The National Register. — London, England, 1817-03-17 00:00:00

'OrJL No. 475.—V0t. X. POLITICAL DISQUISITION. BXECUTION OF CASHMAN. AND PROCEEDINOS AT MANCHESTER. THE death of •Cashman and his deportment at the place of execution, give rise to various Here was a man who had fought-the battles of his country, anti contributed to its safety and renown. The ignominious end of such -a man could never have been foreseen : it was .beyoud the pale of all pro babilit,,. Yet, to this miserable and untimely end limn: the poisonous doctrines of the present day, and the .mischievous delusions set afloat by artful and unprin cipled men, brought. a fellow creature, .who, but for them, instead of paying the finfeit of his lity on a gal. lows, might have lived • many' years with credit anti comfort to himself, his family and country. Should this great and terrible example be thrown -away and lost on those who are now running the same mid and desperate career ? Should it be lost on those who are exciting the people to anarchy and rebellion by false statements and exaggerated representations of real or imaginary grievances Here ;as a man, not in actual want, but heated and misled by the inflaming topics addressed to the passions of the multitude, who mixes in a crowd ripe for mischief, and without considering, perhaps, the guilt.be-is incurring, or the usual conse quences likely to result from it, impelled like the wave, and encouraged by the numbers which surround him, finds himarile'at once a rioter, a robber, and perhaps a murthorer ! Though the evidence did not prove Cash man to have been the person who fired and wounded Mr. Platt, abundant evidence proved him to have been foremast in the work of plunder and desolation in Mr. Beckwith's shop. It was impossible therefore for any Gmernment which respected itself, or the lives and properties of his Majesty's liege subjects, nut to make an example of such a man—it would have been an act of weakness and pusillanimity, a dereliction of public duty not to have selected such a man for punishment, that it might operate as a warning to others, and serve as a warning and beacon to those who are likely to be cngulphed in the vortex of revolutionary enterprises, and who, under the mask of reform, and redress of grievances, aim only at destruction of all order and le gitimate Government, and the commission of iudiscri. minate plunder and confiscation. In a general and religious point of view, nothing certainly can be more lamentable than the state of Cashman's mind seems to have been at the time of his death. Though all the consolations of religion were humanely offered to him, he refused them all; he seems to have been wholly insensible to a future state of ex istence. Though standing on the confines of another world, he seems to have been solely occupied with two considerations—the disposition of his little property, and the disgrace attending a public execution. It was not unnatural indeed to emitrast the glory of fighting his country's battles with the disgrace of suffering the dreadful sentence of the law, and we can pardon him lhr wishing that he had fallen keg ago on the bed of honour; but we cannot see without shuddering such levity as he displayed in his last moments—such total insensibility to the concerns of filturity, at a time when the curtain was finally closing on every thing connected with mortality and the affairs of this life. Let thoso who, under whatever mask, are in fisct preaching and teaching sedition and rebellion, (fur wherein we would ask does violent change and resist -since to authority differ from rebellion,) who are urging and goading the people to desperate courses, pause fur a moment, and reflect on Cashman4. fate. Let them consider, it' thty arc not themselves accessary to the ruin, possibly to the death of many future Cash mans. The 1, , 00d sense of the Legislature has armed Government with strong powers, and no doubt it will make use of them, tior • 0 It btareth not the sword In vain." Oa flat Our iling,ComStitution anti /I abi. MONDAY, MARCH 17, lBl7. Witness the prompt and vigorous measures reported to at Manchester, where we understand great numbers have within these few days been arrested. Some of the public prints make the number arrested to exceed two hundred :—.of this we may be asstred, that if the spirit of insubordination and disaffectioa is actively employed to subdue and mislead the ignorant and unwarry, a counteracting spirit of loyalty, 4nl a determination to resist the acts of wicked and deskning men are not less powerfully on the watch to expose the fallacy of their objects, to detect and unmask their real views, and to bring to punishment those wht desperately persist in carrying them into execution. An alarm has been sound. ed throughout the country : andwe entertain a just and well grounded hope, that ever► good eitisea will be found at his post, not slumbering in torpid security, for " England expects that every Inu will do his duty," but anxious in these times of peril to come