The New York Herald Newspaper, May 24, 1850, Page 3

| | any sentiment of locality, quite in: lerent to ij Anterests; themselves at a distance ‘rom their o families and ordi: connections, de! without defence to afl kinds of s+ Deing to-create in various loc! = mament, ie )orities alt “Tt is possible--it is urgent—to contre awa’ ‘this danger. The “constitntion, inf xing the elec. tion in each department,and in (he chief fown of the ‘canton, reguires that each elector sin!) vote in the R . he resides; that is, accowling to the etnias ithe evil code, in the lice where he ee 7 pel establishment nthe place ural its, in acceptation of (he word, am from which he removes only with the intention of, geturning. “This provision is an excedingly prideat one; ix saecepting the elector in the midst of his friends, vunder the eye of his neighbors, and amongst his 4- sanestic interests, it places him as much as possidle ualies the influence of gcod sentiments and good c ““is the electoral law, in coatenting itself with a ‘habitation of six months, in conformity with these principles, so eminently salutary ! We do pot think so. The domicile, in general, results fom the dura- tion, the continuity of habitation. [np civil law, that duration is undetermined; the appreciation of the fact and of the intention, is «indoued to the + magistrates. It ought not to be so in electoral mat- ters. In order that the list be exempt from all sus- picion of fraud, the conditions of the electoral do- micile ought to be regulated ani determined by the Jaw itself. “We propose to you to cause the electoral domi- » eile to result from’ a habitation continued during three years, that is, a period equal tothe legislature. This domicile: will thus possess bona fide and moral character, and the elector will not be a stran- ger im the place he votes. “The circumstances which estublish the dura- tion of habitation are, by our laws, abandoned to the appreciation of the magistrates. The electoral domicile, for the reasons just assigned, ought to depend on conditions defined by the !aw itself; nothing ought to be left to the arbitrary decision 01 passions. “Of the different circumstances which charac- terise the continuity of habition during three years, the most manifest and most universal is the in- scription on the list of personal tax ‘ “ According to the jaw of the 22d of April, 1832, all the inhabitants of France are inscribed on that list for the place of their real domicile, on the sole condition ‘of not being reported indigent. We propose to you to decide that the inscription for three consecutive years shall suilice as proof of habitation. Does that mean that they who do not pay the contribution, because they ) perty—they who cannor pay a contr maximum of which cannot exceed 4fi are to be excluded? No, gentlemen, we » certain mode of ascertaining the existence and continuity of domicile, and we have adopted the inscription on the list of the personul tax as the surest and most general mode, but not as the only way of proving it. “Thus, any one being of age who lives under his father’s roof, without exercising any protession or having any mode of existen the personal tax, because he possesses nothing but what he obtains from the liberality of his parents. ‘We propose that he should be placed on the electo- ral list, as having the domicile of his parents, and on the simple declaration of these la “ Thus, paid servants and workin ing with heir masters, have, in virtue of Art. 109 of the Civil Code, the same domicile as the persous em- ploying them. Although they are exempt fromthe personal tax, We propose to you that they be placed on the electoral lists, when they shall have for three years remained in the same place. “Thus, soldiers and seamen on active service havea fixed residence,which the law substitutes for their natural residence—that is, of their parents, since they ere still underage when Uiey commence their service. According to the bill, they shall continue to be placed on the electoral list of their commune, although they are not subject to the per- sonal tax. see ae public functionaries shall be placed on the list of the commune where they exercise their functions. “ Thus, in fine, in the communes where the per- sonal tax is done away with by the octroi duty, the imposables, though freed from the tax, shall be looked on as having paid it, and shall be so placed on the list. “This, without doubt, is sufficient to show that, according to the constitution, we do not intend to make the right of voting depend on any pecuniary qualification. but that we intend to fix the votes in the departments and cantons where each elector has his residence. * We desire to have a real residence, free from alitrick and fraud ; we wish to see elections of a incere and serious character, clear from all intla- ence or intrigue, from all intoxication of passion —that is what we want; that is what, like us, you must desire, and if by our common efiorts we suc- ceed, we may still reckon, in the country, on the | triumph of right and reason. *t second point in which the electoral law of 1849 essentially defective, is the apprecia- tion of the motives of electoral incapacity. “That jation, according to the constitution, is confided to the law. The electoral law, it says in Art. 2, shall declare the causes which are to de- prive a citizen of the right of voting. Such is the Object of Art. 3 of the law of 1549. . * But the cay oped blind causes fort — lay capacit! to us rly narrow. us, for inkence, inorder to axelade from the electoral lists thieves, swindlers, persons abusing confidence, per- sons committing acts against morality, Wc., it is re- quired thet the condemnation should extend to three months’ imprisonment. “ Who does not see that men sullied by such acts are unworthy to be inscribed on the electoral list, whatever may be the duration of his punishment t ‘The law is silent relative to persons guilty of rebel- lion, offences against the authorities, or acts against the laws which punish riots or aftroupements, form- ing part of clubs or secret societies. If there are any men justly worthy of reprobation, it is those who in their own persons have throwa a shade on the | character of a citizen by causing disorder in society, or by abusing the confidence placed in them. T' Jaw is silent also with respect to vagabondage and “Is it in such hands that the destinies of our ony can he placed ? We jwopose to you a new enumeration, of a more complete character, relative to eleetoral ine capacities. In thas rendering the electoral list amore and more pure, you will have done more for the caver of order than you perhaps could have suppose, for you will have deprived factions of the :nost active instruments, their at indefati- gable agents. After having replaced each elector an his natural position in the midst of his farnily and in presence of kis real , You will protect his honesty, and sometimes his ignorance ; you will remove from him his worst enemies. “ The third point which we have to point out to your notice, is not less important than the two pre- ceding ones. ‘iy the terms of Arts. 63 and 64 of the law which now governs us, the relative majority is sufficient for the validity of an election, provided the votes ere not less than one-eighth of the whole of the electors inscribed on the list of the depart- , ment. It follows that thus, on the first ballot, a per- gon may be elected without having the real ma- jority. 