The National Register. — London, England, 1813-04-04 00:00:00

MR. NITS MoNUAILNT. Saturday sennight, the monmeent in honour of Mr. Pitt, erected in Guildhall, was opened to the public. It is the work of Mr. J. G. Bubo, and is in description as follow,: —A massy substance on which the figutes in the composition are placed, is intended to represent the bland of Great Britain, and the surrounding waves.--On an eleva tion in the centre of the Island, NI r. Pitt appears in his robes a Chaneellor of the Exchequer, in &he attitude of a Public Orator. Bei low him, on an interim diate forearanial, two Statues diameter's. his al) lilies: white, with the National cut ray, which is tinoodied, and rising on a symbol of the Ocean in the lower centre, t!iey assist In describe allusively the effect: of his Adininistration.—Apollo stands on his right, impersonating Omptence and Learning. ihreury is in troduced on his left, as the Itypre,entative of Commerce and the Pa tron of 'obey. To di scribe the unprecedented splendour of success which crowned the British mavy while Mr. Pitt was Minister, the lower part of the Monument is occupied by a Statue of lititannia, seated triumphantly on a sea-horse ; in tier left hand is the usuai emblem of Naval Power, and her right grasps a thunder-bolt which she is prepared to hurl at the enemies of her country. The follow ing is the Inscription on it, filim the pen of Mr. Canning:— . WILLIAM Son of Wiccrelt PITT. Earl of CRATITAM, Inheriting the geoite , , and formed by the precepts of his Father, Devoted himself from his early )ears to the s e rvice of the State. Called to the chief conduct of the Administration, after the close of a disastrous war. He repaired the exhausted Revenues, he revived and invigorated the Commerce and Prosperity of the Country. And be had re-established Ow Public Credit on deep and sure foundations. When a new war was kindled in Europe, more formidable than any preceding war, from the peculiar character of its clangers. To resist the arms of France, which were directed against the Independance of eve' y Government and Peo;:le ; To animate other Nations by the example of Great Britain ; To check the contagion of opinions which tended to dissolve the • frame of Civil Society. To army the loyal, the sober minded, and the good, in defence of the venerable Constitution of the British Monarchy, Were the duties which, at that awful crisis, devolved upon the limitish Minister; And which he discharged witti transcendant zeal, intrepidity, amid perseverance: He . upbeld the National Honour abroad ; he maintained at Home time blessings of Order and of true Liberty : And, in the midst of difficulties and perils, He united and consolidated the strength, power, and resources of the Empire. For these high purposes, He was gifted by Divine Providence with endowments, Rare in their separate excellence ; wonderful in their combination; Judgment; imagination ; memory ; wit; force and acuteness of reasoning; Elognence, copious and accurate, commanding and persuasive, And suited from its splendoonr to the dignity of his mind, and to the authority of his station ; A lofty spirit ; a mild and ingenious temper. Warm and steadfast in friend owards enemies he wry forbearing an rgi His industry was not relaxed by confidence in his great abilities. tlis indulgence to others was nut abated by the consciousness of his own superiinity. His ambiti , at was pure from all selfish motives; The love of poxer and time passion for fame were 43 him subotdinate to views of public utility: Dispensing for in Ar twenty years the favours of time Crown, He lived withoot ostentation; and he died pour. A GRATEFUL NATION Decreed to hint those funeral honours Which are reserved fin- eminent and extraordinary men. MIS MOM' INIVNIT I) erected by the Lord Muyor, Aldermen, and Common Council, record the reverent and tarectionate rearot With which the City of I ondon cherishes his memory ; Anil to hold out to the imitation of posterity Thobe principles ot 'niblick and private virtue, Which ensure to nations a solid greatness, Aud to Ludiviciusts an imperibhuhle name. TUE NATIONAL REGISTER. rIiorINCIALS. ASSIZES. LANCASTER, MARCH e 2 g . APRIL 4. AGRICULTURAL REPORT FOR MARCH. Our accounts of the growing of wheat from several. Districts are far from promising : scarcely any has been exempt from• the ravages of the slug. In Norfolk and the Fens. great breadths of eaten Wheat are ploughing up to be renown with Bark