The Sun. — London, England, 1830-01-21 00:00:00

ftet sr ' EnSlav 310. i d, I 3cEP j o d, Vs. 365. , 215. SJ 64 .15S. __-----' se a to; ply, ti lice )V Ve'' (I . to 0 0 0 ) 325. , ;`, )18 3 . e 120 W,, of her 13""et,' ETS' too; 0 4 'I.) to i: q uote' 10 1: , nd c°:j i dull , offsl ° to et I, on_ n d o alte t 0 C'' 4 cl . 110 fl ea , 15g• _ l4 l DO? •00' tte to. big ;ral e ' , ,Brig" foil ° • )se ge. fir''!t•Y' 1 cour' S I • I ,e yetl,4 . Val i ,retar)( LAW INTULLIGENCE.-(THIS DAY). COURT OF CHANCERY. ZX PARTE CARROL, IN THE MATTER OF LATHA3I AND PARRY, BANKRUPTS. The continued arguments in this matter occupied till one o'clock to-day. The main point discussed was, whether another trial should be directed by Mr. Carrol, as plaintiff, against Mr. De Tastet, as defendant, for the purpose of ascertaining whether goods and bills obtained by Mr. De Tastet, just on the eve of bankruptcy, from Ity. Parry, just before he absconded, were obtained under circumstances that the law would permit to 'stand. One enquiry was, whether the property had been got under a threat that a criminal prosecution would be instituted against Mr. Parry for forgery, if possession was not de livered u p, an d th a t th e prosecu ti on would be suspended if it was? The Lord Chancellor entertained no doubt that this point was untenable. Then the question was whether Mr. De Tastet's presence was a legal presence, he being in the situation of a creditor? Upon this, as Lord Eldon had been of opinion that there ought to be further inquiry at law, as well as upon minor points, his Lord ship declined to give judgment until after he had read through all the proceedings; although, from the observa tions made by him in the course of the arguments, it was pretty evident that he will not direct farther proceedings. The amount locked up by an order of the Court is about 80,0001. VICE-CHANCELLOR'S COURT. JUDGMENT...--S3fART V. LEIGH. The VICE-CHANCELLOR give judgment in this case, which was a bill filed for the purpose of setting aside a conveyance made in 1805. His Honour, after going at considerable length through the facts, which were of no public importance, stated that he was clearly of opinion the plaintiff had made out his case, and decreed the setting aside of the conveyance, with costs. BOIALL V. COBBIETT. Mr. MARTIN stated that this was an application on behalf of the plaintiff, that Mr. William Cobbett might be ordered, within a fortnight, to transfer into the name of the Accountant -General 2,0001. Three per Cents., and also the sum of 8001., which had come to his hands as executor of a lady of the name of Boxall. From the statements of the Leaned Counsel, it ap• peered that Mrs. Bezel' died iu August, 1825, leaving Mr. Cobbett her sole executor. The testator, after dis posing of several canal shares by her will, left the residue of her property to Mr. Cobbett, who was to invest it, and pay the plaintiff an annuity of 100/. At the death of the testatrix the only property immediately under ber own eontroul was 1,050 L, which was out on mortgage; the great bulk of her property was a balance of 2.0001., due from the executors of her father.— Upon the death of Mrs. Boxall, it became the duty of Mr. Cobbett to call her father's executors to account, which Mr. Cobbett stated by his answer he had not been able to do till October, 1827, at which time he admitted that the executors had transferred the 2,0001. stock to him, as the execntor of Mrs. Boxall ; but that he (Cobbett), in consequence of the belief he as well as Mrs. Boxall had entertained of the suitability of funded property, sold out that stock, and received the proceeds in gold and silver; that the plaintiff was well aware of the transaction, and sanctioned it by her cordial approbation ; indeed it was so much a subject of notoriety, that at the time he (Cobbett) went to receive the money, he was surrounded by upwards of a hundred people, and the transaction had been blazoned about in the public Newspapers. Immediately upon receiving the money, he took it home and deposited it in a chest, with the intention of vesting it on mortgage of freehold lands ; that he had used every means for the purpose of finding a good security, but had not as yet been able to procure one ; that the plaintiff had been regularly paid her annuity ; the money was perfectly safe; and that he (Cobbett) had applied no part of it to his own use or benefit, or derived any profit therefrom.