The National Register. — London, England, 1819-02-22 00:00:00

tZ 7 .tIF--. . . ~.. ( .., z .. . .. . . •. : : fri. .. . • 4 • ................... . .. _ . . . . . . . t . . • . . 1 • • • SAA . 1 I ill erlitP ii 1., r , ~ , 1 .____. • A ........... . . . Our Etin! Parcz 91 No. 576.—V0L. XII. MONDAY, FEBRUARY IS, 1819. POLITICAL DISQUISITION. ON THE WESTMINSTER ELECTION. It is certain, that nothing win a greater imp to West minster, to the people of England, nay, to humanity itself, than the death of Sir Samuel Romilly. We are now beginning to feel it. The Electors of Westmin ster sever did themselves more honour, then by their rhoice of that great and gond man, and by the manner of their choice. His worth would have ra Bel their charaeter, and their character would have given ad• ditional weight to his worth. But he is gone, and we now begin to feel that he is. We-tminster can find ne name worthy to fill the ear after his Two youn; men are proposed, who are justly designated as novices ; end an old one, who, though very hOnest, and upright, is much too visionary, too little of a prattical man, to be of any use. He would, indeed, with the best in. tentions, be worse than neelesa,—he would prove detrimental to the cause of rational Reform.—Mr . Hunt says, he alone is up to Mt monk —Mr. Hunt's commendation is itself a miguster and the feet is. idejor Cartwright is much hyoid the mark of any thing that is either desirable, or, if desirable, that is attainable. tie would, indeed, be a good inembe. for those complainers by profession, who wieh to have something to couipla it of, and whose factitious impor tance would meit away :iku mist, w tre the abuses of the ('onstitution tti,be retnedied,—mee who, like the lute Catholic Board, live by complaiaiiv and having reason to complain. With respect to the other two untried men, who have nothing w offer but profeeions,' they are doubtless neither of them such us might have' been wished. As, however, none else start, the choice lies between them. Now, notwithstanding the loingliv etplruisttion of Mr. Hobliou.a., which betrays the mean i.r; it was memo to conceal, namely the abandonment of the principle of lin:venal Suffrage, it's , trus that the lectors will beta t onodt their own in teiests by choosing hita in preference to Mr I.atr.b. His aisav siva' of the nrincipleof Unieersal SuTiNe will be a recommends 16r1 et theeketors, if not to the mob at the hustings. though his evasive manner of disavowing that doctrine will not; fur it was any thing but manly', and may Lirly be ealled shuffling. Had he distinctly said, that I,e was r.ut an advocate fin Universal Suffrage, but for the right of election being extended to all payers of direct taxes of a certain amount, or whatever is his notion on this head, he would have acted much more emdently, as well as boldly. Mr. Lamb professes ki.uself a Whig, and a follower of Mr. Fox--lot might he n u t be a.hed, which set of principles . of Mr. Ton's he admired—those which that great orator r2.'ked of when in opposition, or those which he practised when in power? The fact is, the IA higs at a party ate ceentisny aristocratic., and ought not to be supported at tech by the people. Many individuals who have belonged to them, twit as Romilly, have liven most worthy, and most deserving of support ; not as Whigs, however, but on their own individual merits el , nus Konaiih w.ts himself. It was not his being a Whig which brought hint in for Westminster, but Iva hr ng idler Man a Whig. Of inslividuul merit Mr. LamL ran beast nothing—for he has not been tried--sal his very professions only amount to this , mysterious wor 1 Whiggism, which the people of Westmismter witnessed, in 1806, meant a very different thing when its torero ems were Hight Iforiourab!e, front what it ditl when they were only men of homeir. Mr blohhouse is fie an extension of suffrage scniething short of universal, and for Parliameuts of as short•duration as two years, ea shorter. Nut withstutuiiig the foolish verLiage and melon of his declaration, this is its meaning ; and it item a very good waning, though, we repot, it ought to have been manfully avowed. In the mean time the MinisterLal