forward and lend an helping hand to the support and maintenance of that venerable fabric the Coniltution, which was built up by the wisdom of our ancestors, has stood the test of ages, and ought to be transmitted in undimi. nished repair as the best and most valuable.leg,acy we can bequeath to our latest posterity. LVPER PAkf,IAMENT. , Abuts OF LORDS.. MONDAY, MA$ 10. Lard HOLLAND gave notice, that It was his Intention, on Thursday next, or some other day. to move for copies of the Instructions to the (inventor of St. Helena, with respect to the personal custody of Buonapartc, and of all communications between Buonaparte and the tiovevuor of St. Helena. lie would not now state the parliamentary grounds which he thought he could lay before the House, in order to make it agree to the motion he was to submit to it an this subject; but he would say, that the motion was not intended to revive. the difference of opinion that had esisted as to the extraor dinary confinement of that extraordinary person. It was, however, right, that the reports in cites/lotion, as to the treat ment of lluonapate, should, if unfounded, be contradicted; or that, if true, they should he enquired into, and remedied by Parliament. PRICE 90. dismay? On the contrary, one might see by the faces of all in the streets, that dismay and despondency had altogether ceased and public credit restored. Tf the Noble Earl's re solutions were adopted, it would be almost impossible fur Parliament to legislate to the effect Uw Noble Earl wished. He contended that the six great offices.) of the Ext.toquer were not sinecures; for they wore places of great pecuniary trust, and for which the holders are obliged to give very large securities. The office he held himself was not a sinecure, but one of considerable duties. He slid not mean to say, that many of these offices ought not to he altered or abolish ed ; but that would be a subject of great difficulty, even to persons more competent to judge of them than the Noble Earl. By a recent regulation, no colonial office could be held by any but persons resident in the respective colonies. As to the office of Third Secretary of State, he would under take to state that the present business of the country could not be transacted without a Third Secretary. Ruing satis fied that ne practical good could result from the resolutions of the Noble Earl, be would oppose the motion. Lord Sr. Joust differed totally with the Noble Earl oppo site (Liverpool) as to the necessity of the recent measures of Government. The Earl of IateIDIRDALE said, be was inclined to give direct negative to the resolutions, although lie agreed with many of the arguments of the Noble Earl (Grosvenor). Thera never was a time when public men enjoyed less of the public money than at present. It was highly necessary that the fact should be known because nothing was beard of at toe public meetings at which the petitions were agreed to, but of" the devouring ainecurists," and of" the loaves and fishes," which all parties were looking so eagerly after. In the House of Commons there were now but 61 who held plaices under Government for England and Scotland; and in 1716, they amounted to 1121 and in 1739, at the House of the Excise Laws, there were 192 placemen in the House of Com. mots. Nevertheless, the influence of the Crown had eno;m. trimly increased, not in Parliament, but in the country gene. rally. The great cease of our distress arose from the im mense load of debt, which lied materially altered the value of currency in the last two years. He concluded by opposing the resolutions. Lord lllou.arim was surprised the Noble Earl did not state to the House, when he proposed the Suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, that the caret of it would be to raise the Funds to 70, Hut it' it had had that effect, he trembled for the liberties of the country; for if the suxpension of this valuable privilege for three months bad produced this won. derful effect, perhaps it might be discovered, that the total abrogation of that great law would have the effect of raising the Funds to par. 'rite Home then divided.—For the Resolutions, s—Against them, 4.l—Majority, 40.—Adjourned. WEDNEWAY, MARCH 114 The Coffee Dnty, the Barrack Department, the Passengers by Ships Itrgelation„and the Climatic Cut iiiii is%ioncra were read a third Ma: , and passed.