The National Register. — London, England, 1817-02-03 00:00:00

FEBRUA Y a ar, hear, hear ! ) —The men who made these statement 4 L ia..t know they were propagating delusions, and that trolls asst fact were against them. He was not unacqe..inted wills the history of his country. hot he had never read in any his torian, nr in any Reesman of the Constitution of England, that our ancestors fought and bled for universal suffrage (h..ar, hear); or, that in the struggles between the Crown and the People, on two very important occasions, whets our rights and Ii bet ties were the subject of contention, in the time of King John and Charles I. this political doctrine was ever thought of by our brave will patriotic forefathers. In the former of these periods, so far were our ancestor's from alio W. lug universal suffrage, or every man who had attained the age of 21 to vote, that the great holly of the people were not sepresented at alit or it' represented, were represented in a way very different from that now contended for, or as the property of their masters. They were, in fact, in the state of the most degrading villanage, and treated rather like b;:asts of burden than as beings capable of political right. (hear, hear). Those who spread the delusive cry of universal suffrage cannot be ignorant of these things, and must Weill to mislead those over whom their influence extends. Post though the people are misled in the present times, their opi nion.; , hotild be treated with gentleness, and their errors cor rected with solidness. If, instead of shutting the doors of Parliament to the petitions of punlic meetings; if, instead of taking any severe methods ofpreventing these meetings from assembling to petition, an attempt were made to convince then by sound reasoning and rational argument, much would be Jane to conciliate their minds, and allay their irritation ; nitwit would be done for the cause of good order and consti tutional liberty. (lhor, hear, Iran all parts of the House The Report on the Addre.s was brought no and agreed to; ordered to lit presented by the whole House, and the an• ewer to be taken into consideration to-morrow. D. kTURDA Y, FED. I. The SPEAR F.R entered the !louse at two o'clock, soon after a messa , c W4S broitzht from the House of Loul. , intimating that leaf past two was the time agrt ed upon to carry the Address to the Prince Regent; and that they, the Lords, were now going. The House accordingly proceeded to ac company t 1 1 ,2 Lords. The cavalcade arrived at Carleton House at half-past two, and presented the Addre , s, to which the Prince Regent returned a must gracious answer. THE DRAMA. KING'S THEATRE. The musical world was highly entertained at this theatre on Saturday by the representation of Le nozzi di Figaro, or the wedding of Figaro. The music by Mo zart is a very splendid composition, and developes a power and a variety of imagination, seldom equalled.— The opera was uncommonly well supported. It incur ponitcxl the whole strength of the company—Madame Fodor personated the Countess, Madame Camporese .Su sauna, and, although in every scene where they appeared they excited great applause, they literally enraptured the audience in the beautiful duetto, Scrivi, scrivi. It was encored, much to our gratification. :Madame PALTA was the Page. This charming actress becomes every character. Signor A NIB ROG ETTI made his first appearance on the stage as the Count. His figure is very manly, his voice is an excellent counter-tenor. He was received throughout with approbation, and his ductto with Ma dame Ca M PORESE, C rude!! perche fitiora,was deservedly encored. On the whole, the opera presented no ordinary display of talent and science It was truly a superior perthrmance. There was a divertisement incidental to the second act, in which Monsieur and Madame If APTI s - r E and Milanie danced with remarkable grace and anima tion. The whole concluded with the ballet of La partie tie chasse d'Henri Quake. The house was crowded.— The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester attended, and after the opera saluted the audience in the most conde scending manner. BUONAPARTE. A singular and an astonishing rumour reached this country on Friday, from St. Helena, that a secret correspondence between Buonaparte and Europe, con ducted by Lascusas, had been intercepted through the vigilance of the Civil and Military authorities of the island. The Larkins. left the island of St. Helena on the 15th of December; and letters , bronght by her state the following circumstances :—A Creole boy of the place had frequently attended or visited Buonaparte, to whom his ex-Majesty had appeared to pay a singu hr degree of attention. The boy was, therefore, at first only ordered to discontinue his visits; but having, in spite of this prohibition, being discovered to have found secret means of access to Longwood, it was very naturally supposed that some uncommon motives existed for s , ) uncommon a pertinacity ; and the youth was very strictly interrogated as to the intercourse be tween himself and Buonaparte. He at first denied all improper conduct; but having, in consequence, been dismissed and sent home, it appears that he was not so well able to baffle the domestic authorities to whom he was known, as he had been the legal ones to whom he was unknown: and to his fitther or masterheconfessed, that he was the guardian of a secret letter which Las Casas had given to him, and which had