y. Fortunately, consider able importations of Biead-corn and Flour may be speedily looked flm. from Hamburgh. A finer Lent-seed season was sir ver remem bered, the land in general working ki►idly fur Oats and Barley. Large quantities of T tiro ip feed remain on the laud l which the Short ness of stock prevents the growers from fettling thi‘ruselves, and in consequence, considerable interest is makinviir. the loan of floeisi of sheep to eat it off in due time for sowing. Potatoes remain abii dant in most counties. The I lay markets are ri.ther lower. The Midland Graziers agree that they never recollect both fat and lean beasts so earce as at this season of the year : the prices have huh a proportionate increase. Mutton is also scarce and dearer ; but Pig Pork, for want of keep, is somewhat cheaper. The Wool mar kets are brisk at last market prices. THE KINC, UPON TliE PROSECUTION OF ROBKRT KIRKPATRICK, ESQ. V. THOMAS CREEYEV, ESQ. M. P. Mr. PARK, the Attorney-General for the county, stated, that this was a prosecution against Mr. Creevey, a Member of Parliament, for having published in The Liverpool Mercury, a most scandalous and defamatory libel, highly injurious to the character of a Gentle. man of the name or Kirkpatrick, tilling the important office of In. Spector-General of Taxes. He did not mean to deny the Honour able Member's right to state what he pleased in the House of Commons ; the exercise of that privilege, however it might affect the feelings of individuals, could not be called in question ; but he contended, that if a Member of the House ot Commons afterwards sent to the Editor of a newspaper his own :eport of his speech, he was answerable if it contained libellous matter, just the same as for the publication of a libel of any other description. The Learned Counsel then stated, that the libel purported to be the repot i of the Hon. Member's speech, made upon the occasion of presenting a Petition to the House of Commons r,..ainst the East India Com pany's monopoly. He seemed to have gone wholly out of his way in order to vilify the prosecutor, for he represented the di.stresses of the people of Liverpool as having been aggravated by his ap pointment to the office of Llspector-General of Taxes. He de signated the office of Mr. Kirkpatrick as that of a common informer, and insinuated that he received a large annuity for undertaking to screw up persons assessments to the extent of his OUll imagination: The Leaned Counsel added, that the libel went on to insult the memory of the late 1111.. Perceval, by asserting that he had given 311.. Kirkpatrick this appointment merely in consequence of his having been his client. The Learned Counsel then referred to the case of " the King v. Lord Abingdon," to show that the publication of a libel against an individual, was not to be justified by the cir rum,tance ot its being a report of a speech made in Parliament. ile concluded, by expressing his conviction that the verdict would confirm the doctrine for which he contended. The p!ibiication from Mr. Creevey's manuscript having been clearly proved, ♦tilr, TIKOLG HAM first submitted to I►is Lordship. upon the an. thoi•ity ci the case of the King v. Wright, that he was not called upon to address the Jury. He insisted generally, that a Member ot• Parliament could not be laid accountable for publishing a true report of %%114t passed in Parliament. Sir Sish N Le BLANC over-ruled this point ; and the Learned Gentleman then addressed the Jury. He sa►d, that Mr. Crecycy had been urged by many Meubers of both Hiroses, justly alarmed at this prosecution, to insist upon his privilege. ; but the Learned Judge having decided against him, he sho►►ld un%r proceed to the other ground of his defence. He then, in a very ttoquent and in genious Teed', contended, that there was nothi.►g libellous in the publication—that matters reflecting in a nmch higher degree onon characters of individuals, as the speeches of Mi. Burk Mr. Windham, and other eminent Parliamentary elairr. inferred the injurious operation of imposing any restraint urn the publication of Reports of what passed in Parliament ;Li on this ground principally triisted his client would be acquitted. Sir S. LE BLANC stated his clear opinion that it %%as no extenea tion of a libel to say that it was the report of a speet PA! has ment—the publication in question was one which teuccd to vilify the prosecutor, who was ill We execution ot• a public bast, and J i J ( * ] (l 7 e I i