2 “Such a combination has for result in their indolence and in their timidity the «disposed to abstain from voti “We propose to you to declare invalid every election which has not at least on the first ballot one-fourth part of the votes inscribed, and the ab- solute majority of the electors voting. On the se- cond ballot, a relative mee will suffice, a fourth part being sull required ; whilst on a third ballot a relative anajority will be enough, no matter what the number of voters may be. . “We have thought that the inconveniences at- tendant on such repeated ballots would be less than are seen under the present system. The sincerity of elections is the only object which we have en- deavored to attain; you will judge, gentlemen, whether we have succeeded. * It only remains for us te Se two goer ven ate only in part connected with the princi- ¢.of the Under consideration. ‘When a vacancy takes place in the Assembly, the ernment is bound to convoke the electors within forty de in order to provide for it. This delay appes ustoo short. An obligation so narrow ‘imposed on the government, multiplies the crises whieh are always the result of an election under the empire-of universal suffrage, and too often leads to egitation and di in the country. We propose to you to extend this delay to six months, which will-frequently permit the causes of agitation to be 5 ing at the same time to a certain number of re-elections. “A last modification has appeared to us essen- tial, The vote is secret, as expressed in the con- stitution, and nevertheless every one knows by the present organization of the votes of the army, that the vote is public, at least as to its results. [tis known evon before the ballot isopened in the other electoral eg This is an abuse to which it is ensy to apply a remedy. pro clare iv he Jaw that the bulletins of the military electors shall not be examined in the section where they were delivered, but transmitted, after having been sealod up in presence of the bureau, to the pre- fect of each department, and confounded in the same umes with the bulletins of the other electors; in that aener every distinction will be rende mpossible. “We do not enter into any explanation a yen ng two or three transitory articles which will ex- plain theanselves. The most —— of these is that whieh maintains in forer the existing law in Algeria and the colonies, until such movement those parts of the territory of the republic shall have reecived their definite constitution. According to ‘i ot organization, the law whieh we now Sing torwasd would be of difficult application. We propose to you to de- | “Such, gentlemen, are the grave modificatious whch we propose to you to introduce into our elegtoral system. We have desired to remain within of the constitution ; but at the same we have used the latitude and liberty which it us, to remedy the imperfections of the Pant these changes meet with your approbation, ye shall have succeeded in reassw ng _men’s ninds, in restoring confidence to the public, and ypening for our country the paths of property: 1" Such is our desire and our hope. it should be otherwise—which God forbid! we shall at iews! ‘have the conviction to have attempted loyally und without arriére-pensée all that the constitutioa per pat to undertake, in order to ensure to univer- sal suffrage all jts sincerity and truth, condinons without which it cannot bé the real expression of the opinion of the country. wiry a ‘tthe following is the text of the bill itself: — “Art. 1. In the twelve days which follow the promulgation of the present law, the electoral list shall be drawn up iv each commune by the Mayor “Art. 2. It shall comprise by alphabetical or- der:— “Ist. All Frenehmen 21 years of age, in the enjoyment of their civil and political mghts, and residing in the same commune for three years at least. “2dly. Those persons who not having attained, when the law shall be drawn up, the conditions of age and domicile, shall attain them before the list shall be datnicely closed. “Art 3. The electoral domicile shall be deter- mined and proved:— “Ist. By inscription oa the list of the persenal tax. “2dly. By the declaration ofthe father or mother in what concerns sons who, being of age, reside in the paternal house; and who, by application of Art. 12 of April 22, 1832, have not been set down on the list of the personal tax. / “Sdly. By the declaration of masters in what con- cerns servants or persons working habitually in the same house with them. n 4 “4ihly. By the exercise of public functions in a deiermined locality. ° “Sthly. By actuel service in the army or navy. “Art. 4. The declaration of the fathers, mothers, or masters, shall be made in writing, on forms de- livered gratuitously. This declaration shall iven to the Mayor, and renewed each year from Jec. 1 to 31. “The fathers, mothers, and masters, who can- not make these declarations in writing, are to come forward themselves, with two witnesses resident in the commune, before the mayor, to make their declaration, «Every false declaration shall be liable to a fine of from T00tr. to 2,000fr., and an imprisonment of from six months to two years, and an interdiction to vote during five years at least, and ten years at most, ** Art. 5. Whoever shall leave the commune on the list of which he is inscribed, shall continue to be borne on that list for three years, with the condi- tion of justifying, in the manner stated in Art. 3 of the present law, his domicile in the commune where he shall have fixed his new residence. * Art. 6, Shall not be inscribed in the electoral list persons mentioned in Arts. 1,2, 3, 5,6, 7, and 8, of the law of March 15, 1849. ‘*2dly. The individuals mentioned in Art. 4 of the sume law, whatever may be the length of the have been imprisoned. time for which vhs. “*Sdly. Persons known by the names of officiers ministeriels, such as avoués, avocats, &c., who have been condemned forillegal acts. “4thly. Persons guilty of violence to public agents, or of offence against the laws on rioting, or on clubs, or seeret societies. “ Art. 7, Soldiers shall continue to be distributed injeach locality, in electoral sections, by department. “ Their bulletins shall be collected and sent to the chief town of the department in a sealed packet, and mixed up with the votes given in the sections of the chief town, * Art. 8. No person can be elected on a first bal- lot, if he has not obtained a number of votes equal to the fourth of the electors inscribed on the totali- ty of the lists of the department, and one-half Vs one of all the votes given. On a second ballot, which is to take place on the second Sunday after the proclamation of the result of the first ballot, no person can be elected if he shall not have obtained a fourth part of the electors inscribed, and the rela- tive majority. “On the third ballot, which is to take place the fourth Sunday after the day of the proclamation of the result of the second ballot, the election shall take place by a relative majority only, whatever may be the number of votes obtained. “Art. 9 In case of vacancy, from resignation, death, or other causes, the electoral college which is to fill up the vacancy is to meet in a delay of six months. ‘Art. 10. In the towns where the contingent per- sonnel ct mobilier is paid in part or wholly trom the moanicipal funds, the list of the tax payers for the personal tax drawn up by the collectors and their assistants, and which serves to determine the sum to be ey by the commune, shall be each year sub- mitted to the municipal council. “The inscription on the list of the tax payers shall he equivalent to that of the personal taxation. “Transitory Article.