The Sun. — London, England, 1833-02-02 00:00:00

second!, that the Council: have — not, - for the period. of 130_ years, attempted to originate bills, though, it appears that the abstract right was asserted in 1753. In order to justify the (4o vernor in disturbing this long .prescription, it ought to be shown • that the privilege claimed and exercised by the-House of. Assembly was injurious to the public interest, and not neces sary 'to the protection• of the people of Ja maica, and that the constitution• of the Coun cil fitted it for the exercise of the right, which has been in abeyance for 130 years. A Statesman ought not-to alfow himself to be car ried away by fanciful analogies; and to suppose, becatise there is a . House of Assembly and a Council in . Jamaica,. and a House of COM.' mans and a House of Peers in England, that the former are identical with the latter. We Yesterday observed, that we were not aware that there were any particular funds at the dis posal of the Council in Jamaica, as there were at .the disposal of the Councils in Canada ; hut it -appears that we were mistaken.. There are 10,000/. currency at the disposal of the Jamaica Council, and 'with respect to this the House of Assembly have no cognizance. Wherever the English Government is felt, corruption and abuses of- all kinds. prevail. In all our colonies the complaints are loud on that subject. In all of them it would appear that the business of those who gOvern is to create discontent in the governed, and the money of England is ex pended in protecting a number of official scourges, who, in the proportion in which they are burdensome to the mother country, are in jurious to thecolonies. The inhabitants of the English coldnies having been accustomed to pro fusion and extravagance, suffer much before they complain. But it is not so with the con quered colonies. We received the other day, " A Memorial -presented by the inhabitants of the Mauritius, in support of their petition to his Majesty, setting forth the sufferings they have endured, the dangers they are exposed to, and the rights' to which they lay claim." This pam phlet, to which valuable notes are supplied by the translator, will easily explain why the inha bitants of the Mauritius are willing to risk their all in a desperate conflict, rather than continue to be plundered as they have hitherto been : "In virtue," they say, of this solemn - transaction (the Convention of 3d Dec., 1810), Mr. R. T. Farqu har took possession of the-Isle of France, as Governor, in the name of his Britannic Majesty. He promised to observe the conditions of the capitulation, which, lie said, were most sacred. Numerous proclamations, published after the capture, renewed the promises and engagements contained in the proclamation secretly circulated previous to it. Nevertheless, the system adopted by the Govern ment was in direct contradiction to those public assevera tions.• The colony soon groaned under the weight of an, over-paid Administration, which worked piece-meal the destruction of its laws and institutions (1). To pay the enormous expense—the overgrown salaries of the new Government--even the war-taxes were augmented, and all the public burdens increased almostbeyond suffrance ; whilst, at the same time, injustice went so far as to ex clude from every office those very inhabitants by whom they were paid ; and that, precisely on the ground of their being colonists. In former times .tlie colonists had been preferied to their European fellow-eitizene, by virtue of a Royal ordinance to that effect (2). Not so any longer. Upon the new principles, a public servant of long standing in the colony, having been dismissed from his employment, and applying for a judicial situa tion then vacant, was informed by the Gover nor, that he should have it since lie had applied first, unless some Englishman were found to be desirous of it (3). Thus priority of application, or English extrac tion, stood instead of the qualifications required by the Colonial law, to enter upon the important funetions of a Judge (4). This disgraceful system endures to the pre sent day. The Colonists have been gradually 'expelled from all public situations and offices of trust. , A few only are permitted to act as inferitir clerks and writers; and in such capacity to perform the duties of raw uneducated English boys, sent from home to hold employments" Which they are notoriously too ignorant to fill, and towards the payment of which they contribute none of those taxes, which are levied from the old colonial servants, to whom they are preferred (5). Thus it is that in the Church, the highest places are filled and the richest living enjoyed by clergymen foreign to the colony, and for the most part incapable of convey ing the message of the Gospel, in the only language under stood by the prop eof Mauritius. Great scandal has been the consequence; and religion, far from gaining, has of necessity lost ground (6). The Courts of Justice have fated, if possible, still worse. Men without any OeiOus study even of the laws of England; have been appointed to apply the Fench colonial laws, which they were unable to read (7). So far has this been carried, that in the Supreme Court there now remains but one of our ancient colonial magistrates (8). The doctrines and traditions so carefully transsnitnd by tie bench, and geoured as the safeguards of its dignity, and of the im partislity of justice, are lost upon persons new to our country and our manners, who are either ignorant of their ,eisterwe, or regard them with the prejudices of their ,edna,ation. The municipal power is no longer intrusted to Ow bands of the Magistracy, but to military men, re cruited from the garrison (9). The colemy had main tained by voluntary contribution, a fund for the relief of the indigent ; and the care of it was confided to it Com mittee of Colonists. - Thoy were superseded in their charge by public officers, and in no long time the coffer was found to be empty. A fresh tax, in bumble imitation, it is presumed, of the English poor rates, was then laid on the already over-burdened planters. All trades and handicrafts were converted into moropolies, and exercised only by license of Government : licenses for printing— licenses for vending ardent spirits—for plying boats in