The National Register. — London, England, 1816-03-31 00:00:00

111A' 1-1 31. POLITICAL DISQUISITION. la ATE OF THE COUNTRY AND TILE POOR IRATFS• WHILE there are certain topics of so conflicting and heating a nature, that they cannot be agitated without kindling- the flame of discordant opinion, there arc others. Cie broaching of which seems at once to operate like the spremling of oil upon the surface of the stormy sea. They posse m this effect by chiefly addrcoing themselves to sen timents and feelings in which no one would be thought deficient, and about which there cannot be any disagree ment. We arc afraid that sufficient attention is not paid to the true and full meaning of the signs of the times. The exhibition that our country at this moment presents, is a most extraordinary one ; there never was an example under any fiishion of political institution at any firmer period, of so mutli public opposition, embarrassment, and distress, existing without harard, either in reality or be lief to the frame-work of the Government; without leading to an apprehension of a convulsion, without exciting any deadly symptoms of hatred, or distracting people from their regular duties, or dividing them form their natural and social connexions. Yet, there no want of earnestmas, and there is unfortunately a great deal of suffering. There is much positive assertion and much bitter debating; the measures of the Rulers of the Country are angrily criticised by its men of rank, prperty, and talent—great popular meetings are convok ed, and there it is told to the lower classes by their su periors, that the few who are in authority are squander ing the national means and oppressing its ability ; the whole land is in a linnent, and the power of Govern ment is opposed to the distrest feelings and excited opinions of the people. Nevertheless, every man is con vinced that be is secure in the duration of public order, and every man knows that a public danger would be instantly met by a promptunion of the public mind and strength. The country is at preseot in a state of exultation at the abandonment of the Income Tux, but we fc ar thatsome evils may arise, which in the ardour of petitioning was not foreseen. The fall of the Property Tax may place the rich and the poor on the same lava. The additional pressure which the failure of the Tax may cause upon par-rates, may be of no ordinary nature. If the pro legion of a man be such as to require a house for the pursuits of his business, in extent equal to that occupied by a man worth 4,0001. a year, he will be necessarily compelled to pay a ratio of taxation, ad equate to that paid by the man of fortune, or de cline following his business. This will be a certain toncoinitant, and whether the tradesman's profits from precarious calling be sufficient to defray the amount of his assessments, or not, he will be forced to bear this unequal burthen: these operations may crowd our poor houses, increase our poor-rates, and perhaps infuse in digence throughout this kingdom. We may state that the annual amount of poor-rates is 6,000,0001.; the prin riiial port of this sum is 'paid by persons whose means of livelihood are very precarious, anti who are in continual dread of becoming applicants, sooner or later, fur the charitable means to which they now contribute. We should ba very erroneous in our calculations, if we were to say, that iu the majority of counties, towns, 'vil lages, and hamlets in this kingdom, the inhabitants more, virtually than nominally termed poor, pay a quantum of poor -rates, in the aggregate, equal t,.) the whole amount paid by money-men, (many of 10,0001. a year forming port) to the Property-tax, Land -tax, and Assses.sed-taxes. The contradictory views which have been imbibed, with respect to the Property-tax, have unffirtunately, by some strange infatuation, passed current with the poor, though they are the only individuals who are oppressed by burdens of near affinity to taxation.— The Property_tax ut five per cent., which was intended by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, would have pro duced 7,100,0001. only 1,000,0001. more than the poor rates at preaent prodoce. The former would have been mostly furnished by the rich—the latter (6,000,0001- a:id probably more) must partly be furnished by the poor. These rates, greet as they are, fall infinitely short of ef fecting what they ought, the claimants to charity being both great and increasing. Cannot means then be deviled for the alsdition of the poor-rates, or for their modilication, so that they luny be proportionably borne by almost every class of peonk._ The attention of Parliament should be directed to this, and to die moms of amcliorativ, the de d iressed condition the poor 91 the Law!. THE NATIONAL REOSTEIt. ABUSES IN TTIE• LONDON FISHOLIRKET. TO THE RIGHT HON. TILE LORD itiAvoß. My Loan, PERMIT me, through the medium of this Paper, to call your Intention to the present state of the Billin gs _ gate Market. lam well aware, that an abuse existi ng within the limits of• your jurisdiction, requires only to be known, to be suppressed; but, notwithstanding the supe rior cctivir• mid vigilance which have been displayed dur ing your Mayoralty, in discovering and enulleating m a ny of the glaring abuses