—For the preparation of the electoral lists drawn up in virtue of the present bill for the year 1850, all the regulations prescribed by the law of March 15, 1849, in what regards delays and representations shall be observed, und the lists shall be closed three months after the promulga- tion of bill. “The declarations epoken of by article 3, shall be made within twenty days after the promulga- tion. Every individual who shall not have three ears’ residence in the commune where he shall appen to reside at the moment of the promulga- tion of the bill, shall be inscribed on the electoral list of the commune where he previously resided, if he can prove three years’ residence in conformity with article 3. * The annual revision of the lists for the other years shall be made at the periods and according to the rules determined on by Art. 2 of the law of March 15, 1849. “ Shall continue to be executed for the elections of Algeria and the colonies, the provisions of the law of March 15, 1849, until the promulgation of the organic laws spoken of in Art. 109 of the constitu- tion takes place.” ili Ihave the honor, continued the hon. Minister, after the abs ve exposé de motife and bill had been lis- tened t with the deepest silence, to ask you, gentle- men, to declare urgency. There are certain ques tions which, when once brought forward, cannot be postponed without danger. The agitation which it was sought te produce onthe mere announcement of the law—(loud exelamations on the left)—will be, perhaps, prolonged until your decision has been come to. I, therefore, beg —_ to declare urgency for the measure. That declaration will not in an) way prejudice the right which the committee will have to examine whether there is or is not reason to definitely declare it. 1, therefore, feel convinced that you will take the demand for urgency into con- sideration. ‘The Presinent—The previous bares has been demanded, and with the public ballet at the tribune. Whiie the division was taking place, a great agi- tation prevailed in the Assembly. The result of the division was as follows Number of voters Absolute majorit: Ayes Noes Majority. . . 256 ‘The motion for the previous question was conse- quently rejected. The question of = into consideration was the: voted by a large majority. ed against it. Assembly then rose, at half past five, in con- the demand for urgency mn put from the chair General Cavaignac vot- siderable agitation. Important Movement France—The Dis- franchisement of Three Millions of Voters. {From the London Times, May 10.) | ‘The decisive measure for limiting the universal | suffrage of the pe of France has been presented to the National Assembly by the ministers of the republic, with the full concurrence and support of President, and of all shades of the majority in that body, with more promptitude and resolution than could be expected from so miscellaneous a party ; and the first vote, which determined that the bill be taken imto instant consideration, was carried at once by a majority of no less than 453 votes to 197. As far, therefore, as the go- vernment and the legislature are concerned, there is no doubt that, under the pressure of the late elections, they are act in perfect concert to subdue the power which threatens to consign the political and social interests of France to per- dition, and that the present bee mee Tepresent- ing, as it. does, the universal choice of the people, sees sufficient reason to set bounds to that ihlind three years—a period which seems to have been named because it coincides with the duration of the legislature. There is something in the proposed enactment that a of is to disfranchise an elector, or that, whatever other qualifications a citizen may possess, if he chances ¢ to to remove within that period from one another, he leaves his vote behind him. important considerations connected with sure are to be estimated more by its effects than by its principle. It preserves the suflr of the set- ted householder, it disfranchises the whole wander- ing population ; it disfranchises the whole class of domestic servants and workmen, unless they shall beve lived three years in ped pom which is, in itself, aconsiderable test of good conduct and capa- city; it disfranchises all beggars, vagrants, and persons convicted of misdemeanors, whether for private or political offences; and it retains the votes of soldiers and seamen, supposing them to be enti- Ued to such votes in their personal capacity, upon the rolls of their own commune. The test of resi- dence is to be inscription on the ratebooks of per- sonal taxes, Which, however, may be supplied for persons not so inscribed by the declaration of resi- dence by parents for their children, or of masters for their workmen. In all future elections, the successful candidate must poll a majority consisting of not less than one-fourth of the whole number of electors for the department. The period durin; which elections must take place, in consequence o! vacancies by death or otherwise, is to be extended from forty days to six months. And the votes of the army, instead of being taken and announced separate! Y: ure to be transmitted secretly to the prefect of the department, and mixed by him with the general votes of the civil constituency. The question which naturally presents itself on the perusal of such a bill is, what is the extent of the proposed disfranchisement? If the period of three years be definitively retained in the law, we suspect the reduction in the electoral lists will be anes great—in fact, not very far short of the vast stride froin universal suffrage to household sut- frage. For, if the payment of the personal taxes is to be the chief test of domicile, the number of sons of upwards of twenty-one residing in their father’s house, or of servants, workmen and laborers having served three years under one employer, would pro- si bear a very inconsiderable proportion to the whole population. The peasant proprietary of France, which forms the basis of the conservative party, is essentially resident and stationary, and that portion of the nation would therefore retain all its electoral power. But the population of the towns is fluctuating and uncertuin. 