candidate has withdrawn, and Ministers leave the'arena open to be contested between the I•Vhii,e and Reformers. in this they have shown that the lesson taught them by the event of the last election has not been thrown away. Th. y have acted with judgment. Had they opposed hfr Hobhouse, they would have insured his election. As it is, of the two candidatcs, they would much rather have Mr. Lamb than his opponent, and all their active friends will vote for Mr. Lawb. This circummtAinm prodtwes a virtual en.lition between the two parties—the ministerial and the aristocratical—against the popular candidate ; and Sir Francis Burdett s vanity, in standiag forward so oonspieuonsl7, es his patron, rather than his friend, gives currency to the bjc•word, which the coalition have taken up—that he wishes to make Westminster his own c;ase borough. This bye•word, like many others, will do much harm, though it is an insult on the common sense of those to whom ie is addressed ; for bow can any man, who is not s Minister with a host of dependent electors sod who stands on his popu larity alone, dictate to the city of Westminster, or make it in the most remote degree like a close borough? How does he hold his influence, but at the free will of a majority of the elec ors ? Is he nut therefore de pendent on them fur his influence—and will not the breath of their nostr;ls, if 'hey cause, deprive hint of it ? Howeverinelined he may be, therefore, to become o great a borough. holder. w:iere is 7 is power? But it is not the fully of this impatation which will prevent its currettcy with men of a certain scale of intellect.— Neverthelew, we hope, as the Westminster electors ore, fecal the advantages of their situation, without question, the must enliolitened in the kingdom, that the great mass will not in the long run lie deceived by this attack on their vanity ; nor hav e th e weakness t o reject a candidate, not because he is ineligible, but be cause he is recommended by one of whom their eaeotie would fain make them jealous. They have shews too touch penetration before :tow to be eicught thus and will make their choice, be it what it may, on rational motives. The city which exalted itself so nobly by the election of a , ltnnriltr, cannot act otherwise. Sir William Curtis took his seat on Wednesday evening in the (louse of Commons, a. Measlier fur the Borough of Blechingly. The Hun. Baronet's appear ance, after his lets: defeat, ex. ited some cheering and goo,t-eatureil laug hter from the OpPosition Benches, wh ch was met by loud cheering from the Treasury, Benches. Sir William's good humour did nut desert hela nutted as heartily as any one else. lo conscgactice of the great increase of appeals-to the House of Lords, and the length ,of time which some have r.nuained for decision (upwards of six years t), the Lord l 'rowdier has thrown out the sugwastion of tppropria!ing three days in the Cords on Shen cases, a..ii the molter three days in the Court of Chaneviy. Madras Papers hare arrived to the Si 6f October in clusive. The state of affairs in l eylou is sail to have greatly improved since the capture of the,Preteader and his Mit:ister. In every province, *the people of all des erip?ions were ha •t. :ling to submit, and to give the surest pro .d of their sincerity by the surrender of their arms. In tl:e seven holies, arms were heought in every day in great ahundanoe. In Ifeeruhvtte, where Capt. Cleathe wits so v igarously attacked, and his escorts so continually annoyed, all hostility had nearly e.easod ; and there was ._vet v prospect of that. province, the moat rebellious of all, being restore-I to trouquilrasy. In Wellassy every thing was perfe..tly citiet. The new works at Parana mini were in great progress. Sir W. Coke, 1 hiefJustiee of the Stiprente Cum in Ceylon, died at i'rineornalee, the Ist el September, of a mortification of the bowels. Mr. It. Byrne, B.iiiister at Madras, has been Aprin ed hi s scect s.s.a.. The deaths by cholera norhos at Burn tray, from the 17th to 3,st of Alagust, ationin.c.l to .537 Its raVag'i.b thcre, however, bwi conmsratively diminished. but the malady continued to apic.ikt on the Cuatinent of LAW IN TA COURT OF