been sewed up between his coat and the lining: the buy likewise charged the Pole Pistowski, the Count Montholon, and some female, as privy to all the circumstances which he related. Las Casas had, it is said, bee* placed in close confinement, in consequence ; and the others were to be tent of w the Cape. THE NATIONAL REGISTER. LON. I,ON MONDAY, FEBRUARY 3. The French Papers which we have received this week do not furnish much information. The debate in the Chamber of Deputies on the law regarding the Liberty of the Press has at length terminated. The law was passed by a majority of 39. It is stated in one of these papers, that the Pope has entered into some tutisfactory arrangement with the Prince Regent on the subject of Catholic Emancipation. If, however, the foreign intelligence of the past week be not of a very important description—the scenes which have taken place during that period before our own eyes, present several features of interest, if not alarm. The attack made upon the person of the Prince Regent has, we arc confident, excited but one sentiment through out the Kin 4 dom. All ranks and orders of men, what ever be their political opinions, must unite in execrating so flagitious an outrage on the peace of the country. If the measures ofthe present Government be not acceptable to any set of individuals, have they not a plain and con stitutional method of remonstrating against them ? The laws shield the Executive Member of the Government from any personal responsibility as to those measures. He stands apart from them altogether, and is secluded and protected in the sanctuary of the Constitution.— When this fundamontal principle of our laws is violated, it becomes the duty of every good man to rally round the throne, and to repel every aggression upon its dig nity and its rights, at the hazard of his life. The privi leges of the Sovereign arc inseparably connected with the privileges of the people—they stand or perish to gether—and it' the former be assailed with impunity, the latter cannot long remain unendangered. We present our readers with a detailed report of' this audacious outrage. It will be recollected that a similar attack was made on the person of his present Majesty, at the opening of the Session in 1795. Indeed the cir cumstances not only of the outrage, but of the country, so nearly resemWe each other, that it is worth the reader's attention to compare them. " In Isis Majesty's way to the Home of Lords, which lay through the Park, hi; coach was surrounded, on every side, by pc l' , OllS of all descriptions, demanding peace, and the dia. snisseus of Mr. l'itt. Souse voices were even beard exclaim lug " Np King" and stones were thrown at the state.coaels as it dre..v near to the Horse Guards. In passing through Pal see-yaril, one of Ilse uindows was brol,esi it was said by a bullet, discharged from an air gun). These outrages were repeated on the King's return from the Muse, and he nar rowly escaped the fury of the populace in his way haek flOlll St. James'. Palace to Ilnekingliara House:* " On the Gth of Novem!ier, Lurd Grenville bronzlit fr.r ward a bill fur better ecuriu 4 the King's person and govern ment. • " Sorb was the temper of the commotiellty prevhns to the nie.4linz of Parliament, about the close of o;mher, 1793. A fermentat,on of tii most ahrinials kind sec Hied to pervade th.. tslide 1111 , S of the people. The various associations of node,' for th !povpose of obtaining a Parliamen tary Reform, were, at th.s period, peculiarly notiet d for their boldness and activity. That vi hich was known by the name of the Corresponding Sniety, ditanguiviltd itself by Lk. rc.' sulnte speeches of its principal members at the several inr et lugs which took place in the course of the year. That wl,lea was held near Copenhagen-house, in the neighbourhood of Islington, wu, the most remarkable. The numbers that attended, tither through zeal in the cause, or through curi osity, were computed at about 50,00 n. Some et ty daring addresses were made to the multitude ; the conduct cf Ministers were arraigned in t lie most unqualified language, and a remonstrance to the mi the iierefodly of real e, and a Reform in Parliament, was IllliVel sal! , agreed on." On the Prince Regent's Speech we think it unne cessary to of any commentary. The topics which it embraces, have been already amply discussed, and we have only to add the expression of our sincere hope, that the confident tone in which it speaks of the di,- tresses of the country, will be justified by events. A proclamation has been issued offering a reward of 10001 f w the apprehension and conviction of the person or persons concerned in the outrage on the Prince Re gent. By the arrival of the Catherine, Captain Hessen, from the river Plate, we arc enabled to contradict the report of the reduction of Monte-Video by the Brazilian army. They had advanced no farther than Maldonado, which was surrendered without resistance. The Buenos- Ayres Gown-um:tit had coalesced with Artigas, and the forces of the former were expected every moment at Monte-Video, to defend the place against the common, enemy. _ _ Or Thursday, a Court of Aldermen unanimously agreed to present an address to the Prince Regent, expressive of their horror at the late attack upon his Royal Highness's person. It is reported, that a Proclamation upon the state of the country will shortly be issued, and that strong measures, for the preservation of the Peace, will be re it sorted to. There was a meeting on Friday at the London Ta vern, of Merchants, Bankers, Trailers, and others, of the city of London. Its purpose was in fact to for:n some ostensible resistance of respectable men to the mass of disaffection now unhappily put in motion, nut against the evils of the Government, but against the Government itself, the chief Governor, and the peace of the country. The motive was honourable and pro per. REFORM.