— Now the Court would see (observed the Learned Coun sel) that Mr. Cobbett had, in the schedule to his answer, actually charged himself with interest for the money in his possession. Under such circumstances it was the pre sent application was made. The Court would observe, the notice of motion was in the alternative, either that Mr. Cobbett should replace and transfer the stock, or that the balance now in his hands should be by him placed in the Bank of England, in the name of the Accountant- General. Mr. LovaTr, who appeared for Mr. Cobbett, observed that this was, in point of fact, hearing the cause on mo tion ; the question which should be raised at the hearing being, whether Mr Cobbett would be liable to replace this stock, which had been sold out with the consent and ap probation of the party complaining of the transaction. The VICI-CHANCELLOA did not see how he could order the replacement of the stock, the material party interested having consented to its sale. His Honour could only make the order in the latter alternative, n ame l y , Mr. Cobbett should place th e b a l ance in his ha that hands in the Bank, in the name of the Accountant-General. Mr. Lovarr observed that he, on the part of Mr. Cob bett, could see no objection to that. COURT OF KING'S BENCH. BARKER D. FIELD. This was ac issue directed by the Court of Chancery to ascertain whether Mr. James Humpleby was of a sound mind, and capable of managing his affairs, at the time he executed a deed in the spring of 1826. The ATTORNEY-GENERAL, Mr. GURNIY, and Mr. COMYN, were Counsel for the plaintiff, and Mr. Faxnxittcx PoLtocic and Mr. BRODERICK, for the de fendant. Mr. BROUGHAM addressed the Jury. Mr. Humpleby was a gentleman who suceeeded in business, and amassed a considerable fortune ; he was always considered a man of strong plain understanding, and good com mon sans!. He was an aff e ctionate husband, and always evinced the greatest kindness for his family.— He (Mr. Brougham) should, however, prove to the Jury that all on a sudden, one of those ordinary symptoms which generally discover themselves in persons afflicted with in .sanity took place; he took a dislike to all those whom before he treated with the greatest kindness. Mr. Humpleby was also naturally a person of the most delicate habits, yet all at once he became quite the reverse. It would be proved by the evidence of eminent professional men that in the spring of 1823 Mr. Humpleby was seized with a fit of nyoplexy. The usual remedies were applied, and he gra dually recovered his health until the beginning of 1826, whe n he was seiz e d w ith a seco nd fit, from which he never perfec tly ifii ,_ recovered ; that attack left him considerably led with palsy, and his mind never recovered its proper tone ; his habits were completely changed. In 1826, such Were his aberrations of mind that he would frequently perform the offices of nature in his shop, and before his customers, and also when in company with a Young lady, his daughter-in-law, and when reminded of it, he would laugh in the most childish in inner imagina ble. That laughter would then be succeeded by a fit of C rying. He would also frequently remain for hours to gether in the water-closet, and sometimes insist upon having his meals there. Insanity also generally produced erroneous impressions in the unfortunate subject respecting his pecuniary affairs. Such was the case with Mr. Humpleby. He would at one time consider himself as the most wealthy person in the land, and at another, that he should die from starvation, and became mast dreadfully depressed. He would at times exclaim, " God help me, I shall die in a workhouse," and murmur in a distressing manner. At other times he would be frantic with joy, and burst out .‘ Thank God, I am worth twenty thousand pounds." After the spring of 1826, his wife, to whom he was before so much attached, was treated with the greatest violence and cruelty : he used to knock her down, and on one occasion struck her a blow ntt the breast, which, if it was not the came of her death, tended greatly to accelerate the disease, of which she shortly .afterwards died. His sister also, to whom be always be fore this period had shewn the greatest affection,and who was 14 the habit of spending months together at his house, all at once yap treated quite the reverse. He turned her out of doors, saying giat to maintain her would cost him 201. yeas., which Impt ruin hip He would at times remain It the open air, withont any coYering and exposed to the heaviest rains, fur hours together. He (Mr. Brougham) therefore thought, when the Jury had these facts GorrP b,ntated, And likewise the opinion of several eminent meq, t hey Cupid entertain no doubt of the commencement of Mr. I lumplehy's malady, and that time was the only question for .their present consideration. The Learned Counsel in the course of his address said, that it was the universal npinion of all the medical profession, particularly that part telio had paid the most attention to insanity, that where d erangement of mind arose from an attack of palsy, in Inch case recovery was hopeless. The Learned Counsel then called a great number of wit nesses, who deposed to the facts stated in his opening. The evamination was proceeding when our Reporter left the Court. ont l , e r 1 'ha g'. There are stated to be no less than 95 , 000 i t offenders conimit'A within the year to different prisons in England and 'Wales, the expense of which establishments exceeds half a million..