KING'. BENCH, PV. 10. SICTRAORDINARY CONSPIRACY. THE LINO V. LEVY AND °Tata& Mr. Scarlett stated, that the defendants in this ow Mrs. Ella Levy, Mr. Hymn Alexander, Goodum* Davies, and Joseph Davies, were indicted foe ennspi.. raey to make a noise to dis.urb Mrs. Elisabeth Hartle during the peried of her lying-in, end thereby initnre her heal h and that of her Want. He caLeal the fuL 19wing evidence : Elisabeth Harris, in September last, resided at No 5, H.aly well-street : Ella Levy, the defendant lived next door. Witness had nut spoken to auy of her neighbours fur two or three' years. On the 13th of September, about b in the morning, with >s was taken is labour, and sent for her mother who lived opposite. It was Sunday, and as noon as this message was sent, witness heard a vipient uproar and noise in the sire • and a knocking against a wainscot which separat d the witness s room from Mrs Levy's house. This noise continued all day : shout 3 in the afternoou warners was delivered, and immediately there was an eatery. [Here Cie witness was so overcome she could not proceed.) Mr. Andrews, on lux reeuvexy, proceeded to examine her. Her husband's muse was Tweedy" ; he was a Christian she a Jewess. They had never • been martini ; but she had a promise, and was shortly to be married in a Christian church. Rosa llari• s, sister to the last witness, stated, that she kuew the defendant:, who allthvel in the houses u ]joining; the proineutries. Mrs. Levy had said, in the wit ayss's hearinz, Coat when her time arrive.l thej weeld serve her out. Tim reason they w%igoecl was, teat site was intimate with a thri.tites. %Vi tae " statml, that as toots as her sister was t k •rt il!, the noise commenced in the street with hooting and hallooing" Now we shall have the youngTweedy.'' They palled down the iron bars of the shutters. The unites of knocking and.heetinv continued at intervals in Mrs. Levy's house, throtsgh the clay ; at which time witness's sillier was delivered. Witness heard M s.. I cry call out to llyem Alexander, and Goodman Da. vies, " Now is your time boys, she has gut a yowl.. Tweedy." Atter this the noise was more violent tha n befinte, when they blew horns and made a noise with rattles in the street, in consegoence of which her sin ter went into fog. _ _ _ The defendants were found G iffy►. FIRE. Yesterday tenting, at five o'c'ock a fire brote out in a house in Henrietta-street, Covent-garden, belong ing to Mr., Suttoo, laditx shoe-maker. The flames were first observed in a back room on the first floor, is the occupation of Mr. Jenks, coilecter of the parochial rates of the parish of St. Paul, who rental the upper part of the house. The family were front home at the time ; dna in a few moments the whole of the hack part of the }anise was on lire; and as the wind woe north west, blowing fresh, it was geared that all the Mows near Covent-garden on that side of the way would be consumed; however, by the timely arrival of the enttines belonging to the different insurance offices, anti the exertions of the firemen, the conflawation was got under at seven o'clock, with only the house where the fire originated being burned down. At six o'clock ene of the teimee servants of Mr. Jenks appeared in the street in a diatracted state, and from her incoherent expression; it was supposed that a child had been homed in .he h am; ; but from the to r. strict inquiry we h the every reason to hope it is iv ti.e ease. When it first brol:e out, it was genet,lly supposed that it was St. l'atti's Church that was on fir:- The evenint • service was nut prfortned in the church, in comae pienee of the confusion and alarm produced by this es:cott.mce• Tug DiminoLo Cumin —On l'i 4 tlu,' another Mil `!‘ r inaietatent was fund ut the Clerkenwell Sessions, the suite of the pati:lt of St. Andrew, Flulhorn, against Ann • - yinona, the midwife, for dropping the child in TaOssotreet, (':rug's Inn Lane. Ehe first indictment, on,wiSich she and the mother of the chi:,! are oat , rt bot,iiiti which they have travLrse,l, , h them wit 4 cmiliirary ; and in rt-e the ti:•it 4:11:111:e should not est,,lilish.:J, is the cause ut the second indlowent, i * g t A ~' .~"f" `~ I ;~