--A knot of journeymen carpenters met together at the Argyll Arms, in Argyll -street, on Tuesday last, to discuss the distresses of the country, the duration of Parliaments, and the extension of the • elective franchise, &c. Hunt, who thought nothing could be done without him, made his appearance among them, to instruct and direct them. Whereupon, with the ex ception of one young man, they all declared that they thought themselves fully as competent as he was toprovide remedies flir the difficulties of the country ; they wanted none of his advice : they thought his intrusion imper tinent, and begged him to withdraw : with which ad vice, after he had made a few very cold observations about himself; Cobbett, and the little boy, he soon com plied. The resolutions were then penned, without him; and signed by Thomas Moulton, Chairman. At a Common-hall, which was held on Friday by ad vertisement, a series of resolutions were debated and passed. The proceedings of this assembly were, we understand, more orderly than usual ; anti their opinion us to the duration of Parliaments more moderate. It is not perhaps remarkable that Hunt should make his appearance any where; he was therefore present here : but on his proposing that the address and resolutions should move for annual Parliaments, he was outnum bered by three to one. His tone was humbled ; but he was succeeded by a man of great fury, of the name of Mitchell. Lotto ExNourit,—Atler the adjournment of the Common-hall, the Lord Mayor proceeded to the Com mon Council-chamber, where Lord Exmouth had been in waiting a considerable time, in consequence of invi tation, to receive the splendid sword voted to that noble man, as a mark of public approbation and thanks for his splendid victory in the bombardment of Algiers. A,,uther mectiott of the Di legates fin l'arliament.iry Re form took place on Mondcy, at the King's ,Mons Tavern, Palace Yard. There were about thirty present, Major (art w•right was caned to t:te chair. A motion was made to tli3- sub e the meeting, which, after some oop.:sition and discos. ,ion, was agreed to; awl it W:l3 arranged, that thrse Dele 4att a haring pentium to present to Pc,inoncat, s:kouid is sentble nest day, at three o'clock, in Palace YAM, to rt them into the hands of Sir F. Burdett and Lord Cochrane. the meeting was then timilly dissolved. It appears by a Document from Hayti, that the French have as little probability of regaining that part of St. Domingo by negotiation as they had et.' sulxking by force. There is found in the Port-au-Prince papers, a notice of the Secretary Ceneral of the President Valor), pro mulgated on the sth of November, to the merchtnits cf the liepublie.that by official dispatches, from the Em pszor of Austria, through his Chargc-des-Aflidres, dated the 15th of August la,t, at Triste, the ports of Austria arc open to the Hay thin flug, cad that the Emperor is desirous of promoting a mutual intercourse between the two countries. THE NEW COTN.\ Prortvnation was on V:edne,:t:ay or dered, to he is:nett respecting the iyucl of Cite Nroe Coinage. By pretious order the period for exchsngiog hkw for Ohl Coln wa , nixed to be from the 3d to t:e 17th of Fcioulry. Both ef thme dat•cs have been deferred for ten CLVP, thit is, the exch,,• , 7 , • tt , e e . .•!•iwe • • %et the I.7t;', And Sll 0:: tlt 1•:•1•;••::::,.. THE NATIONAL REGTSTER, MEMOIRS OF THE PRESENT JUDGES. We are highly graiffled to . find by the increased ap plication fur our Paper, that the. Memoirs which have already appeared, arc highly approved of by our Rea ders and the Public. As they proceed, we have no doubt but they will be Ann(' to increase in interest. Those immediately to follow are— Lord ELDON, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, Lord ERSKINE, Sir WI LI.I A NI GA R ROW, Attorney General, Sir SAMUEL ROMILI.V.. We have been careful in presenting to our Readers the PARLIA MENTARY Dtmarus of the week in us concise a form as the im portance of the subjects would allow. We shall not deem it ne cessary to give an abstract of all the discussions which take place. Of thus w!iich we do not judge essentially connected with dr, great interests of the country, we shall give only the minutes; as we will thus be enabled to affOrd a larger space to the leading question; wuich o.:cupy the attention of the Legislature, and of the public. PRICE OF STOCKS THIS HAY Rank Stock 3 per Cent. Reduced 65 3 per Cent. Consuls 1 per Cent. sit SOCIETY FOR THE F.NCOURAGEMENT OF ARTS MA NUFACTURES AND COMMERCE. Notice i, hereby given, that the ELECTION of a SECRF.TARY to this society, in roans of Charles Taylor, M.D. deceased, will take place at tlta Soci,Xy's Rooms. in the Adelphi, on Wednesday next, the sth day of Feb., and that the Ballot will commence at 10 o'clock in the foicnoon, and close at 4 in the afternoon precisely. No annual Subscrioer elected subsequent to the 13th of November last, is qualified to vote at this election. By order, THOMAS WOOI)F ALL, Adelphi, Jan. 31, 1817. Sec. Pro tem.