the harbour—for fishing in the oteeks and bays. Ant these privileges were sold at a rate which, in every case, was enormous. Old colonial servants, suddenly dismissed from their employments, could obtain no retiring pension. The schools of the colony were neglected. Judges, who in no country are removeable at pleasute, were wantonly driven from the beech (10). Under the Government of General Hall, a citizen died in prison, before the %% arrant for 'his commitment had been 'signed by any Magis trate (11). Others have been transported from the co lony without trial (12). In one word, no abuse of power, no vexation, nor any humiliation or outrage has bob spared. The Colonists have tasted of all the bitterness of despotism, and can prove it by numerous and well-authen ticated facts. Of these their grievances, a summary was laid before the Secretary of State, in the year 1831. " At the same time that the laws and constitution of the •colonists were destroyed, fresh and heavy burdens were laid upon them. New ordinances were issued, in the framing of which they had not even been consulted. Some of them were iirwraeticable, some humiliating; and others * such as to bring into peril both their property and lives." These are the consequences of our colonial system, by which multitudes of men, necessarily rapacious to meet the wants created by their extravagant and expensive habits, are thrown non the defenceless colonists. Even the fund f„ c the; relief of the indigent at the Mauritius was-iaot he:;. l sacred. In 1830 appeared a pub lication, in two volumes, of " Travels through (1) See more ehAn 000 Proclamations and Ordinances pub :lsbell since 1810. (2) Ordinance of Ist October, 1766, Art. L :—" We r e berve unto ourselves," says the King, 0 the right of giving a prefe. rence to Colonists duly q ualified." . (ay A Siviss newly arrived from England. appeared next day as a candidate, and was preferred in spite of his profound ignorance. (4), Ordinanceof Ist October, 1766. (3) But for this system of Goverhment, all public duties' would be better Performed, and cost one half less. (6) The Ecclesiastical Superior, an English Priest, has inist! fled clandestinely from•the island, a' bankrupt to hundreds of creditors, and to the Church itself! (7) Ch i e f Judge George Smith was deaf—Judge Christie I was ignorant of French law. (8)` Judge Virieux, who counts forty years' active judicial - I service. • (9) Mr. Finnis, now Commissary-General of Police, was Paymaster in the 56th Regiment.—Mr. Lay, his Assistar.t, was Captain of Grenadiers in the ‘2l. ) d. (10) . Judge Bayard and others. lie was taxed with be i n g deaf. But Chief Judge Smith was still more so,and, we may • add, inora ly blind. • (113. Cuvillie. Cl 2 'Perrot, lonngron. ?he Crimea, Turkey,..anti - performed during the years 1825.28„&c., by the late James Webster, Esq., of the Inner Temple." Mr. Webstergives an account of Malta, which is almost a counterpart of that of the Memorial of the Colonists of the Mauritius.:— -• " Official functionaries (he says) are found at Malta in most unnecessary numbers ; sufficient, indeed, to manage the interests of an empire—heads of Government depart ments made, all English, with salaries of from 2001. to 1,5001. a year, exist in careless indolence, living instance- , of the liberality of the mother country, which pampers such excrescences. How should this be otherwise, while, not to mention the unbounded influence of the Colonic' Secretary or Sovereign, every new Govercor of a Colony, feeling an anxious and natural solicitude for the advance ment of his family interests, must, if there be not a place vacant, make a • new one for his purpose? People at home, have little or no notion df that manner of administering colonial affairs which entails such enormous aid needless expenditure upon the moth Ir . country. By the present system, neither Britain nor her possessions are . benefited ; the only advantages of it ate reaped by the Government officers, and to say truth, ' the harvest is indeed great,' and the labourers not a ' few.' Let us take the instance more immediately under consideration hen.. The revenue of Malta, even in these times of commercial distress, amounts to about 110,0001. a year; nearly every shilling of which is spent in salaries to official gentlemen, for the seldiers are paid from borne, as are also the people employed in the Ordnance,. Docks, &c. No useful works are carried on by ihe Government, either for the comforts of the Maltese, car the security of Malta; bur every possible opportunity is seized for appropriating money in patronage, that ia, in paying salaries to persons,whose only claim is family connexion, or interest with the powers that he. Would it be believed in England that the property or rental of the Maltese University has been appropriated to the service of the Stale, leaving only a small annual pittance for the purposes of the establishment Can such an act receive the sanction of the Ministry at home ? A new state of things is absolutely necessary at Malta. The island cannot pay the expenses of being governed after the present fashion. Half the people now employed might be advantageously spared, and the salaries of those that remain should be reduced one half, not excepting that of the Governor, whose 7,5001. a year is a most incon gruous allowance for such an island as Malta. We have an excellent natural opinion of ourselves, and of every thing connected with our laws, institutions &c. ; and with reason. But the laws and institutions which are so advantageous at home, have not an equally good effect when partially and injudiciously introduced among our colonial subjects. Englishmen doubtlessly be lieve that Malta enjoys ever possible privilege and advantage under English rule—they may be assured that it does enjoy all the privileges and advantages which would speedily lead to a new performance of the Sicilian Vespers, were not the natives well aware that England pos sesses the dominion of the sea, and that consequently every attempt at shaking off the yoke must prove abortive. The island could not po.sibly be worse governed than it now is. tt "t Nor is it the least grievance in the eyes of the Maltese, that they are shut out from the posts of honour and emolument, whieh are exclusively filled