1t comprises all the workmen of the various trades, or compagnons, as they are termed, who perform between the ages of 18 and 30, the tour de France. It includes large masses of human beings dependent on charity or on accident, driven about by all the vicissitudes of life. hese are obviously the readiest dupes of political agitation, the most reckless an election, the fore t ata fray; from all such persons the fran- chise in that unsettled period of their lives will be, withdrawn. We hardly venture to hazard a con- pee as to the numbers which may be aflected y such a law, but, considering in every commu- nity the great numerical amount of the Boating. ele- ments of society, we shall not be surprised to learn. that such a measure will disfranchise a fourth of the population, and that it would fall in even a larger proportion on the population of the cities. But we offer this as no more than a rough guess, the elements of such a calculation not being before us. In France the disfranchisoment has been loosely estimated at from 2,000,000 to 5,000,000. The debate on the law may probably throw some light on this part of the subject. That which admits of no doubtis, that the object and effect of the measure are to exclude from the exercise of the suffrage a very numerous body of persons who do now enjoy it by virtue of the con- stitution of 1848; and the next question is how these persons will receive such a proposal? There is no doubt that the leaders of the republican party, who are not themselves immediately menaced by it, in- asmuch as no general election can occur for two years, are by no means disposed to risk their seats and their pay in the present Assembly for another 13th of June. But they have considerable and in- creasing difficulty in repressing their more ardent and needy followers, and it cannot be denied that a measure of this extent does constitute a most formidable and direct attack, not, indeed, on the republic, but on that machinery of the consti- tution by which the republic itself is condemned to sink from democracy to socialism, from so- cialism to utter lawlessness. The National Assem- bly will, in the exercise of its supreme authority, vote this law, and give a most decided manifesta- tion of its will asopposed tothe revolution. Will the revolutionary pat id especially the popu- lace of Paris, and whoa electors, are more near- ly aflected by it than the rest of the nation—will they yield implicit obedience to the law, which is pre-eminently, thongs not ostensibly, a law of re- fronton passed on Pans and the other Gat cities, by the lawful authority of France? We do not pretend to prejudge the result, but the soundest opinion seems to be, that no resistance will at pre- sent be attempted, and that no conflict will take place. Inthe course of the ensuing debate, we shall probably discover what force the republican party may put forth, in addition to the violent fac- tion of the Mountain, for the first division on bringing in the bill includes many votes which will fall off on the amendments. it already it appears that Generals Cavaignac and Lamoriciere have definitively broken with the majority on this question, and detached themselves from the party of the government, to which, as military men, they owe all their Ci sagert the bs fe ee o speak more plain) ,u jncreasi jealousy an disecnsions of the African Generals form no incon- siderable addition to the perils of the republic and of France ; for while these efforts are made by the Assembly, and these causes of irritation may agi- tate the people, General C! ris the man who sustains the tottering edifice, and who is pre- pared, if we are not mistaken, to to the most vigorous measures on the first tunity which may present itself. Thejred chiefs are no less anxious to postpone the occurrence of such an opportunity to the latest moment ; but when that moment comes, poe bo may command will be in proportion to the pe: ascendancy of their rincipal antagonist, and eventually the fate of rance will be decided by military leaders rather than by Legislative Assemblies or paper constitu- tions. Whe Effect of European and California opin, emp cows From the London Times, May 4 There have been times within t last thirty years, when it seemed a general opinion that we were to have no more considerable c' age of gold, the age of herom#m, the the age of romance, have all 3 and it was ht probable that the age of novelties would soon belong to age No more it events; no more convulsions of nature or of men; no more tides of lation, and new creation of empires ; no founda’ of it families, no new fountains of wealth. The dull wonders of science and the slow achievements of art were to occupy the place of human as well as celestial predigies. There was atime when the granite ceased to heave, and the earth assumed its final form ; and in like man- ner it was believed that we had passed the period of sudden transitions, and had entered one of gra- dual developement. All these anticipations have poe or —“ by an beg wus —_ jen! to the Crusades, to the conquests the Northmen, the invasion of the Saxons, the ir- ruption of the northern hordes upon Rome, the foundation of Grecia Magna, the return of the Herachda, the ro of ‘elasgi, and the ob- secure origins of nations. We need no more envy the past. There are before our eyes two events which for grandeur, for suddenness, for the strangeness of their manner and causes, and for their probable consequences, surpass any whereof history ean tell. Every year a quarter of a million are flying from these isles to the New World,while, as it ns, a third, or perhaps half of that num- ore ' tening from the eastern to the western shores of that continent. The necessities of exis- tence drive the former across the Atlantic; cupidity draws the latter through every isthmus, pass, or track by which they can reach the en sands.— It is hard to say which race is the fiercest, the most painful, and the most calamitous; but the of poverty do not undergo less misery and peril than the dupes of wealth. In their origin and cir- cumstances nothing can be more different and in- dependent than the two migrations. What can be more wonderful, then, than the coincidence by which two events, either of them the astonishment of an age, should happen together, and — so as to neutralize the WPeftects of one another ‘The American emigration to California is already felt, in the disproportionate withdrawal of men, of skill, and of capital. Such a loss would tell any- where, but nowhere so severely as in a young and enterprising community sp over @ vast conti- miracles, and unreflecting force of numbers which the revo- lution had let loose on the country. Sooner or later, no doubt could reasonably be entertained that the experiment of universal suffrage, as pat in practice by the French republic, would come to an end, under pain of bring toanend the m itself which was condemned to submit to the sa- | premacy of the passions, the delusions, and the ig- | norance of the multitude. Such institutions are | usually terminated by the force of the reaction | which they themselves create, and the presump- tion was that France would some day pass, by a fresh convulsion, from the excess of universal suf- frage to the despotism of a military dictator. It would certainly evince a far higher degree of rea- son and self-control in the midst of great dangers, | if the representatives of the people could them- selves set bounds to these irregular forces, and pre- serve the republic from the abuses of popular go- verpment. The measure itself has been framed with great care by the most experienced members ot the Preneh 