The National Register. — London, England, 1819-10-10 00:00:00

R '.:24 ~' I ~r ~~ 5 1 4 ‘ 1 i. k r• h - ; V 10 %HU EDT/ Olt. St 14-1 feel ezeeedingly unwilling to obtrude myself upon the public, and, quite as 11111C11 so, II) occupy, unprofitably, the columns of thy paper, its which the cause in the labouring ;toot has beets SO much more ably advocated ; vet I may be perinitted to add to my forme► communications a few hints, which lilo4l wilt either give, as coming front me, or if thou more approve of that moat., incorporate them, in thy genet:l remarks twos, this most inierestiog subject. Passing events convince me that " delays are change. roils," and my regard for that old, but true adage, induces isle to state; that duty, as well as ',obey, calls upon every man, who has either mind or money, to use hia influence for the,.assinsince of those whose situation and circuits- Stal)Cel.demand it. There are many who are now, most deservedly, movs • , ing . in the higher walks of life, who will easily call to their recollection, that either them elves,. or their pre .- &rem's, were indebted to industrious exertions, sup - prted by the blessings of Providence, upon honest- in tendon, of the elevation to which they have attained ; awl he who can lay his twirl upon his heart, and claim . such an origin, has indeed a title to greatness, which • ,Nobility itself may how to with respect. Impressed with this belief, and. most atixions that soy suffering fellow men, wherever found, may have that eid tow high patient, butt unsuccessful exertion, is at all times entitled, I again call upon the men of in: fluence, and of information, to lay aside prejudice, and ascertain lire theuistlver, whether great distress .does, or , does not prevail, amongst the labouring classes of the community ? Their report would be a boon to the country for . such is the present state of extreme agitation, that what .. appears in the public papers, reiterated and uncontras dieted, must necessarily contribute to increase that feel ing, and augment that turbulence, and disposition to complain, which peculiarly marks every succeeding large assemblage of the people. To ascertain how far these complaints are well founded or otherwise, would kbe labour well bestowed, and would greatly tend to lessen the public anxiety. It is no uncommon remark, that those who are loudest in their complaints, are not the people who are really suffering. Be it so : the complaints of the sufferers . themselves hive conic before the public, its every possi ble shape, and in language at once teinperate„ but firm stttl tespectful: 4ntl what has ►o far resulted from these appeals of wreicheditesx? lias not the Saliba listless apathy left the matter to chance, and the complainants to distress and disappointment? Shall we then condemn that sympathetic feeling, which adds dignity to the human character, and impels every individual of the great family, to espouse the general cause ? and thus an ebeilition is every where seen, unheard of at any former period. Let the wound be probed, and ascertain its malig nity : the cure is neither doubtiul nor distant, if pro yerly set about. The private.concerns of every man of bustuiss regnire arrangement, forecast, and unceasing attennon, it lie is either to be successful or comfortable; how much more must the great Miumfacturing System reituire the united wisdom and experience of those who are the nwin springs of the gr.-at machine : if its operations are to proceed with vigour, every subordinate part of it must be preserved, tit for tbs.:discharge of its relative functions. It is by this vigilance, and faithful discharge of duty, that the prevailtog dissatisfaction is to he removed, and the thousands who meet to complain, be converted into _groups of approving and peaceaut subjects.:Theu, indeed, will the country res ttttt e its wonted cheerfulness; and whilst plenty rewards the toil pf labour, the distinguish• tug mark will be--gratitude in the people. Another collation objection to any public enquiry into also prevailing distresses and dissatisfaction is, that it will be /aid hold of as a matter of triumph on the part of the disa t tfected, and that concession, under these car• cunistances, will increase the evil. Tins is only oppos ing one opinitni w another; anal as we see what neglect and 1113llt/i . Litll.o as dare, it would be a mark of wisdom, at least, to Ott enquiry a fair chance, and see what way remit tiosii that. I..have employed my feeble exertions to rouse my fellow men to efforts suited. to the exigencies of the moment. that the spectre of whielt we are in fear, way be brought before us in its just !importat. ; and, if it should be found that welrave.oonjured up horrors which do not exist,. the .country will hail the intelligence nith joy, and deservedly applaud the spirit and determination which has led to the discovery. But, it it should be found that, the measure of suffering amongst the labouring pram has beau gradually ou the increase, for a series of years, and that it bat at length reached a point almost beyond endurance, let us not : lose one moment, but use our most strenuous exertions to introduce another and better order of things, Let it urn be said. THAT tasty concession would betray weak- Hess—call forth Justice and Mercy : and if to permit' their Maumee be concession, then let emiceiv , ion become the order of the day,. until we have subdued the prevail ing discontents, by removing the heavy burthebs, and letting the oppressed go free. ant consumed that, though it may be at variance with our most reputed theories of political economy, :es that the experiment of giving to labour a value, vvti;ch a series of thoughtless and oppressive exactions base taken ass-ay from it, ought to be made; and if, in aust'ation of 13irmingliarn, Sheffield, and some other of Our grtia manufacturing towns where Chambers of sCosiluerro, or boards of Trade, du exist, similar as ,aociations Were funned, of the leading and must respect able awn. mud that their as awed object should be, not rsoly the general potteetion of trade, but, most deter &hominy to secure to toe operatives, a fair and adequate remuneration fur their labour, under all the varying cir cionistances that neces,ity ur caprice may bring about, pie us the labourer would know %slime to seek protec ao, splust au malicious and .unfcchue, waster, who van NATIONAL REGISTER. might attempt to take aslvan age of his poverty, and I otter ally other than the general_ and approved prices of the Jay. No - one will, 1 think, assert, or can seriously he. lieve that the present depressed price of labour is either . essential to the commanding place we hold, as a great Manufacturing and Commercial Cottutun ty, or at all conducive to the general interests which are to be sus. Pained by it. After every thing which can be done in this way has been attempted, I ant decidedly of the opinion, that until a considerable portion of the labour is taken out of the market,• and some profitable wit ity is given to it, the suptrabundance will perpetually have the effect of deranging any such plans as have beets pointed out ; and, therefore, the Waste and Crown nds, under the sanction of,Guvertunent, must be re sorted to. And if the Agricultural Interest should take the at inn, the cultivation of these lands might,-to a great extent, be employed in the growth of flax, the practicability of which has been most satisfactorily proved by an experiment upon the waste of Dartmoor, on the part of a highly respectable and philanthropic character, who has a large track of land there. He is decidedly convinced, that -upon the :waste land of this Island, sufficient flax might be grown to render the importation of German and Russia listen almost entirely superfluous, and, of course, give employment in manufacturing, to a large body of our population. It bus been confidently stated, that within the last twenty years, at least 120,000 small farms have been broken up, and converted into large ones • by this mea sure, upon a moderate computation, 6 00,000 persons have been deprived of their accustomed means of ob tai ll itt g a livelihood, and have been driven into the manufacturing, and other . districts, to seek bread there. if to thit-mournful catalogue we add the immense numbers who hate, since the conclusion of the war, been also turned iiptei society fur a maintenance, we shall not wonder at the stiperai lance of labour, which is on all hands.pression for employment. It is also well known, that the mercantile, mann factoring, and labotuing interests have, for a series of years, been matte to partake of the general cal- •• .s with which the country has been visited, to an extreme degree, -whilst the landed interests, having the special protection of the Legislature, have been sheltered from a participation in the publicAturtletis, as is clearly and satisfacusrily shewn, by the est e em reasoning, 'nil most interesting ealculatioos, addressed to the •Cbairnian of the Committee oil the Poor Laws, by a writer who de servedly assumed the name of a Briton Situated as the country is, our grand object is to rally round the Contlitution, as handed down to its by our linefathers. To restore its vigour and usefulness, and preserve the stake we individually lay claim to, every man is called upon, in the.present emergency, to sacri fice to the common cause, in proportion .to the value and importance of that stake to himself and his fauilly ; and if we thus contribute to the general aid, from the highest to the lowest iatik amongst us, the end will be accomplished. aud.we may again come to feel that hap piness and independence are yet to be found in Ohl England. Daly let a well organised plan be brought forward, and the public attention seriously and weightily called to it, and I am cool:dent that the united wisdom and patriotism of the country would devise mesas of relief. The really distressed would be assisted ; and those whose object is not Reform..but Revolution, would be punished as the laws direct, and their character held up to general execration.