which have long disfigured the Metwpolis, yet the augean stable is not yet fully cleansed, its completion may indeed be called an herculean task, but I.aGor rincit amnia. Whatever tends to encourage a monopoly of the ne cessaries of life, becomes dangerous to the general inte rests of society; it is in vain that un enlightened Legisla ture or our patriotic Institutions otter their premiums fin the greater quantity of any article of general consump tion which may be brought to market, if those laudable designs be defeated, by u grasping spirit of monopoly, which deprives the community of those advantages which would be the concomitant result of the providential cure of the Government. Your Lordship, I am convinced, is not ignorant of the existence of a char :ter in the BiBMA-Ave Market, which in the techniral phraseology of the place, is called a Bost ass.. It is against the existence of this charac ter that I now presume to address your Lordship. Of what avail is a regular and tunple supply of fish for the London market, and which, were competition equal, would be dealt out to the public at a comparatively cheap rate, it' the monoptlizing Bomarce steps in, purchases the whole stock which may be brought to market, mud deals it out to the retailers according to the particular quantity of fish which he determines shall on that day appear at market, and which is in close unison with the rapacity of his own avaricious dispeition.—The supply of the market is not in proportion to the quantity which is brought by the fishermen, for hence a cheapness would arise, hiimieul to the interests of the &unarm ; on the contrary he purchases the whole cargoes : if a glut pre sents itself, thereby presenting a cheap and nutritious food to the poorer classes, this great advanta;,te is imme diately lost to the community by the Bontures:s, who hoard the fish in their warehouses, and rather than an article shall be sold at a cheap rate, will throw the sur plus stock into the river. This is the cause of the quan tity of lxiil fish, for which Billingsgate is now prover bial ; the fish which appears on the stalls, is not the fish of to-day nor of yeFterday, as landed from the boats, but it is brought from the stinking hoards of the Boma rees, who having glutted themselves with the profits aris ing front the first day's sale, empty their ahnost putrid stock into the baskets of the hawkers. At the instiga tion of these Bomarces, the fishing-boats arc often kept at anchor in Lng-reach, until their stock on hand is dis poserl of, and they will bring up these boats singly to market, rather than the public shall profit by a full and abumbint supply. The limits to which I must prescribe myself, deter me at present Simi entering more fully into this important question, bat I trust the few hints which I have ad vanced will excite the attention of your Lordship, and that some steps will, I hope, be in consequence taken to wards abolishing the practices of the Bomarees, whose very existence is an anomaly in political economy, and which calls fiw the iannediate interference of that Power, by which only its suppression can be effected. I subscribe myself, Your Lordship's most obedient Servant, Merck es, dsl 6. R. H. By Ilavannah Diaries of the beginning of February, we find that the horrible system of the Slave Trade, emninu ed to be carried on between the Island of ('ul:a and the coast of Africa. Two vessels had arrived, one laden with: )0 slaves, and the other with 141. It appears that this in human trafic was about to be vigonmsly pursued, as all fast sailing roads had been taken up f,:r that pnrpose. Bosun or AORICULTURE.—The following annual Elections have taken place :—.The Earl of Macclesfield, President, vice the Earl of Hardwicke, resigned; the Duke of Bcdtbrd, the Earl of Bradford, Sir Robert Vaughan, Dart. Sir flumphrey Davy, and J. Atkvns Wright, Esq. Ordinary Members. Arthur Young, Esq. and Ccorge Smith, Esq. have been re-elected Secretary cool Treasurer.—A vote of Thanks was unanimously passed to the Earl of Hardwkke, expressive of the high sense which the Board entertained cf the essential services derived from the able and zealous discharge of its duties through the course of his Lordship's Presidency, and that ' the Secretary do tramatit a copy of this Resolution to the Noble Earl, now resident in Paris. The tidlowilt; is a striking in.stime2 of the depr:ssed Stye of Agrieuiture:—Tn February, 1813, 73 acres of meadow land in North Cadbury, Somersm, were let for oar year fir 2021.; on the 9th of March, 1811 i, the tune lands were again put up, when the sums bid for them amoirited to no more than 991. 10s.lking a difference of 10:41. 10s.—At the same time in 1815, a piece of arable land (flair acres) was let at 19.1. 10s. and was again put sip to ata:•in on the 9th of Mardi, 1816, when no mere than 81. were bid, being a difference ofl , lll. 10s. b i DILI-VATIC REGISTE DRURY-LAN E. M 1 SSINGER . 