1. ture, and its conditions are even more effective than we had been led to anticipate. ‘The first and most important condition is thw residence in the same commune for not less thao nent, and foe as mach in opening comrmuni- cations as in cultivating the soil. The lation of the Western States, whose very idea of is the “far West,” are smitten with the Californian fevereven more than their older settled fellow-citi- zens on the Atlantic. They are throwing up their farms, relinquishing improvements, and sacrificing their property on any terms, to join the mad race. Crops have been left to rot, for a land whose harvest is gold. Michigan, which, the otherday, was a wil- derness, is now a populous State, with cities, ports, railways, canals, and lines of communication eastward to the Atlantic, and southward to the Gulf of Mexico. Never was there so rapid a rise, and so sure a promise of prosperity. Yet a la: proportion of the people, we are assured, areactually preparing to quit their new country a newer iil, nn to encounter hardships, perhaps not much greater than they now endure, but more speedily productive. Even the old States feel the drain of their better blood. pensate for this check on the inerease of popa- lation, the United States would by this time probebly be on the eve of some great social catas. trophe; for such there will generally be whenever the relations of capttal and labor are seriously de® ranged. It is most fortunate, not to say providen- tial, that this sudden demand on the resources and people of ee ae Say ong with the came i igration, w! more ry 3 the places of the Californian adventurers, It is fortunate for the States, and fortunate for the immigrants, who find vacancies ready made for them to step into. So fer from the tex suflering any inconvenience from the immense yearly addition to their . and so far from the new arrivals fading. vee im the way, Michigan alone would easily give hold- ings and occupation to the whole European immi- gration. 4 When the New World is spoken of, itis common- ly forgotten that there is a newer world still, ay resenung itself to our notice and interest. The Preitic is full of beautiful islinds, and inhabited generally by harmless and tractable races, West of it lie’ the civilized but inhospitable empires of China and Japan, the Indian Archipelago, and the Biiush colonies of Australia and New Zealand. Its eastern Limit is the narrow strip of coast under that vast chain of mountains, which has been ap- propriately called the back bone of the world. Fintherto distance and other obstacles have pre- vented European civilization from assuming its pro- 4 ascendaney in and on both sides of the Pacific. etthere cannot be a greater work, or one worth- ier of this age. The Atlantic is now to Europe what the Mediterranean was to the ancients, and it remains to render the Pacific an inlanc sea. It is not dominion or political ascendancy we are thinking of, but science, arts, manners, and religion. The great difficulty hitherto has been the unattractive character and position of the western coast of America, the rugged bar of the Andes, at Panama, andthe stormy circuit of Cape Horn. But time, or Providence, has cut the knot. The same glit- tering bribe that drew all Spain to South and Cen- tral America three centuries ago, and thus acted so important a partin the peopling of the world, now performs a like office in drawing the popula- tion of the States, like an overflowing stream, over the Isthmus to the western shore of North America. Once settled there, even if gold should fail at last, they will find other and better employment. The Pacific will soon be fringed with cities speaking our tongue, possessing our religion, and obeying laws he genuine offspring of ours. [1 is impossible but that British and Anglo-American influence should pervade that greut ocean, and soften the inveterate jealousy of China and Japan. Our route to Aus- iralia end New Zealand will be shortened by some thousand miles; and these settlements will soon trade with a coast, opposite to them, at the distance of a few weeks’ sail, and streiching almost from the Arctic to the Antartic Zone. Already there ere many ships from the ports of China, Jand, res from Sydney, in the harbor o! cisco. r Happily, California, and thew hole coast of the Pacific, possess other recommendations than the seductive, and, it is said, shortlived possession of gold. Some of our geologists have down, from the example of the gold-washing in the Oural Mountains, and the long exhaused gold mines and Avers of Europe, that the accessible supply of gold in California is very limited, and is not recruited by the ordinary operations of nature. It may be so, but the produce of the placeras continues to in- crease ; new beds of gold, one richer than another, are continually announ } hew methods are tried with success ; the sk and industrious seem sure of their booty ; and it is surmised that by the time the great oe shall have been taken, the search itself will be reduced to a certain average, such as will amply remunerate a large population of gold-hunters. For many years, then, we think there is very little doubt that California will con- tinve to attractjthose who wish a royal road to weelth, and will reward them, if not with the very object of their search, at least with a comfortable home in a fertile country, under a genial atmos- borhood. Most of the supply was of good quality and in fair condition, which facilitated the sale, and a clearance was made without difficulty at prices 1s. to 2s, per quarter bigher shan those ‘cur- Tent on that day week. On W. rere de fresh up by land carriage samples from the home counties, the arrivals coastwise were seanty in the extreme ; sellers endeavored, therefore, to es- tablish 4 further advance, and in some cases day’s rates were rather exceeded. This morni: the transactions were again on a somewhat retall seale, but where sales were made, Is. per quarter more was realized. The total supply of wheat from abroad since the close of last week. has emounted to only 3,030 quarters, but several lots of flour have been reeeived from France, | which has, to a certain extent, interfered with the sale of foreign wh ‘The transactions on Mon- day were not extensive, bui the business done was | wt rates fully Is. per qr. wbove those before paid. Importers heve since demanded higher prices for | Rertock, Dantzic, and other qualitics most esteem- ed by our millers ; und needy buyers were in many instances obliged to accede io a further rise to-day, | 43s., and even 44s. per quarter. having, we be- | lieve, been realized for fine Rostock. The | top-quotation of town made flour has remained | nominally unaltered, but fresh country, and the | best deseription of foreign manufacture, have | risen Is. per sack in value since our last.