by English emigrants. With regard to the poorer classes in Malta, their situation and prospects are truly frightful. Numbers die of starvation—many are brought to the hos pital ill of fevers, arising solely from want of food, and the faithful and well-disposed population of this once flou riahing island, are, it seem', to be offered living victims on the altar of pampered end wasteful luxury." Such is English Colonial Government, and such we fear it will remain. The measure of the rapacity of Government is the measure of the patience of the governed. What are the robbery of the poor, the appropriation of the funds •of Universities (the Jesuits' estates for education in Canada, are another instance). compared with the providing for the scions of a rapacious and profligate aristocracy? As was once said by an admirable writer in the Edin burh Review, now a dignitary in the. Church, wherever there is a rock in tile ocean, it is oc cupied with a view to, supply tire means of ex istence to the children of the English aristo cracy. That Earl Mulgrave has been prudent in drawing attention to the grounds of collision between the Council and the Assembly in .Ja -maica few will be bold enough to affirm. That benefit will result - from the exposure we believe. Nothing but exposure will shame the rulers of this country into anything like decency in the government of the dependencies of the empire. --Morning Chronicle. • Ireland has for many years illUstrated in a' striking manner the truth that " political rights ' are nothing without political power to protect them." The Act of 1793, amongst other pro visions of much apparent liberality, made Roman .Catholics eligible as members of the several cor porations. So far the principle of the Act was ' just ; hut what was the practiCe under it ? Catho lics, to besure, became " eligible," and nothing was wanting to get them' elected but a clause compelling the old corporators to elect them. That want, however, was a fatal want. The old corporators, to a man, were Protestants ; and, to the extent of their power, .Protestant, they resolved that the whole Constitution should re inain,•in spite of the permission granted by Par liament that Catholics should be allowed to enter the municipal bodies of Irish towns, provided they were able. In the absence of this compulsory clause, the Protestant _ corporators maintained their monopoly undiminished. With exceptions hardly worth notice from their scarcity or insig nificance, all, save Protestants and furious Orange men, were excluded rigorously from the corpora tion of Dublin and the other great cities. The consequence was natural enough.: the corporate towns of Ireland were the closest boroughs in the empire, and, so far as regarded the muni-• eine] franchise held out to Catholics, the Act of 1793, down to the date of the Reform Bill itself, was no more than a dead letter. But there are corporation grievances, as is well known, which even the Reform Bill has not entirely redressed. The establishment of a property qualification has released .the House of Commons in some measure, both in Ireland and here, from the clutches of the corporate monopolists; but the principle of self-election still subsists, to vitiate and degrade the in-door character of the corpo ration, and so to perpetuate the local wrong after the general abuse has been corrected. In most of the corporate towns of England this grievance operates most sensibly. A letter to the Liver pool Mercury of last Friday exhibits the work ing of " self-election" in sufficiently glaring colours. It thence appears, that after five years since the repeal of the Test Act, and more than three since that of the Catholic disabilities, not one Catholic or Dissenter has been ad mitted into the corporation of that vast commer cial town. -Now, when we all know how mixed is the population of Liverpool—we mean the wealthy, intelligent, and enterprising population —and that all religious classes of the Liverpool community are equally well entitled to have their local interests represented by the depositaries al local power, surely the justice Of the case cannot be satisfied by an exclusive admission of one order of refigioni,ts to a trust which ought to be supported and continued only for the benefit of the wNole. We believe that the evil can be re ' moved no otherwise than by a general Act for the opening of all corporations, either to re gistered voters for Members of Parliament , or to householders, as in former times. Too much local patronage is in the hands of those who possess the existing monopoly, to admit a hope that they will spontaneously relinquish or share it with :the bulk of their fellow-citizens. The • Legislature therefore will be compelled to act, and, as in :the case of rotten boroughs, to reform the colporitions of the kingdom by some coercive • measure, which can neither be appealed -from,• evaded, nor resisted. We subjoin a paragraph from the letter in question, which bears the signature " John Rosson," as exhibiting the na ture of the abuse, and the principles and means of the proposed amelioration : " The principal amendment in the old corporate consti tutions will, of course, be a grant of the freedom of the bo rough to the registered householders under the Reform Bill. Ail householders were anciently corporators. This should be on payment of reasonable fees, such fees,- after a fixed remuneration to the proper officers for registration and certificates, to go in aid of the funds for the improve. ment of the respective towns. Another important amend ment will be the election of the Common Council, as well as the - Mayor and Bailiffs, by the householders and freemen at large ; eaeh Member of the Council to sit only for three years, hut eligible to be re-elected ; the system of the rota might gradually he introduced, so that a certain number might go out of office annually. This provision would put a term to all those heartburnings which the present exclu sive system engenders, and make the corporation of Liver pool the strongest and most respectable municipal govern ment in the empire. Let not people run away with the notion that men who had no claim to fill high office in the town would be elected : the late returns to Parliament under the Reform Bill are an answer to that objection- The experience derived from an active political lifenf twelve v-ars previously to the enactment of the Catholic Relief Bill has convinced me that my countrymen are naturally aristocratic, and that no one belsmging to the three great parties in Liverpool would be else ed unless from his edu • Ann, his t dents, properly, or position in society, he had just pr , tensions to that honour. In proof of this observa tion, when in the years 1824.5 I was engaged in orea nizing the Catholic population of this county, I uniformly found that the Committees, even in small villages, esta blished for the purpose of correspondence and collecting sign Mures to petitions, invariably elected their Chairmen out of a class in a higher walk of life, or distinguished by some generally acknowledged superiority."