4 Drama of the Duke of Milan was an nounced for representation at this theatre on Tuesday night ; but the company, whom the desire of witnessin g . Mr. KlEMtni perffirmance of the character of •Vbr.:a haul attracted to the House, were fitted to encounter a severe disappointment. The audience having waited for some time beyond the period when the curtain is usually drawn up, began to exhibit symptoms of impatience, which soon assumed a very formidable appearance. At length, Mr. Hat, the stag: manager, :Acted forward to appease the uproar. He stated, that the delay was oc casioned by the non-appearance of Mr. Kr ‘N, who ha& neither been seen nor heard of by any of his brother per formers since the morning. In this situation of affairs, he proposed that the tragedy of Douglas should be sub stituted for the piece announced in the bills. This pro-. position was received with the most violent expression of dissatisffiction, and, when silence was obtained, it was intimated to Mr. Rata by nr.my of the audience, that they would wait for some time longer in the hope of Mr. Kr. s's arrival. They remained, not in patient ex. pect at ion of his comin,r, for the house rang with a variety at' discords, until half-past seven o'clock, when Mr. RAE again mule forward, and proposed, as the expectation of Mr. K E N's arrival was hopeless, that two feces, For tune's Frolic, and Wayv and Means. should be perffirmed instead of the Duke of Milan. This was acceded to. after some trifling clamour, and the pieces were pertimned without opposition. Nothing further was heard of Mr. K N during the night. It has since been learnt, that about half-past twelve on Tuesday, he left his own chaise in East Smithfield, and took a boat to go to Greenwich by water, but finding the waterman slow, and fearing he should nut be in time, he was landed on the Kent side,. and hired a one-hone chaise, with which he prove:del to Greenwich, and dined with a tee friends. He was re turning between four and five o'clock, to be at the thea tre by sir:, and bad reached Deptford, when his stranvge horse took fright at some geese on the road, and he wag - overturned, by which he dislocated hit shoulder, and was carried, totally insensible, into the Oxford-Arms, where he was unknown, and it was not till late in the evea ing that he was sufficiently relieved to be able to inform the people who he MIS. I/ Vednesday morning Mrs. KEAN, Mr. liar, Mr. PEN LEV, and several others went dowa to him ; they found that his shoulder had been re -set, and, in the atierrumn he was brought to town, to iris house. in Clarges-Street. In the Farce of The two Misers about to be revived et this Theatte, Mrs. lficaosaa, who is quite recovered from/ her hue severe illness, will perffirm a character. The public will be glad to hear that Mr. Kean was sa • fur reeorere.l front the paiaful effects of his late accident, as to induce a hope that he will be able to resume his pro.:- fe.tsional duties to-Hu - wrote, ac expressed by himself in tbs.. C.llowing letter to the Munagou of Drury-Latta. Theatre : " - Mantes Street, 12, Friday. " GENII. EM EN ? -1 beg von to accept, anti coney to the Sub-Committee, an sincere tlcitiks tin the interest so kindly expressed for my recovery, untl tint - the liberality a iHi %%Inch am tlesiced not to hasten the resumption of thy duties benne my health is perfectly re-established. lam authorized by my Surgeon to entertain hopes of being able to appear helmc the politic on Monday, if it be not in a ritaracter tug too grt exertion. With that viva I• take the liberty of suggest ing that of Sky/ork. " I beg to assure you, that I feel triinv lured that anxiety ant impatience of conemement will temd more to delay toy ',edicts reaoyet y front act•itlent than any ill that may result front. [(Pithily Cht2i7OUS.--I am, Gentlemen, pour obedient Svwvatit, " E. ." Among t'ar. , , phenomena of the present day, mar jthstlr he included George Bidder, a Devonshire bu . '::,.ituder ten. years of :tge, whose power* of vdeulation equal those cat ,Tedediah Buxton, or the American boy. George Bidder was ycsterdaF asked if the Ministers had succeedcd in carrying the Income Tux (twelve in one !mutat, notes, how many miles would it have covered a road feet wide, each nolo beim: 8. inches by 4 and a half he directly answered IS miles 1653 yards‘und 1 foot. IIIADEat/Ist:tut G assEarst.--'lle aseenaien in a hclo r lc'on, and the dent in a. parachute, of Nlademciselle Caruerin so often announced, and often detitrred, took place oa Sunday, 14th init. in the Camp tie Mars. 'ChM air was cold and the anttostphere cloudy, and this eireantr titmice indirect' a belief that. the experiment would be pat oil. At half rust three. however, Mademoiselle tlitincrin entered a very unc:niticent Car, a!;ilCd by a ripe tiv,:uta feet lout to a parachute, above which wits the balloon. The whole tim ruse majestically in u western directing. ',Then about the height of Htio feet, the lady cut tins tore, the parachute untidded and the tist.-ent took place slowly, and without the least ctrrruss uu. Matl.ttr laniSelle Garnerin alightetl new the Barrier of Grosp Callon, and quite Ruse to the River. The youtr4 latty went through the business with great sa,sll-froid, awl re ; ccived tile testimonies of satisfaction at the trumerony spectators assembled.. A great mtntbor of lientleitrn cot horseback precoded the young aeronaut on her. return to Paris, and among them the Duke of Wellington. Lord Grenville is to receive a rent of )1. R veer Camellia:li Home, (to a lease for years ; with a, klaube of turender at the caauf ascii Qr 1-1 y' e:js.