- 1 beg to subscribe myself thy obliged friend. DAVID HOLT. Clterlitnt.Coltage, Mareckester, Sop. 28. 'PRISON REGULATIONS. Mr. George Boulton Muinvvaring, one of the Magistrates for the County of Middlesex, has ad dressed a Letter to the Chairman of the Magistrates for that County. We cannot write theatame with out painful recollections of his titther's conduct before his dismis.al from office ; nor do we forget that his son had some unpleasant traits in his public character ; as all, however. are open to amendment, we charitably hope this gentletnan has felt its influence ; .at all events, as we judge of documents on their own merits, without allowing ourselves to be biassed, either way, by the signatures appended to them, and as we consider this a useful sensible letter, we proceed to enable our readers to judge of it. It DEAR SIR,--1 venture in trouble you upon a sub ject which bas for some time anus: stithissly engaged uty attention ; and I do so with the more confidence, from the couviction that your opinion is somewhat in unison with oty own, And that the sanction of your authority and co-operation w;il !..to eery far indeed t owards effect ing an ohject, in which the interests of the county of ZI old Jebel are essentially concerned. i allude to the state of our prison and more especially .to that of the !louse at Correction. hhe denomination of this, and of similar receptacles, most emphatically expresses the object of their knstitu non—that it was to punish 4Uld to reform. . . Of the expediency and the duty of carrying this, the intention of their founders and of the Legislature into dfcci, ti.tre can be no (mist.; but I fear that there exists much doubt 11 1 )011 the IlftallS of doing so, and the slow progress which has been hitherto made in our effectual system of prison discipline is but a too decided contirnia aaaa of I.;tts fix; ; however, when we consider the subject in its consequences to the public, and its lusting im portance to the individuals concerned, 1 trust that one common tentiment will prevail as to the object in view, and that as far as talent and exertion can avail. we may depend upon the individual and collective Zeal of the Inat t ,istracy iu digit akplication. OCT. 10. Zr hare been led to the foregoing reflections. front the confident persuasion, that the prison under consideration is not a place either of puntshment or reform ; that it excites no terror or apprehension of its discipline. anti that it has consequently little influence in preventing crime ;.nor has it, in its actual operation, any tendency to reform the criminal ; .I also tear that it has a sum positive evil than this, and that it aggravates the 111i5. chief which it attempts-to remedy. In the. peueral intercourse of society, the most ahan. doned may have she ehance of virtuous relatiies or friends to w►thdraw.them from their criminal career but,. in a place where the whole society is vicious, and where the-most corrupt, from idleness and communica tion, have the uninterrupted means, from morning till night, of more deeply infecting those comparatively pure, it is absurd to look for punishment, or to calculate upon reformation. From my intimate acquaintance and friendship with the magistrates who visit this prison, know that they are fully sensible of these evils, and that they most anxiously wish to remedy them. 1 sin aware that a criminal of the metropolis, is, in many respects, of -it different.character from one of any other place in the kinalions ; that hs is possibly the offspring of crime— trained and disciplined in its pursuit, and that plunder is his profession ; and it may be said, that his reforma tion is impracticable—that he must return to his former associates and calling; without friends, without money or character, whither or to whom can he go? Discouraging as this slew may be, are-there not fa vourable circumstances, even in the cases of these delin quents? In distant parts of the kingdotn, where popu lation is scattered, ct i 11l inals have not (as with us) the same means of unobserved association, their temptations are fewer, facilities less, escape more difficult. In these