— Times. The remarkable case,• " Thornely v. Burn," involving the question of the practicability of negro emancipation, on which the judgment of the Court of Chancery has just been pronounced, presents some points well worthy of public at tention at the present ,moment, when the strug gle which has been so long maintained between the champions of African bondage and the ad vocates of manumission seems drawing towards a crisis. It will be recollected that the case was originally brought before the Court of Chan cery on a motion in support of a petition, which set forth the following facts:—That, in the year 1825, Lord Crawfurd and Lindsay died, seized of an estate in Antigua, on which there were then 140 slaves. His Lordship had, by his will, dated in 1816, directed that, after his death, the rents and profits accruing from his estate should accumulate (excepting the neces sary deductions for the current expenses) until February, 1833, when the slaves should be manumitted, and the accumulated fund be equally divided among them for their future mainte nance. It was further set forth that from the depreciation of West India property, and other causes, the whole sum applicable to this purpose was but 7501. It was also alleged that, by the laws of Antigua for the regulation of the manu mission of slaves, it was provided that if any mas ter manumitted a slave who, from age or infirmity, was unable to work, he must deposit 300/.in the public treasury, as a security that the slave should not become chargeable to the parish, from the interest of which deposit he was to be supported. The number of slaves to be manumitted, in the present case, was 134. of whom 12, from age, infirmity, or ill health, were incapable of earning their own livelihood, and 18 were infants. Under these circum stances, the trustees came before the Court to know what course they were to pursue. They played by their petition, in the first place, for the appointment of a receiver to the estates of the late Lord Cri6ifurd and Lindsay, in place of the late receiver, who was deceased ; and, in the next, that directions might be given to carry into effect the manumission of the slaves, as intended by his Lordship's will. When Sir Edward Sugden formerly addressed the Court in support of this petition, he strenuously en deavoured, acting, no doubt, upon his in structions, to make the circumstances of this particular case, as stated by himself,_ appear to support an inference against the general policy of negro emancipation. Having informed the Court that Lord Crawfurd had directed that the slaves, on being manumitted, should be taught to read the Holy Bible, and treated with all the humanity that reason and justice could dictate, he went on to say, " It was found impossible to carry into effect the humane and benevolent in tentions of the testator. Ail the flattering pro spects respecting the manumission of those slaves were utterly hopeless. Nothing could prevent those slaves from claiming their freedom, and they knew it. It had been proposed to lay. out the fund to which they were entitled for theirgeneral benefit by erecting huts for them, and apportioning to each a small plot of land, if they would consent to remain together, and work on the estate ; but they had all declared they meant to avail them selves of their liberty to separate, and to remain no longer on the estate where they had been heretofore located. It was beyond doubt ►hat they could not be continued and worked as slaves—their freedom they must have, although there was no fund for supporting the helpless in their emancipated condition." After some other observations of the same sort, the Learned .Counsel proceeded to say, " There was in all this a powerful illustration of the difficulties that must be encountered in any attempt to bring about an immediate emancipation of slaves. However anxious all might be, there should be some amelioration in the condition of slaves, yet when it was found that having only one hun dred and thirty-four slaves to deal with, and, having some property to dispose of among them, it was found impossible to point out any mode of liberating them without the prospect of the greatest mischief resulting from it, and of plung ing them into misery, the circumstances cer tainly were calcutated to teach a lesson to the more ardent among the emanci pationists. Every proposition had been made that could be thought of to the slaves in this case, but the idea of liberty so intoxicated them that they would listen to no terms whatever—a melancholy proof how often it was that the kindest and best intentions of individuals were often lost upon the objects of them." So spoke Sir Edward Sugden, as if he were the reta►ned advocate for the system of colonial slavery, in-1 stead of being only the paid Counsel in a parti cular case, which should be argued on its own peculiar circumstances. Not content with making the observations which we have already quoted, he told the Lord Chancellor once more, at the conclu,ion of the hearing, that the case " showed the greatest danger was to be appre hended from yielding to the almost general public cry for the immediate emancipation of the slaves." The Lord Chancellor admitted that the case, as presented, suggested many and very serious reflections with regard to negro slavery, but said, before he would pronounce his decision, he would advise with the Government. The Lord Chancellor, having given the case ma ture deliberation, and carefully inquired into