--Adjourneti. THURSDAY, MA RUH 13. Lord GROSVENOR prm , ented a petition from some place In Glonee.ter•hire, praying fur a repeal of the corn laws, an income tax in place of the assessed taxes and taxes on con. sumption, and for Parliamentary reform. His Lordship presented a petition from Southwark, praying fur retrench. ment hod reform. At'ter a short conversation they were both laid on the table. Adjourned. rumAy, MARCH 11. The Treason Bill, and Army and Navy Seduction Bill, were returned from the Commons with the amendments agreed to. IRISH DISTILLERIES. Earl DARNLRY presented a petition from Belfast in Ire land, stating the distressed state of parts of that conntry, the scarcity of grain, and praying the stoppage of the distilleries. It he shonld submit any motion on the subject, it would pro bably ha to call for the iniorination upon u hieb the Ministers had acted. __ The Earl ofLtyrtneont. would be ready, ahem the subject Came regularly before them, to explain the reasons which had actuated the conduct of Ministers • but he Iffilit now beg lease distinctly to deny the respousibility which the IS, oble Earl seemed to imagine attached to the Crovernment, iu rela• tion to this subject. The corn trade ought to be free, if pos sible : that could not well be in the pre,cnt circumstances of the country anti if it could not be eutinly free, it ought to be regulated by w isciasse. If the subject were to he brought font ord, Ito Nboold be ready to state time reasous why Mitus• ter , had nom interfered on this oceasiou. After a fcre word,: from Earl Doraley, file petition Mitt laid on Ili, taLle,—Adjourneit, DOUSE OF COMMONS. moxpiv, siAncii LP, A new Wrtt was orstered for Colche*ter in the room of R. Thornton. El. who has ;Accepted the Chiltern lintiolreds. A Petition was prevented tium Claetnatittan, and anotlwt from Belfast, by Ciencral Mitchell, pr:.) hoe fur the immt-thate etoppg:e of divt4letlon rima grain ; in consequence of the grout m'arcilly of grain. Mr. Ile:v:1E1r moved for the revival of the Police Comniit. tee, with the addition of too names. The Committee o,ot then revived; and various Prtitionv front the Ltvetnictl Vic. Mailers wore referred to •l itew Writ was 01:1Crl'il cur thu room of Sir J. Abercrombie, de A petition wa. rue,ested from Preston, In buscmshil priyiugfor annual C %Li - RAFT said, he held in his hand a petition front Charles 1.:111 , , of Southa% en ' in the Isle of P ur b ec k, got , 4 gesicio:iv, that the sun and servant of the petitioner na taken not of sloop ol Poole, under pretence uf and carticd oil !MIN ship, and afterwards shifted IA TVFADAV, MARC!, 11. On the motion fur the third reading of the Treasonable Practices Bill. The Loan CHANCELLOR moved a clause putting the heir and suacessor of the Prince Regent exactly uu the same foot ing with the King, as to personal safety. There was nothing in the Act to prevent any proceeding by bscormation or in dictment for offences against its provisions, The amendments were adopted, Hod the Bill passed. Lord Ds itsil.sai said, as heamderstood the distress of Ire land occupied the attention of Ministers, he would uut at present bring forward any motion on this subject. SINECURE PLACES AND PENSIONS. Earl GROSVMOR TOW, to call the elation of the House to the subject of economical Reform en Retrenchment. He would call on their Lordships set to leava this subject to Ministers, but to take it into their own bawls, and come to a speeitic pledge ou this question, which so much agitated the public mind at present. Although there were considerable differences among the many petition's which had been pre sented to them, as to the extent of the Parliamentary He. form requited by the people, still they all agreed to require the most rigid economy stud retrentilment. It would not he necessary for him to go through a disgusting detail of the number of wine•tasters, anti deputy wine-tasters, and of chil dren holding offices of 50001. a par; all he should do would be, to move a resoletion that sinecure places and pensions should nu longer exist. He had heind it rumoured, that Go. vernment meant to propose flee abolition of the two Chief Justices in Eyre, the Clerk of the Pells, th.e. Lord \Virden of that Cinque Ports, and a few oth-trit; hut he would call 00 the Hosete to come to a distinct ifiedge, that all such pl , irt • should be abolished. Thera ware paper on the table to which the Noble Lord opposite (Liverpool) would 110 doubt call the attention of the House; Lett although that paper would show that something in the way of reduction had hetet done, yet the House would see that a great dent remained still to be done. He also considered, that those reductions must have been made by the Treastyy, if the Committee of Finance hail not recommended them. Among other things the Auditor of Accompts at Lisben had 11)001. a year mere than the present Ambassador at the Court of Portugal. The office of Third Secretary of State shoniti also be abolished ; and all this might have been duce if the Committee moicd for last year had been apponsted. He concluded by moving resolutions for the put pose of sbolishing molt as sinecare 'Laces mid pensions; amid to present the grantlag of itl„e and pensions its reversion the future. The Carl of Ids &meow. said, be could not coesider the meetings in Sint-helds, and oiler partitt-of the emintre, as re presenting the people of Entitled. Own res of ijetv et intuit were taken to profeet the J 0 1 )10 or r. , Alittel from the attempts of the disloyal anti Nola. tied., %Is it hail been the effect Of the precautionary mem tires tint had been adopted; had they itheeted public credit, at plutigctl the loyal Lulu ' • 1.. k9 a ;01 ~ ~..