—Brighton Gazette. DAY.) lop at a birgl rl, cgo ri „ ~roug va hmy ritannil _ fro!' ,e, Ds" to rerpo pl ' .d. Belell e n I% l ° ne BO: tL (ag CAW igg, Brev e Thoe Mar Cbor k i SAO: Isabe l gell!', °P LITERATURE. LIFE OF MAJOR-GENERAL SIR THOMAS MUNRO. 2 Vols. LoNnosr, 1830. The subject of the volumes before us was born at Glasgow in the year 1761. His father was a respectable merchant in that city, who, how ever, having met with considerable losses in trade, was compelled to provide for a numerous family in the best way he could. Thomas ac cordingly,—the second of the children—was despatched to India, as a cadet, where by his industry, perseverance, good conduct, and ex cellent common sense, he in the course of time won his way from a cadetship to the Government of the populous and wealthy province of Madras. The present Memoirs, compiled by the Rev. Mr. Gleig, give ample details of the General's life, habits, and modes of thought and action for the extended period of nearly fifty years, and at the same time illustrate, with no little minute ness and fidelity, the history of a considerable portion of British India, especially that portion mixed up with the long desolating wars of Ryder Ally and his son Tippoo, in which Sir Thomas Munro bore no inconsiderable share. In this respect the volumes are particularly valuable and instructive, and as India bids fair to occupy no slight share of Parliament's attention during the ensuing Session, they will, no doubt, be proportionably attended to. Among the more characteristic portions of the work, we may venture to extract the account of Sir Thomas Munro's daily habits during his occupancy of the Governorship of Madras. It is interesting, as every thing connected with so shrewd and ju dicious a statesman, so exemplary a son, so affec tionate a husband and father, must necessarily be. " Sir Thomas Munro rose early, generally at dawn, or a few minutes after, and was in the habit of spending the first two or three hours of the day in the open air. When at the capital, or his country-seat of Gandy, he rode on horseback for a couple of hours four mornings in the week ; the remaining three he gave up to the natives, by walking constantly in the same path, and entering freely into conversation with such as threw themselves in his way. On these occasions be was wholly unattended, except by a couple of peons, or a few of his old revenue servants ; and the people, aware of this, as well as of the extreme affability of the Governor, met him at a particular point in crowds. To every one he listened with patience, receiving their petitions with his own hands, and promising to examine and reply to them ; and in no single instance is he known to have neglected an en gagement thus voluntary contracted. After spending some time thus, he returned home, dressed, and devoted a brief space to reading and writing, when he adjourned to breakfast, which was served up punctually at the hour o f eight. " As the interval between sun-rise and the ringing of the breakfast-hell was given up to receiving the persona application of the natives, so was the period of breakfast itself, and about an hour after its conclusion, devoted to a similar intercourse with Europeans. The table was always spread for thirty persons ; and such as had business to transact, or personal applications to make to the Governor, were expected to partake in the meal. By adhering to this arrangement, and steadily refusing to waste so much as a minute in useless chit-chat, Sir Thomas Munro was enabled to withdraw to his own room usually about half past nine, where till four o'clock he remained employed in public business, and inaccessible, except under very pecu ; liar circumstances, to all intruders. " Four was his hour of dinner, except twice a month, when large pat ties were invited to the government-house, at eight o'clock ; yet even these were not permitted to interfere in any respect with the earlier arrangements of the day. At half-past five or six, according to the season of the year, he drove out, for a time, with Lady Munro ; after which he again withdrew to his own room, and ap plied to business. At eight, tea was served, when be joined his family ; from the conclusion of this repast till he retired for the night, which occurred about ten or half past ten, he remained among them. But even this short period of relaxation was not frittered away in unmeaning or unprofitable idleness. As soon as the drawing-room was cleared, one of his aides-de-camp, or gentlemen at tached to his household, read aloud either the debates in Parliament, in which he took at all times a deep interest, an article in one of the Reviews, one of Sir Walter Scott's novels, or some other late publication. Thus was every moment of his waking existence spent hi endeavours to promote the welfare and