all the circumstances that could serve to elucidate ity-prot - tomeetisuch judgment. as the reason - an &- equity of the case demanded, and accompanied it with such comments and observations as are well 'worth y of 'the particular attention of the British public. In the very outset of the ob serest tions which prefaced—his decision Lord Brougham very clearly showed 'that the in structed statement of Counsel -- had -not revealed the whble truth ; for, although: the fall in West India property might have had some effect in keeping down the amount of the accumulated fund, which was to be divided among the ne groes on their manumission, yet that was not the principal cause. What was the principal cause of the present smallness of the fund will be best explained by the following words of his Lord ship, who said he " could not avoid expressing his regret that the conduct of the person who had the management .of the slaves of Lord Crawfurd had not been more carefully attended to. It appeared that this person had let out the labours of the slaves for a long period of time, and yet neglected altogether to obtain the price of their hire. It was, indeed, to be deeply regretted that this person had not been called to account, or that the executors of the will had not striven to obtain justice against him for the be nefit of the property. Had the labour been fairly accounted for, and the proceeds recovered, ac cording to the benevolent intentions of the tes tator, the Court would not now have been called on to interfere, as there would not have been a question to dispute." Thus the main difficulty in the case, which the Learned Counsel had dwelt on so much,. arose not from the -fall in West India produce, or the .perverseness of the slaves, but from the misconduct of the per son under whose management those poor crea tures had been placed. It appears that, owing to such misconduct, no less than 2,5001. was lost to the fund intended for the future maintenance of the negroes when manu mitted ; and, be it observed, that 2,5001. was part of the hard earnings of the ne groes themselves. We ask if it was any wonder they should declare they would not remain located in a place where they had, since the death of their benevolent master, earned 2,5001., which, according to his will, was to be a provision for themselves, but not one farthing of which was forthcoming? This circumstance alone shows that those slaves were more " sinned against than sinning." They who allowed their little pittance to be plundered, and then, because the fund for their maintenance was so small, ar gued against the practicability of their manumis sion, were in the situation of persons who took advantage of their own wrong. That class of reasoners who make their own facts can never be at a loss for inferences favourable to their own views. As to the alleged law of Antigua relative to the deposit of three hundred pounds with each negro, as before mentioned, it appeals from the Lord Chancellor's statement, there was no posi tive proof there ever was such a law, or if there were, there was no evidence that it had ever been acted on. But as to the capacity of the negro for the safe and rational enjoyment of freedom, his Lordship put that question at rest by a reference to the history of Antigua itself. He said he " had at that moment lying before him copies of two despatches transmitted by the Governor of Antigua to the Secretary of State for the colonies. In one of them it was stated that 200 negroes had been liberated in the year 1829. None of those slaves were natives of the island, and yet nothing could be more satisfac tory than the accounts.of their conduct since they had been set free. The Governor ob• served, in his despatch, that they employed themselves wi.h the most exemplary industry in providing for their livelihood. The other despatch was not less satisfactory." Here we may observe that the attempt in this instance to . damnify the general question .of abolition has been the means of producing the most trium phant practical refutation of the favourite doc trine of the anti-abolitionists, as to the incapacity of the slaves for the enjoyment of a state of freedom. After this, well may an evening con temporary observe, that the real difficulties con nected wiih negro emancipation are increased by every sinis'er endeavour to which perverted in genuity can resort. But interested artifice has, in this instance, overshot the mark—the arrow aimed at the cause of justice, reason, and hu manity, has recoiled and struck the archer. The Lord Chancellor finding that there was at pre sent in this country the gentleman to whoa' the management of the aforesaid manumitted slaves in Antigua had been intrusted—a Mr. Wight, sent for him, and most properly and wisely has he made it part of his decision that that gentle man shall be appointed to succeed the late re ceiver of the estates of Lord Crawfurd and. Lindsay. To him he has intrusted the duty of seeing that the slaves are manumitted according to the will ; ordering, at the same time, that he should endeavour to recover the arrears due for their labour, and distribute among them what ever funds are or may be available under the will of the testator. We trust under his auspices the island of Antigua will afford another satis factory experiment of the practicability of negro freedom.—Morning Herald. THE CASE OF THE PERSON CALLED " LAVINIA EDWARDS." The following case may be put in juxta-position with that of Lavinia Edwards:— " At a Quarter Sessions held at Taunton, in Somerset shire, Mary Hamilton, otherwise Charles, otherwise George Hamilton, was tried for pretending to be a man. and mar rying fourteen wives, the last of whom, Mary Price, de posed in Court that she was married to the prisoner, and bedded, and lived as a man and wife a quarter of a year, during which time she thought the prisoner a man, owing to her vile and deceitful practices. After a debate upon the nature of the crime, and what to call it, the Court agree d that she was a most infamous and notorious cheat , and sentenced her to be publicly whipped in Taunton, Glastonbury, Wells, and Shepton Mallet, to be imprisoned for six months, and to find security for her good behaviour during so long a period as the Justices at the next Quarter Sessions should think tit."