— | The continuance of eold weather has induced | some of the malsters to continue work beyond | the usual time, and the few lots of fine English | barley brought to market have found takers at an advance of Is. per quarter. For foreign a steady demand has been experienced, and, the receipts having fallen off, prices have crept up 6d. to 1s, per quarter. In malt there has not been much doing, but the improvement in other articles has caused sellers to insist on full terms. Up to Jast Saturday night we hed very liberal supplies of foreign oats, but since then the arrivals have been quite moderate. The principal dealers being, how- ever, well stocked, have not purebased very freely; and factors, anticipating an advance, have landed a portion of the recent importations. On Monday a moderate amount of business was done at prices 6d. per quarter above those current on that day se’nnight, and a similar advance was demanded this morning, which caused purchasers to act cau- Uously, and the seles were not important. 5 and peas rose fully Is. per quarter on Monday, and have still an upward tendency. Very high prices have been asked for floeting cargoes of Indian corn, which has checked business, and comparatively few bargains have been closed. Messrs. Baring’s Circular. Loxvon, Friday, May 10, 1850. 2 Five ovelock, P| M. § A better demand has manifested itself the last few days for several articles of colonial and toreign produce, prices of which have been the most depressed; while a decided improvement has taken place in the corn m: | ket, prices of wheat and Spring corn having advanced | 10 to 15 per cent from the late lowest point, and altoge- ther a more cheerful feeling prevails. Under their re- spective heads will be found our remarks on those arti- cles in which the principal transactions have occurred, others remaining without noticeable change. American Srocks.—There has been during this week | a steady demand for favorite securities, and as the supply has not been inereased, business has been done at our quotations, which would hardly be maintained if large sales were attempted, United States 6’s, 1862, | 105 a 106; Go. inscriptions 1867-8, 109.4110; do. bonds | of $1,000, 1103¢ a 1113s; Alabama 5's dollar. 67 4 69; | do, sterling, 71 a 73; Massachusetts 5’s sterling. 108 a | 109; Maryland do, 90 a 92; Ohio 6's, 1860, 102 a 103; do. 1870, 107 a 108; Pennsylvania 5's, 83}; a 8434; Virginia 6’*, 96497. No New York, South Carolina, or Loui- phere. and on the schores of the vast and populous Pacifie. Settlement of the Greek Question. The Nouwvelliste de Marseilles of Friday the 10th inst., contains the official correspondence between Mr. Wyse and the Greek Minister, M. Londos, who accepts the terms demanded by Mr. Wyse. ‘The Greek question is thus definitively settled. Mr. Wyse demanded thatjthe Greek Minister should apologise for the insult to the boat’s crew of her Majesty's ship the Fantome: ‘The Ling ish Minister acce 08,068 drachmas, 30,000 for Mr. Finlay, £500 sterling for M. Paci- fico, whose claims upon Portugal are te be referred to the government of that country. ‘The Greek government agrees to deposit 150,000 drachmas, as security forthe settlementof M. Paci- fisco’s claims upon Portugal. Switzerland, A letter from Berne, in the Univers, written on fd! oe woutvarees says i is the day wi u These ere called on to pronounce their judgment on the régime which has oppressed Switzerland, and particularly the Catholic party, for so Lan, Bega We shall not know the genera! result of the elections for some days. To-day | can merely inform you of the elections of Porentruy. That district had eleven members to send to the Grend Council ; ell, without exception, have been chosen the Conservative and Catholic party, The electoral assembly of the town of Porentruy, which had two members to elect, was disturbed by the Radicals, who, finding themselves in a mi- nority, had recourse to their ordinary weapon—vio- lence. The meeting was obliged to be removed to another place, where everything passed off quietly, and the two members chosen were those who also do honor to the college which elected them. The Radicals, ever, sil in electing M. Stockman, whose name has been for the last twen- ty years associated with all, the calamities which have befallen Catholic Switzerland—the man of clubs and secret societies.” : The Suisse, of Berne, of the 6th instant, says :— “The elections took place yesterday in the whole canton. At Berne, the Government party has ob- tained only a third of the votes. Such has been the case generally in the electoral circles for some leagues round the capital; about 50 elections known youencey evening, belong almost all to the Opposi- tion. To-day nearly ali the elections are known. The Grand Council being composed of 227 depu- ties, the waajority is 114. The Opposition reckons 110 or 1. lowever, amongst the deputies whom the régime attributes to itself, are some whom the vor may accept, particularly in the Jura. ere are in both camps many men bel to the party jledly democratic and liberal. A majority of that kind may theretore be hoped for. Some disturbance has taken place in the electoral circles of Gegenstorf and Schwarzen- burg. It is said that the Government party, seeing itself in a minority, has thrown obstacles in the way of the elections. In the Jura, the ition has had the advantage in many circles. Moutier is particularly named, where the success vared assured to the Government list. At Delemont, MM. Carlin and Greppin, the candidates of the M opinion, have failed; eight or ten votes wanting to them. The result is the work kimanian committee, presided over by i i Villemain. This frac- has joined the Ultramon- tanes. MM. Nouvion and Scathter have been elect- ed. We cannot, from want of space, give to-da' the list of the returns for the capital. They belong to the Opposition. ‘The Corn Trade of From the London Mereantile Gazette, "bes ) h no harin may ultimately result from the weather lately experienced, i! is by no means surpris- ing that some uneasiness — ve been created thereby, and that holders rain conse- ae - Us with their (ices mod ii below t of rably the cost duction. Until the latter part of April, orerything bore @ promising aspect, though the crops were not so forward as usual at the c' the since then, the weather were onl, of the MM. Feune, Heitse of Sotlonia ad ly on the fen lands in and Cambridgeshire, the wheat Teported to have sulleved, and even in most favored localities vegetation has been . Under these circumstances, the more wealthy class of farmers, who are now the principal holders, induced to speculate on higher rates, brought supplies forward very sparingly; 4 falling off in the Fred 5... + oer gene = anaes on the mere! ~ Ts, to add iolore oF leew vo thet upward movement to prices with a ace. of wheat, hom the extreme point of depeension, may be estimated at 4s. 4 5s. "= quarter, within the last eight days prices of spring corn and pulse have mardeipated, in the advance. The fu- ture must, in our opinion, depend so completely on the seasons, that it would be vain to enter into any- thing like prediction; we may, however, remark, that the altered state of the trade is attributable wholly to apprehension entertained for the safety of the crops, and that a few weeks, or even days, of warm sunshine would, in all probability, suffice to check the rise. The mere possibility of a British demand has, meanwhile, caused jerable ex- citement at most of the continental ports, and by the most recent advices from the Baltic, we jearn that holders of wheat had raised oa tensions in anticipation of English orders. ‘his will, in the first instance, have the effect of cheeking arrivals, but it will cause supplies from the interior to be brought to the ports on the coast, which will ultimately find their way to this country. Owing fo stocks of foreign wheat being larger in London than elsewhere, business at Mark-lane has scarcely been so active as at some of the ciwl markets ; still there has been a provement. On Monday we had rather more Wheat offering from Egeex, bat from Kent and Suffolk the show Was of the seme moderate character as previously, nor was there any increase in the quartity from Lincolnshire and tit neigh siana stock at present for sale. Cocminean.