situations, therefore, where adventitious and external circumstances are less liable to act, it is reasonable to conclude, that the sins of a -culprit am more exclusively his own : if, then, in prisons, to which he is consigned, we find that his heart and life can acquire a new direc tion (as experience begins to teach us it may), are we in this county to despair? With us, large as is the cata logue of offenders, the number of those must be great, whose vices were not originally their own • and may we not hope, that iii many, seeds may have been sown, that with care end culture will yet quicken into virtuous life. From this description of persons there is, undoubtedly, ground for hope; but I further contend, that with the worst, tinder an efficacious system, there is a probabi lity ofamend men'. . _ Idleness," we are told, " is the root of all evil.' Speaking of its force noon criminal habits, we may truly say, that it is the constspirtr:e, as well as the source of crime. The feverish life of a criminal SO debilitates and iiniiairs body and mind, that he becomes idle almost against his will, arsd.unable to follow up the better re solutions•of a transient -remorse ;• therefore, the surest means of his reformation, will be found in giving him a habit (a mechanical habit) of industry, and in reprodu cM;3, energies which have been lost by crime and debau chery. I might here, I think, safely leave this subject; but if I am asked in what manner I would produce this habit, I say, by hard labour,.and that that labour is the best which is the cant active—labour, which shall really work the body and subdue (properly discipline) the mind : and considering (as we mast at first do) the ob jects of our attention to the unwilling agents, we should place them in a situation, where, however unwilling, they must (wlaalst employed) be working. Foe this purpose, of all the labour that I have seen or heard of, as a primary means of industry, as well as an actual punishment, the stepping-mill work is the most desira ble. I have recently had an opportunity of observing its efficacy in the gaol attlary, which at the sante tune that it shows a prison combining punishment and re form, exhibits a thriving and cheerful manufactory, where there is not an inmate, without an entire, or an useful -and profitable occupation. Stibsidiaty employ ments will soon be Vuland, when the first principle of labour is understood, and its effects are proved ; and its the prison just mentioned, the intervals between this severe task of mill duty are cheerfully occupied in lighter . works, suited to the taste, inclinations, and former ha bits of prisoners. It may s ill be observed, that th Sis compulsion—that when the powers ceases, its eikc s will be lost ; and when upon deliberation, free agency returns, former propensities well return with it : I an swer with some confidence, that this has been the c use to a very limited extent where an effective prison disci pline has been adopted; and I apprehend that reasonin; and analogy from the nature and constitution of man will confirm such a result. f _ Man, especially in the laborious classes of society, is, and.should be, mechanical iu his habits; therefore, ha bits be given him, front which lie acquires health, Strength., peace.of mind, sad the honest means of support, solely it is not beyond probability, that many, even the worst of men, may pistil' by the-aciptisition of such habits. Eseti should it be thought, Cott llw term of some itnprkonments is too short to effi et a radical improvement, still the sys tem is good ; and we may in such cases infer comparative tuts crime, and consequeully comparative amenclineut. The. caticarreut influence of solitary confinement, (if necessary), and of spit itual admonition anti guidance, mutt also, whew rightly and earnestly detected, powerfully aid the course of personal currectom. lneudeavuutingto remove the reasonable grounds of doubt to which 1 have ads cried, I have throughout been sensible of the expense of an effectual cliehge of system, and of the Immutable objection to w Inch it may give rise : the benefit of change, it shay be isto.erted, i uncertain; the expense Ccrllllll. This observation is ilpplie4hle to almost all cases ill which money is necessary to itnprove- ment, and would at once produce it : but the right COll/4. ',Makin is, whether, according to corn reasoning, and flout actual experience, the change be likely to suee f eed : the filmier 1 have been sit living to enfot cc ; to the latter, facts will speak,and the experiments of other places will, I thiuk, satiety our scruples, and direct us to du our duty. The first es Kobe any ha cousiderable, the labiate may not pay itself, the animal ear:nil:tote way fur a time be