—Boyle's Chronicle, 17-16. A gentleman, now resident in Taunton, had an account c)f the evidence in the case front two persons who attended the trial, one of them as a juryman. The arts which the impostor practised were as curious as revolting, but of course are unfit for publication. Her object was to obtain the little property the females possessed, and that being ac complished, she disappeared to practise her arts in other situations, and which she did succ,s fully for some years. At the trial, those of the first thirteen wives who gave evidence deposed that they entertained no doubt whatever but that the prisoner was of the male sex ; but Mary Price, the fourteenth, who was the first widow-whom the pri soner married, discovered the imposition of er three months' cohabitation, on which she was brought to trial and convicted. Tile motive for reviving this ancient and extraordinary case is compassion for the respectable individuals whose names have been so improperly introd uce d to t h e pu b l i c in the investigation as to Lavinia EdW ar d s, an d to show the possibility of imposition as much in one case as the other.— Taunton Courier. An extension is about to take place in the Order of St. Patrick. The Knights are to be increased from fifteen to twenty-four ; those who are now Extras, to be constituted regular Camp miens of the Order. We understand that Lord MuNsTER is to be one of the new Knights. —D Odin Chronicle, • COURT OF KING'S BENCH; FEB: 1. CHEETHAM V. LORD ALVANLEY. This , was an action against•Lorcl Alvanley on a bill of exchange for 5:25/. The defendant's' Court= sel attempt ed to prove that th e bill had been given for a gambling consideration `.to Mr. Crockford, but failed; and the Jury found a verdict for the plaintiff. COURT OF COMMON PLEAS, FEB. 1. LANGFORD V. FOOT AND OTHERS. This was an action for an illegal distress.. The plaintiff, Mrs. Langford, it may be recollected, brought an action of trespass against the present de fendants some time ago for expelling her from her house and selling her goods; but it appearing that she had represented herself to be the wife of a Mr. Jenkins, and she not satisfactorily proving such representation, the Jury returned a verdict for the defendants. She now brought another action for an illegal distress on that occasion, contending that the sale had been irregular, and that her furniture had been disposed of for less than the best price for which it might have been sold. The plaintiff is the widow of a Dr. t.angford, and after having kept a lodging-house at Brighton for some time,she returned to London arid took a house in Suffolk-street, Pall mall, at 2001. a year, belonging to the defendant, Mr. Foot, of the firm of Lundy Foot and Co., snuff-manufakurers. She then went by the name. of Mr-. Jenkins, representing that she was the wife ~f Mr. Jenkins, a respectable iron-founde; who was at that time travelling in Scotland, whereas it after wards turned out that she stas not his wife. She obtained some furniture on hire of an upholsterer, to whom she stated that she wanted it for Sir George and Lady Featherstone, who were coming to lodge in her house, which she was to purchase if she did not return it within two months. She lei her apartments to different persons, some very re spectable, for a short time, when difficulties press ing upon her, she wrote to her landlord to say, that , having foolishly put her name to a warrant of attor ney for her sister, an execution had been put into her house, and therefore he had better put in a distress for his rent. This suggestion was acted upon, and the defendant Berry, acting under the directions of Mr. Foot, employed the other defendants, an auc tioneer, a broker, and his man, to levy a distress. The ground of complaint was that her family had been expelled from the house by the defendants; that the sale had not been fairly conducted; and that goods which might have fetched from 1004 to 2001. had only produced 761., in consequence of the improper way in which the sale had been conducted. . . The Jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff, damages 301. against all the defendants, except Berry, for whom (under his Lordship's directions, as he had only obeyed his principal's instructions) they returned a verdict of Not Guilty. COURT OF EXCHEQUER, FEB. 1. DOWLY V. BENNETT. Mr. Sergeant JONES and Mr. CHANNELL, for the plaintiff, stated that this was an issue directed by the Vice-Chancellor, whether an agreement dated the --- day of December, 1832, was signed by the defendant before an agreement, dated the 12th of December, 1828, was signed by the plaintiff, who affirmed that the agreement signed by the defen dant was first signed. The plaintiff was an elderly lady, the defendant a grocer, at No. 8, Stamford street, Blackfriars-road, of which house the plaintiff was proprietor, and her tenant, Cooper, had paid her 80/. a year net-rent for a long time, but he quitting, the defendant proposed to take the house, and on the 12Th of December, 1828, she agreed to let it to him at 65 guineas rent. The defendant brought two agreements, which he filled up at plaintiff's house, one signed by him stating the rent at 65 guineas and the other stating it at sixty-five guineas inclusive of taxes, which the plaintiff was to pay, which last agreement plaintiff signed on the faith that it was the same as the first. The Jury found verdict for the plaintiff in the affirmative of the issue,--viz., that the agreement signed by the defendant was first signed. COUFIT OF BANKRUPTCY, FEB. 1. IN RE PHILIPS. A point of some importance was decided to-day by Mr. Commissioner WILLIAMS in the above bank ruptcy. In March, 1794, Philips absconded from this country to America, leaving behind him freehold and leasehold property to the amount of between 3,0001. and 4,0004, deeply mortgaged. On the Bth of May, following, a commission was taken out against: . him, but no audit or dividend ever took place till late in 1832. At ,that period 20s. in the pound waa paid upon all debts proved uuder the commission, and there remained a surplus of 6,7004 the property having materially ri! , en in value, when several creditors on promissory notes, not bearing interest upon the face of them, claimed interest upon their amount. The representatives