happiness of others ; and his own happiness, as a necessary consequence, received, though on his part almost unconsciously, a daily, I might have said, with perfect truth, an hourly increase. " Such was the manner in which Sir Thomas Munro spent day after day, as often as he remained stationary in one place : his mode of acting whilst prosecuting the journeys, of which notice has been taken, was not dis similar. The morning's march was always so regulated, as that the party might reach their ground in sufficient time to permit breakfast to be served at eight o'clock, when the routine of conversing with such European func tionaries as chanced to be near the spot was continued. Four was still the hour of dinner ; but the period set aside at Fort St. George for carriage exercise was now given up to hearing the complaints of the natives. Whilst the family set at table, multitudes of Hindoos and Mussultnans were seen to collect round the door of the tent, anxiously expecting the moment when the Governor would come forth ; and when it arrived, the eagerness to address him was such as to occasion at times considerable inconvenience. It very seldom happened that the charmana, or audience tent, proved sufficiently capacious to contain the ivLole of the applicants. Sir Thomas Munro was accordingly in the habit of walking abroad to some open space, where he stood listening to all who desired to address him, till Nature itself appeared sometimes in danger of giving way. He never retired from these audiences otherwise than jaded and fatigued, as well from the excessive heat of the atmos phere, as from the continued exertion which he found it necessary to make." The following very touching and graceful letter was written by Sir Thomas to his wife, when she had lelt him to return to England, in consequence of the sudden and alarming indis position of a favourite child, to whom the letter in question refers. " We came here last night, for the first time since you went away; Colonel Carfim and I drove out together. We alighted at the old place, near the well. It was nearly dark, and we passed through the garden without finding you. We had nobody in the evening but Captain Watson, which I was glad of. He has got the floors co vered with new mats, which smell like hay; but they are of no use when those for whom they were intended are gone. The cause which occasioned the desertion of this house gives every thing about it a melancholy appearance. I dislike to enter into Kamen's room. I never pass it without thinking of that sad night when I saw him lying in Rosa's lap, with leeches on his head, the tears stream ing down his face, crying with fear and pain, and his life uncertain. His image, in that situation, is always pre sent to me whenever 1 think of this house. -I walked out this morning at daylight. I followed Captain Watson's new road, which is now made hard with gravel, as far as the place where it divides; but on reaching this point, in stead of turning to the left, as we used to do, I continued along the main branch to the little tank, and there halted a few minutes to admire the view of the distant hills. I then turned towards the garden, where I always found you, and Kamen trotting before you, except when he stayed behind to examine some ant-hole. How delightful it was to see him walking, or running, or stopping, to endeavour to explain something with his hands to help his language. How easy, and artless, and beautiful, are all the motions of a child. Every thing that he does is graceful. All his little ways are endearing, and they are the arms which nature has given him for his protection, because they make every body feel an attachment for him. I have lost his society just at the time when it was most interesting. It was Lis tottering walk, his helplessness, and unconsciousness, that 1 liked. By the time I see him again he will have lost all those qualities,—he will know how to behave 'anise:4-11e will have acquired some know ledge of the world, and will not be half so engaging as he now is. I almost wish that he would never change." The Earl of RossLyN and Mr, Secretary PEEL had interviews yesterday with the Duke of VV*l:- NGTON. ADDRESS TO THE REIVIIOUS OF EVERY D.ENQMINATIt N; BRETHREN,..