—We notice sales of 258 bags Honduras silver from 3s. 7d. a 48, for ord. to good bold grain, being steady rates. Corxes.—The market has been firmer, and several parcels of native Ceylon have been taken from 40s 40s, €d., at which there is not much offering. Of-570 casks, 280 bags Plantation, at auction, about half found buyers from 48s, a 60s, 6d. for Ceylon, with Ja- maica from 44s, 64.0 528, 50 bales Mocha have brought 438. @ 53s. 6d. In Holland and Belgium trade con- tinues limited. The stock of Java. in the hands of the Trading Society, amounted, on Ist inst., to 420,100 bags, including 142.750 bags bought in, against 319.20 at corresponding date last year. At Hambu market continues quiet, with @ stock of 21,500,000 Ibs. against 11,000,000 Ibs. on the Ist of May, 1849. ‘Corren remains very inactive. and an early reduc- tieu in the prices of English seems probable. No sales of foreign re; 4 ‘The Conn trade bas areumed a decidedly firmer ap- peavauce, and the accounts trom the large provincial markets notice a similar improvement. Prices of wheat this week have advanced . per quarter, flour 1s, per barrel, and 1s, 6d. per sack, and spring coin generally about Is. per quarter. Indian corn in request, but little offering; there are buyers of Egyptian ‘at 23s.; Salonica 263. 6d.; [braila 27s. 6d. ; and Galatz 298, Corron.—A good steady demand has prevailed at Liverpool, which bas been freely met by holders, and prices remain firm; middling Orleans is now quoted 7d. pe te = tales are confined to 4.450 bales Surat at 4d. a bd. xvas, &e.—Articles under this head are generally neglected in the absence of public rales. 190 bugs good Pegue cutch have brought 20s., being rather cheaper; camphor, 72s, 64.; Turkey opiui, 14s,; quicksilver, 4s. reg ntimony, £42 per ton it trale yesterday demand was only limited, and importers had to buy in freely to maintain late prices. Of 40.246 Fast India offered, 33.052 were sold. Isvico.— The sales will commence on Tues and of about 9.600 chests, 1.700 chests been withdrawn before printing. of the mew crop, we observe the color is darker. and the uality ly rather more detective than last yeur t Amsterdam on 2d inst., the Trading Company's sale of 206 chests and 2,281 boxes Java, went off briskly at ra oyna rates to 10 cents advance for the higher qualities bees g og with their first sale at Rotterdam. The demand for Inox remains very limited, and ma- kere are ag eee tl ey desire to sell; prices of bars and rails bave lined Ss, per ton duri the week, and we could now buy bars at £4 10s und rails at £4 free on board in Wales; Scoteh pig in more and prices have advanced to 44s, 6d. a 468 on strike having taken place among the work- having determined to blow es. Swedes £11 10s, 12 aving ‘n the examination ‘ 8 Oe WLM be, Lwav is rather easier, Some first marks of soft Span- ish wold this week at £17 ep Canes £5 oe, a £6 128, 6 made O1s.—Last week's are maintained for «perm and Southern, but other fish little jaquired for; olive remains dull; linseed dropped to 90s. but is now rather firmer at JOs, Sd. per owt, Kice.—A brisk demand has sprung up, and upwards of 20.000 bags Bengal have changed hands at an ad- vance of 6d. per ewt., chiefly from Ss. Gd. @ 10s. for fair demand. Holders of heat Ame- los. in quantity; common round ‘ Marseilles £5 158. & £6, Low Bengal Sacireree also bas been in inereased request, and prices have reeo od. 1s. from their Inte depr: been, sold from 244. 6d. a 26s sion ; 6,000 bags ha Be cal Srevren.—Owing te forced sales by specuin' dere the prices have again deelined; 1.000 ton £14 16s. and further parcels offering at £14) and £15, re still ask £15 be bags Pimento have been old at 44d her articles no trananctions have been re- the absence of public sales .—The company’s sale ot 80.746 baskets Ja took place at Rotterdam on the 7th inst. the whole selling briskly at prices ranging from f 2) a (55), for Now. 6 to 2) inclusive. penn 11 & £2 above the valua- tions. This favorable bas imparted more firm- nes to our ma: ket, and to-day #l ment of 6G. per ewt..with » more genera both grocers and refiners. We estimate the sales for the week at 2890 bhds. West India. and 22000 bags Mauritius, Ben, &e., with 350 bhds Porto Rico, trom 56s, 6d. a dis Foreign deseriptions have been more inquired for today, but we do not hear of an: business having been concluded. holders for the part keeping out of the market In the neighboring continental porte. we may fhirly anticipate more ne- | | tivity sbortiy, as the trade are generally bare of «tock | in the interior, We just learn the sale of 10.000 bage Manila. at 17*. Tatrow continues very firm on the spot, at ST« for St. Petersburg Y © For late delivery the price has advanced, and there are rather buyers at Od. for ies =F lie wali rds) e public sales yeate of 19,600 pack passed off very heavily, only 4.100 poshagee boving buyers. A few common Hysons sold trom ing a# low aa at any tin 4 the ow Fine Greens of recent import were chiefly ght in without any offer being made ‘Tis tein rather better request, and several orders for English are in the market at 28 a Ss under the cur- rent rates. A fair business has been done in Banca at } 72s, and in Straits at 70* ; Tin Plates in fair demand, and stock in makers’ hands small Tonacco —Holders show no disposition to meet ex- | and —— oheck- consequence. The trade, confining their pu chases to actual wants, have dove little ot nothing this week. ‘Tunrentixe, We continue our quotation of 6« 64 at firm, at 90s for English, ip combing ich being in Inrge eupply, have gone from }44. told. per ib. lower. Mesers. Jackson, Sons & Co.'s Circular, Livenroon, May 11, 1860, During the four weeks with the date of our last advices, Sd inst. the purchases of cotton by the trade were considerably in excess of the rate of consumption, For that period, the quantity taken out of this market amounted to an average of 37. doles per Week. It was, therefore, only natural to expect that such extensive operations should be lowed by lees activity, and ® more restricted demand. ‘The first three days Hibernia.» « tone nese was about 6.000 bales. and. im some few ee See ae the " favor. hud, although » good my vals, 00 ending | sisted | they will remain out decided concession was to in Sth inst., intelligence from New York, to the e gpeculatore and the trade, the were ‘to consumers. ot the following. | fremy ged bp five get yh T, Lain; and , the trade tool ; speculators, ; ee, i os exporters, 3.250, The week's 12.088 bales. The stock ef American cotton, in this port, is stated at 09,500, inst 473,000 same ae 1849 ; and of all kinds, 486.700 against . Yair uplands were quoted 73d. ; fair Mobiles, 7344. ; fair Orleans, 739d. ; and middling Orleans, 7d. » Yesterday. the salos were estimated at I bales; one-half to speculators. at hardening prices. Late advices trom the East Inuies and China are r less encouraging for Bridish manufactures. *, and the high prices now generally demanded by huers ond manufacturers, has tended to limit opera- Hons in the Manchester market; still a fair extent of business is being transacted both in goods and yarns, In the latter article, except ot the coar+# descriptions, a larger advance bas been obtained than has takem place in the raw material: and producers, seeing no probability of soon being able to obtain cotton on any easier terms, are strenuous in requiring extreme ‘The stocks of yarn are so very light, that bayers difficulty in making assori its, Large ord known to be held for the G and German markets, which will, no doubt, soon be given out, as the con- Vieion increases, that prices will not recede, ‘The ACerenees betwixt this country and Grecee, also, wil now be ratisfactorily adjusted, Owing to a continuance of unseasonable weather, we have had more business transacted in our corn market during the ya.t week, and pi'ces of all articles bave advanced. Acrican wheat is now qaoted 53, 4d, to 6. 6d., bein an improvement of Ud, to 4d. por 70 Ibe... Western Capa! lous is 1s por barrel dearer, being 19s; to 23s. per 196 Ibs ; mn is 1s, to Is. 6d. por quarter higher; pri selling at 30s.; white, 20s.; Southern mixe 208. 6d. per 480 Lbs. eto notice: mid- dling lard, 3is.; ewt; prime mess pork, 4s, to 68s, per berrel; pvime American mess beef has been more inquired for. and prices have im- proved; the quotations are 75s to Sis. port P.8.—The Atlantic sicamer arrived here last even- ing. The market, to-day, has been very firm; the sate about 6,000 bales; 2,000 on speculation; prices improv ing. The Bank of England. An Account, pursuant to the Act 7th and 8th Victo- ria, cap. 32. for the week ending Saturday the 4th day of May, 1850:— Notos issued... ISSUE DEPARTMENT. £2,9%,205 Covernment debt. £11,015,100 Other securit 2194.00 Geld coin and bi ion. . + 15,714,418 Silver bullion... 209.577 i £2 £20,924,295 BANKING DEPARTMENT, Proprietors’ oapi- G tal ee £14888,000 3,106,535, ts 8. Banks, Commi Gold ‘and ” ‘silver sioners of Na~ COI... coe coos 61,036, tional Debt, and Dividend " Ac~ counts... Other deposits Seven-day and other bills. £54, The Iro Market. G ow, May 10, 1850, Confirming ours of the 3d, we have now to report that the makers, finding the trade unremunerating, and the stock rather increasing, have determined forth- with to blow out one-third of the furnaces which have been im blast during this year, say thirty-three out of ninety-cight furnaces. leaving thore which make for their own consumption, in bars, without dimina- tion. This agreement, in the instance. iv to last and irrespective of the prices, for (wo months; and, if stocks are not cou iderably reduced, then, so as to ca advance to 55s, a 0s, per ton with the probability of being permanently maintal Indep, t of this deterar tion of the masters entirely, the colliers remain out. and there appears very little probability of their resuming work for along time to come. unless the master hd to their demands, one of which is an advane 6d. a 4s. per day, and the abolition of what is called the truck system. Owing to want of coals, there were thirty-three furnaces out of biart last Tuesday in the Monkland district alone; and if the colliers remain | out a little longer, there will be more compelled to go out for actual want of coal From the subjoined statement, you will find that the shipments of pig iron to New York, for the last four months. bave fallen off nearly 10.000 tons, compared with the same period last year: and, fom «il we ean bee, this decrease is likely to continue for some months to come, at any rate Siurmests ov Pic Tnow. rnom rie Onype to New You, 1 1849 axp 1850, 1850 1840 Janvery......26.. 800 Jonuery.. Febroaiy... 2 ....1.62 Februa Maseh... 1.935 Darel. . April 295 April... eos in 1850 om Liverroon ron ann 1850, New Suirsents of Pro T Yorn, in 184! 1849. January. . 605 January. February. . 1.627 February March... 4.553 Mareh.. Aprile. sci lcccese 4008 Apel... 11,688 3.120 8 G68 Less in 1850, From Clyde. ...... 1.505 9,963 total deficit in 1850, from the two ports Jay 10, 1 o’elnek.—The ne- counts from Paris to-day are considered on the sive tranquillity. The English stock market is v and piteceare higher than they clowd yorterday. sols have been operated in at 957, to 9 for money and 6i¢ to M% for account, bat are now 06 to \; f it and 057% to 96 for money. Reduced Three per have been done at 94%) to 9. New Three and er per Cents 97 to ty. Long Annuities 8% to 3- Bank Stocks 20535 to 20614, Exehequer bills 65s. to Tis. prem, In the foreign market ther rise in Danish and i Bonds. The official list gi as follow: Danish Serip Mexienn 28% chief features are « fur- inn Serips, avd Spanish * the dealings this morning ts pm +. Belgian Four and v., Duteh Two and a Half per iF per Conta, 859 The railway share market Ss generally something Tuner o'Crock.—Consola close 95% for money. and 96 to 96% forthe account. Foreign stocks are stoady Mexiean 25% to 28%), Keundor 54 to 8% Livenvoot, Corres Ma May 10.—Cotton i throughout the past we daily in good dem: and to-day iti s difficult to purchase on terme quite favorable as on Friday Inst : still no definite change in our quotations ean be made The sales of the week mount to 50,170 bales, ot which 6.550 American, 330 Pernams, 700 Egyptian and 4.580 Surat. have been t speculation. and 2580 American, 00 Per- gyptinn. and 480 Surat, for export, leavi * all Kinds te the ten Today's bust Nees 12 estimated at 12.000 baler halt of which are for speculation and export. | Very fuil prices bare been peid this afterncon imports for the week are 5.157 from the United States. and 7.265 from the Kast ew patel, 12,408 bales, Total stock, 1850, 606.100 ; Pair Rowed....... “ Mobile. * Orleans 4d. “ Surat. , + Ae ‘Tue Late Fine tw Tonowro, Ca.—The Toronto Cole nisi of the 17th inst... gives the following list of the suf terers by the fire in tha city, on the 14th inst:—Yonge street, Windsor tavern oecupied by Pillman. lost al his furniture &e. to the amount of £300. The hous# was valued at £300 belonged tothe widow Reberta, and there was noineurence either on the house of the pro perty in it, Roberts, a cabinet maker, oveupled the hext house, lows of the house, furniture, lumber Ae , £800, was insured for £20) Lafferty, dealer in prow! tions, lost £7000; insured for £250. “Little. shoemaker Lore severe; no insurance Swan, haberdasher’s «lop sucereded in saving most of his furniture from the flames Dwrne, boot and shoemaker, lost most of hie roperty to the amount of £150, Belling. watebme- er, caved nothing, nor was he ineurred John Schmitt ‘oner, lone £40; insured for £200. This house be- liding. grower, lost newriy ali 0 insurance Alexander. eabt- ‘otal loss: no insurance. Carmi- chael. cooper, lost nearly ali hi 5 loss £200; no nce. Clore & MeCausias nder ‘ 's paint *, wae alno destroyed | Five ing to Jesse K am, june. lose £1090; 20) in the Genesee Mutusl Insurance OF f