of the bank rupt opposed these claims, and it having been argued fully before the Commissioner on a previous occa sion, he to-day pronounced his decision. He said that the precedents cited against the claims did not apply to the principle of the -cafe, and that Lords Hardwick and Thurlow held that, when circum stances arose, from which inference could be drawn of any such understanding between the parties, interest should be paid, although not expressed upon the instrument itself. Most of the parties in this case being dead, it was necessary fot him to receive evi dence of such a usage and custom of trade as would justify the supposition cf an implied contract be tween the parties, and several respectable mercantile men had appeared before him, who had stated it to be'the general custom that when bills were disho noured, and afterward, paid, interest was always added. MR. MABERLY'S BANKRUPTCY. A private meeting of the creditors of Mr. Ma• berly took place to•day before Mr. Commissonei FONULANQUE, but the result has not transpired. , INSOLVENT COURT, FEB. 1. William Robertson was opposed by Mr. WOOD. ROFFE. for a Mr. W. Taylor; he was supported by Mr. COOKE. The insolvent was arrested in January, 1830. He had defended an action brought against him by 'Mr. Taylor, which had terminated in a reference, and an award for the plainriff for the sum of 71/. The costs of the law proceedings amounted to 1831., and on the process of a fieri facias,.after the pay ment of rent and expenses, 53/. 10s. 4d. had been levied. The insolvent was ordered to be discharged forth with. Wiliam Birt Burn was this day b rought up for judgment, and sentenced to four months imprison ment from the date of filing his petition, for a vexatious and frivolous defence to an action brought by a creditor. JlTilliant .111innett applied on his petition to I), discharged. The insolvent had been a bankrupt in 1821, and again i n 1826 ; on b oth these occas i ons he had obtained hi s cert ifi cate. H e ha d also b een a bankrupt in 1832, but had not under that bank ruptcrobtained hi s cert ifi cate , arid he had also been discharged un d er t h e I nso l vent A ct i n 1823. There was no opposition to his discharge on the present occasion, and he was adjudged to be again entitled to the benefit of the Act. The young man COOPER who was charged with the murder of BENJAMIN DANIIY, at Enfield Chase, returned to Enfield on his discharge from Newgate, but so much abhorrence do the inhabitants feel at the cornmissiot, of the horrid murder , that the y p ositiv ely refused to render him the slightest assistance , nor could he obtain employ. men t from any individual. He has applied t) various per sons in Hertfordshire t o e n g a ge him in any occupation in which his services could be useful, but there also he was equally unsuccessful. Several humane gentlemen residing in Enfield, in consequence of his distress, contemp'ate raising by subscription a fund sufficient to enable him t , leave the country for ever. MARKET INTELLIGENCE: LONDON MARKETS. (From the London New Price Current" of yeste —l odik ) Sonau.--The report of an early emancipation ,o' slaves in the colonies has completely paralysed the Market ; a considerable portion of the holders bare gle ; drawn their Sugars in e xpect a ti on o f muc h higher Is l w! the few sales reported are at prices Is. per cwt. Iti t , The estimated sales for the week are 2,500 131, 4''an i c ra The Barbadoes sale, 124 cas k s , so ld a t f u ll Marke t In consequence of the advance of prices of Raw o f s ei, the Refiners are now asking higher prices for non - 4 4 tured goods, but no impr o v e m en t h as as yet Peen _., except in the fine gOods for crushing, for which 517 0 4 now paid. Refined Sugars this afternoon :—The tio of low goods have been fully maintained, the stook b e iii; still very small ; of the fine de,criptions of Crasheitti titled to ' the bounty on double-refined, some paT .6 7O: have been made at 301., but generally the Refiners i' sjo i t that price, demanding 6d. a IQ. mote, and to-dal transactions are reported to have taken place at th 5 ,... 1 vance ; the fine grocery sorts are its demand, an (1 , 7 0 ,,, full prices. EAST INDIA Sucarts.--By private contract, bags Manila Sugars have been sold at 225. ""brd al.o some Siame at very full prices. This day's r o il sale, 1,778 bags Siam, sold at Market prices, 2 2 ‘ 23.4 6d. r 14 0 RUM, BRANDY, AND HoLLANDs....-There are oe- e ot of Rom to report ; some Leewards, 3 over, bel l sold at Is. I 1.d. 0 and some 5 over at Is. 10d.. Gen' • ci rw.9 the Market is very dull, and some parcels of Jarnal .„r4 been sold a , rather lower rates. These sales were, made before the alarm became general about theAtto" - .1 of the slave trade, and before the agitated state of IIPP'4 was known, and the sudden dissolution of tbe ILO g.e bsi Assembly by the Governor ; since then the 1%1 10 :A if assumed more firmness. Proof Le e wards are str7g, :1 Is. 914. Brandy is mor e fi rm : th e b es t m arks, are 44. 4.1. and 44; bd. ; new, to arrive, 3s, 1041. gef.' l Id. In Geneva there is no alteration. TALLOW. —The Tallow Market has been very the deliveries for hOme consumption continue exteii7,R. COCOA.—Ne sales o f C ocoa are reported. • lived: s of Cocoa for home consumption are cod i ' able ; in one dry this week about 140 packages. is rather more inquiry for Cocoa; 625. is stated w. paid for good grey British Plantation, a nd Brazil ft for about 255. a 265. FOREIGN SUGAR.—By private contract there art gP" sales of white Pernarns and Bahias reported at geti„,. there are few sellers of Foreign S ug a rs at the prices. At At public sa' e a b ove 200 pac k s B a bies ' offered—the best l o t s w hit e 26 5 ., so f t l ow to goo d M I i i 20s. 6el. a 225. This day's public sale 2,929 li; SO hhds. yellow Hivannah Sugar went off with 1 1 3 n o it was a fair parcel, and sold at 225. for ; the lots, la r I 25, for the fine. kdd, COFFEE.