the Government proposal without containing one word which would pledge its opponents not to do the very same thing hereafter which they now condemned. Lord John threw upon the House the responsibility of refusing the prosperity which would result from the Government scheme.
Lord SANDON said, that the subject was not merely mercantile, but it involved questions of morality ; while the contemplated changes were purely gratuitous. He defied Lord John to show that there would be any deficiency of sugar in the coming year. He showed that the consumption of British manufactures had been increasing lately in both West and East Indies; a consumption which must be suddenly checked, if, the great sugar-growing countries of Cuba and Brazil being admitted to the competition, the sugar-trade of the British possessions were destroyed ; while he ridiculed the idea, that Brazil, which threatened to enforce restrictive measures against British trade, would really go to Germany to buy dear articles in order to compel this country to purchase a little of her sugar. He moved the resolution of which he had given notice.
Mr. Bono, the East India Director, seconded the motion ; and averred -that those who would really benefit by the proposed change of the Sugar-duties would be the great Slave-countries ; and that they would do so in the order of their guilt—Cuba first, and Brazil next ; for no country could compete with their immense powers of production : the productive power of Cuba, compared to the best parts of the East Indies, was as six to one.
The debate which followed exhibited a strange disarrangement of the Ministerial party. Mr. HAWES supported Government : but two other Members abandoned their side,—Mr. HANDLEY, who, -opposed to the alteration of the Corn-duties, could not disconnect them 'with the other duties in the present scheme ; and Dr. Lusianioacie, who -declared, on Anti-Slavery grounds, that the Ministerial measure for 'reducing the Sugar-duties "would not remove their financial difficulties, would lower them in the face of Europe, would degrade them in their -own opinion, and would not remove a portion of the sufferings of the +people of this country." On the other hand, Mr. JAMES, a Jamaica proprietor, characterized Lord John's as the most statesmanlike speech that he had heard for several years. Dr. Lushington was the last speaker ; and when he had done the debate was adjourned. The presentation by Earl FITZWILLIAM of a petition with 25,000 signatures, from Leeds, for repeal of the Corn-laws, gave rise to a de. sultory conversation in the House of Lords, which was only remarkable for a speech from the Duke of WELLINGTON against any change. Petitions were presented also of the same kind with those in the House of Commons.
In reply to Lord ELLENDOROUGH and the Duke of WELLINGTON, ViSCOIGH MELBOURNE said that the Government had disallowed Captain Elliot's convention with the Chinese Commissioner : he believed that the island of Hong-Kong had been taken possession of under that convention.
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