—The Market has been dull since Of E A some Sumatra sold is. 6j. a 2s. lower, but a pubb e lge of British Plantation shows an improvement of 3s. " ip s . which may partly be owing to the p u bli c sa l es been,, less frequent, -as well as on account of a speculativ e mand having evinced itself, in consequence of the og i ' question here respecting the emancipation of thesis " our West India Colonies ; likewise to accounts reee oo , from Jamaica, stating the Island to be in great agita t: owing to a serious disagreement between the G° / and the Assembly. The sales consisted of 218. ho il 65 barrels and 11 bags British Plantation, 1,671' pt Foreign, 1,002 bags East India. This day's pub lo : 00 1 2,216 bags Foreign Coffee, low brown tog oo° f 1 coleury Havannab 495. 6d. a 531. 6d. ; Brazil, a• lotv t ie parcel, all taken in at 51s. The Market is beavi; -1 ..- Has!annah Is. a 2s. lower. MAURITIUS SUGAR.--On Tuesday a public O . above 3,000 bags Mauritius of very good quality _, , with briskness at 6d. to Is. p er cwt . hi g h e r—brortlje a Ms., up to 575. for the fine yellow. This day's y:4 - sale, 2,661 bags Mauritius sold at 50.. a 55e. ; theui - ; -. at full prices, the colouty a shade lower. , ti f SALTPETICE.-There are no sales of Saltpetre W 4 " I ported ; the prices are nearly nominal. b 1 1. 41 Sricss.—The itiquiri t ; after Pimento have BO . 0 , The few sales of Pepp e r re p orte d are at p rev i o us Pr! Corrox.—The C o tt on M ar k et i s stea d y , b u t vi briskness. The pur c h ass consist of-30 Benga l ; sed. ; S2o' Surat, ord. to goo d f a i r , 44d. a 51' 1 ; 4 , I Bowed, fair to good, 611. a 611. FRUIT.--Fruit his been rather more inquired .1„---0, week ; but at present much business does not ape have been done. _ TRA...—Boheas continue to be much depressed, Si l t Market is almost with o ut b u ye rs o f th e m. There 4 little demsnd f4r Congous on S a l e ' s t erms . !baler " , ' inquiry exists for Twankays. PRICE OF SUGAR. The Average Price of Brown or Muscovado Sugar, from the Returns made in the week ending the of Jan., 1833, is 5285. fid. per Hundred Weight, exclusive Duties of Customs paid or payable thereon on the Imlw thereof into Great Britain. riti.t..r.m ut iturb.—Feb. 1. , 110 61 104. 81. 04. to ll' lb 61 6s. 71. 03. to 1 4 40 01. N. 0/. N. to 11 ' (j 45 0/. Os. 121. Os. to l '• fli. 0/. Os. 101. lOs tell! 71. Cs. 81. Os to u' A 01. Os. 01. Os. to A u" 01. Os 01. Os. to u"' Kent Pockets—.....„---, SVESCX Ditto Fssex Ditto Fansham Ditto, Fine,... Seconds Kent Raga..,,, Sussex Ditto Essex Ditto., PRICE OF OIL. I Rape Oil brown ....ft...3U 05...—. Refined g 5, 11 Linseed o il Linseed Oil Cake at the Mill, per thousand 5 Rape Cake, per ton _ _ _ I , IIIOE OF POTATOES.—Feb 1. Kidneys (York) Ol. Os. to 41. N. per t°l'. Scotch Reds 31. 106. to 31. 15s. ditto. Marsh 0/. Os. to 41. IN. ditto. Oxnobles and Shaws 3/. N. to 31. ss. chtt42:„.... LEATHER. . R A, SO Per lb. English Horse liidel..,Qt Spanish Ditto Per dozen. 1 4 Calf Skins.. SO to 40b. 1, 6 Ditto 50 to 701 b. Ditto 70 to FON. Small Seals, Greenlan d jg Large PRICES 0; Per lb. Butts English 15 '23 Uitto; 14 20 Dressing Hides---,, 12 15 Ditto ........../Worwao.vor• 14 161 Ditto, light Crop Hides, light 12 14 to 451 b. 13 16 Ditto _ _ 15 18 SKINS. Best Polled .-- 63. Od. to Bs. SHEEP Od. Half-bred 5....... 4s. Od• t o eki Middling Polled 5 0 6 0 I 3 6 ti A W Per Stone. a. d. to s. d. 3est Heifers& Stoers2 4 2 8 441 , 11ing5.........."..,„„„..1 10 2 0 WHITECHAPEL H, 55i. Od. to 75i. Od. PRICE OF TALLOW ['own Tallow 51s. fid. Yellow 47a. Od. ,Vhite 4ss. 6d. Soap 44a. Od. Vetted Stu :17s. Od. Ditto Od. II DES. A tof Per Stone. 0. ; Ordinary er Market LI MA It KET.—Jan. 91• (lover 60i. Od. tO As Od. to 28s. Od. Flay ', SOAP, &c. per I I2ID. Yellow 160 1 Graves 511 , Good Dregs Ditto Od. I PRICE OF CANTLES. foll °fll , The price of Store Candles, in the retail shops, is as gs. Candles, per doz. 7s. Od. to 88.0 d. 1 Moulds, per dozen ,-- ~. • • iblw UNTRY CORN MAithEt'S DURING THO. Wheat. Barley. ; Oats. ' ` Per Quarter. Ashburn ... 56 62 38 44 21 26 `,71 Basingstoke 48 58 21 29 16 23 %n Bath 42 50 26 31 20 28 W I INdgewater 152 68 25 24 19 24 4 1 Bristol.— 48 56 28 32 16 20 Chesterfield 46 60 26 38 18 23 Derby 56 59 31 34 22 24 4 0 Doncaster 48 60 22 36 13 25 O A D0rche5ter............. 44 •56 22 :31 18 21 Exeter 44 60 24 31 14 20 io G10uce5ter.......—.... 40 56 23 36 16 22 4 tiongerford 46 58 24' 31 18 26 " • 55 at 19 •oo lewbury--... 36 61 23 32 14 32 Romsey 56 62 30 38 23 27 ....'- Shaftesbury 54 27 :7 0 :s Shepton Mallet 48 56 24 35 17 26 04 5herb0rne.......—.... 50 56 24 29 20 26 54 L'aunton 57 68 32 35 22 24 s o Yarm0uth.....,..... 48 55 21 32 20 23 sit , Yeovil 54 56 28 34 18 22 ‘l , Per Bushel, a, d. s. d. s. d. 5. d. s. d. e. d• 0 0 Shrewsbury 7 6 8 6 4 3 6 0 4 0 stl DEVIZES CORN MARKET.—Jan. 3 , 1 1. Per Sack. s. d. a. d Per Quarter. s• tO Best Wheat 'o to 30 Barley.. 2l Second 25 0 27 6 Oats lO 0 23 0 24 ttipans 1115 Sacks of Wheat sold/ 25 Flour , 0 1 (j• at the average of '" Bread (1 3 1 tarter. s• 16 er sack) 16 bag).. 40 n* gall.) 1_ BIRTHS. 2 ,' I On the 31st ult. in Dorset-square, the lady of Ve" .. J. Tod, of a daughter. .. t On the Ist inst. in Sackville-street, the lady of Lieu Seymour Blane, of a son. • fr nth On the 25th uit. at the Elms, near Lymington, 5i.4. , • of Major' Pringle Taylor, of a daughter. 0 1 On the 31st ult. in Upper Bedford,place, the ladi ° Bethel), Esq., of a son. ~..- • MA. 00 On the 31st ult. at Springfiel ß d, RIED Essex, Mr. Willis of Aldersgate-street, London, to Miss Sarah Jane Pea C firmer place, and late of Twickenham. „ On the 31st ult. at Edmonton, Mr. James W05%7, rr, A street, Southwark, to Anne, the only daughter of .1 0 " - gio'' Esq., of Winchmore-vale, and St. Andrew's, DIED. M tiV On the nth ult. at Shoebury, Essex, Captain R. C' Royal . : .filit i ' On the Nav ai y th ult. at Topsham , in Devonshire, BOP' Esq , in the 71st 3ear M of his age. wo e On the fllst ult. at uswell-hill, Afro. S. R. Blo ck ' subsequent to the birth of a daughter. PO°l On the 28th ult. Mrs. Ann Sophia Baber, wife °- Esq., of the Middle Broyle, Ringiner t Sussex.__ . . o ., _.....", PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY MU R D 0 you N SUN QFFICB, 112, STRAND Lwow'. rk, 141 1 ,1) Etc e , l, ' 'an .AZIA jive b Itich72 ) Lo k ' al ai jited.l (dt iti : boi T wore moilti P titibeti 11 ° R T G ard b. b I— r and: C ON' 111 . g Nei n . dew Intee . 11 . E 0f.p:44.1.Nee ".F"rf for oa Ituee;:rtteractica: .!lteaturtheree The taro , lt erath."Fatin s 0, 06z .e. so I I ? , N etk d o e r r "the — mettb — , P t . 1 %1. ipa ( I ,Zted for } ^' 1.012c1c