—I am intimately acquainte I with your feelings and thoughts, and with their origin ; and I therefore know that many of you most conscientiously en tertain the opinions and feelings which you have been made to possess ; and that under your present convictions there are many who would prefer death rather than be compelled, by any other human power than the force of a stronger conviction, to deny what they now deem the fundamental truths of their respective religions. This conscientious character has been formed equally all over the world,—for the Jew, the Christian, the Mahoinedan, the Hindoo, and the Pagan. And by it you have been made to view each other as irrational beings, and to act most irrationally, both as individuals and as members of the particular sect, by whatever name that sect may be called, to which you have respectively been trained to be long. You have desired to be superlatively wise and good; and many of you imagine you have become so by the choice of the religion which you think that by your own decision you have adopted, and therefore expect unspeak able rewards in some future state of existence. I regret the necessity, even when it may be for their - ultimate benefit, to give to arty of my fellow-beings even momentary'pain ; but the highest duty that can be per formed for man is to remove error from his mind, and to enable him to see those great truths, upon which his own permanent well-being and the happiness of his race depend. My friends, it now becomes, therefore, my duty to in form you that one and all have been in error ; that you have been deceived by your education, and that you have been made ready to sacrifice your lives in support of a fallacious supposition, which is the real origin of evil, and to oppose a principle which would produce the greatest per manent good to themselves and to all mankind. The character of man as it is exhibited in the particular character belonging to each individual, is an effect of the circumstances in which he has been placed, modified by the original organization or constitution which he may have received at birth. We have all, therefore, been made to be as we are ; and we have been compelled, from our infancy, to believe that we possess the power to feel and to think as we please ; on which basis alone has been formed the whole fabric of human society. This supposi tion is the sole foundation of all the religions which have ever been invented—of all Governments, of all codes of 'laws, and of all institutions, which have ever existed in any country. Yet, strange as it may appear to you, there never has existed one single fact to prove the truth of this supposition : on the contrary, all facts connected with the subject show it to be one of those popular errors received, without investigation, into the human mind, which it has required the experience of all past ages to detect, unveil, and remove. Contrary, though I well know it be, to your present strongest conviction, it is nevertheless true that the greatest of all evils to man would be for him to discover that he is capable of feeling anti thinking as he pleases, did he make no better use of his power than he ins hitherto done. Fortunately, however, for all, it is now ascertained by facts equally free to the examination of every one, that man has not been created with the power to feel and to think as he pleases, and consequently the direct road to the at tainment of the highest virtues, and of a very superior state of earthly existence, is opened, and may be securely travelled by all of the human race, without their ex periencing any of the innumerable evils which the con trary supposition entails, and particularly that arising from a diversity of religious opinions. You desire to introduce into practice universal charity and kindness, and to hasten the period when peace and good will shall pervade the population of the world and when truth, being freed from error, shall be made to ex tend its dominion over every part of the habitable globe. These results can only be secured when all shall be taught, from infancy, to understand the laws of their nature ; and, especially, to trace the causes which demonstrate that man has been formed to feel in obedience to the impressions which are made upon him ; and to think in obedience to the strongest conviction which is made upon his mind. If you desire that a state of society should be brought about, such as you have been taught to expect the Mille nium to be, then you should endeavoure to examine these subjects without prejudice; because, if you succeed in doing so, you will discover that the supposition that man has been organized with the power to feel and to think as he pleases is directly opposed to the attainment of such an object, while the contrary supposition would tend in every way to promote it. And as to the future state ofexistence, about which yon now trouble yourselves so much in vain, it is sure to arrive to all material things; but no one with our present know-. ledge can ascertain what this change will be. We may feel certain, however, that the best preparation for it here is a life replete with good feelings and kind actions, which the knowledge that man is not formed to think and to feel as he pleases will infallibly create in every human being. You, therefore, brethren, of all men, are the most deeply interested in having the truth or error of this important position ascertained, that the proposed change of circum stances throughout society may be speedily introduced, and thus all be relieved from the demoralizing effects of poverty, ignorance, and hypocrisy. Your minds, through the influence of the belief that you are capable of feeling and thinking as you please, have hitherto been kept in a state of irritation or anger towards etch other, and towards those whom you deem irreligious. But a correct knowledge upon this subject will exhibit to you the error by which these irrational feelings are en gendered; it will calm your minds, destroy within you the seeds of anger, and fill you with that pure and genuine charity which will create in you good and kind feelings only for every child of man. That you may be thus blessed is the sincere desire of your friend and servant, ROBERT OWEN. 49, Bedford-square, Jan. 19. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. SlR,—As your Paper has been made the vehicla of many sensible suggestions relative to a reform in the Liturgy (the propriety and practicability of which may lead to a serious consideration of the subject, though, perhaps, no alteration may beta this moment contemp'ated), I venture, without fich ther preface, to point out some curtailments whl2e may be made in the form of receiving the Saca - ment. From the present unnecessary length of thar service, the aged and infirm, to whom it is peculiarly a matter of duty and comfort, to say nothing of others, are either altogether precluded from attend ing to it, or do so with much inconvenience to them selves. In order to shorten it, I would suggest, that instead of the prefatory sentences, and the collection at the commencement of that service (if it be thought necessary to continue the collection at all), each communicant, in going to the table, shall deposit his oblation in a plate or box, to be fixed near the table. This method I have seen practised in some church in Wales: 1 think at Car digan. Another mode might be, for each person to put his contribution into a box or plate at the door, on first entering the church for morning servici'.— This latter mode would probably secure a larger collection, because many who might not intend staying the sacrament, would, notwithstanding, add their contribution. Another abridgement might be made. Instead of the addresses being repeated to each individual upon his receiving the bread and wine respectively, o❑e general address might be read to each set of com municants successively kneeling at one ti Ile at the table before distributing the bread and wine to them, or one general address for the whole number assem bled to communicate. The former of these methods is already practised in some churches. It does not appear that any thing would be lost in point of solemnity or significancy in the celebration of this important service by the curtailments sug gested, whereas the time that would be saved would be considerable. Supposing the communicants to consist of between sixty and seventy. Allowing one minute to be occupied in the collection frot and the two addresses to eaph communicant, an /our would be saved in the whole service, by the adoption of the proposed substitution. If, as is commonly the case in the country churches, one Minister has to perform the whole service. Your constant reader, W. J. B. The Earl of ROSSLYN entertained the Cabinet Ministers to dinner yesterday evening, at his residence in St. Jarnes's.t=quare. This was the first cabinet dinner given by his Lordship to his colleagues since his accession to the Ministry, and was the second cabinet dinner given this season. Nearly the whole of the klenthers of the ilibinrt were presetit. The Earl of ABERDEEN visited the CHANT ceL~ on o f th e E xcilE4UEa yesterday, at tile Trewryl COURT-MARTIAL AT PORTSMOUTH. On Monday, the 13th instant, a court-martial x‘as held on hoard the Victory, in Portsmouth har bour, to try John Miller, a seaman of the Espiegle, on a charge of disobedience of orders, but involving he liberty of the sukject. The prisoner was a fisherman at Bexhill, in Sus sex, and had been convicted on the 22d of De. cemhcr, 1824, under the Revenue laws, of having eight gallons of contraband spirits in his possession, and sentenced to five years' servitude in the l\avy ; and it expiring on the 21st of December last, he then applied for his discharge, which was refused till the ship was paid off. The prisoner hail sustained an unexceptionable character in the service ; but be coming reluctant to the duty of the ship, on being entitled to his liberty; his Captain reported his con duct to the Admiral in command at Portsmouth : and the Admiralty then ordered him to be tried thereon by a Court-martial. The Members were—Captain Hayes, President; Captain the Hon. G. Elliott, Captain Napier, Cap tain Carroll, and Captain Lord Win. Paget; Moses Greetham, Esq., Judge-Advocate. The prisoner was assisted in his defence by Mr. Minchin. The following is the letter containing the charge : " His Majesty's ship Espiegle, Jan. 12, 1850. " Portsmouth Harbour. " SIR,—I beg leave to submit to your considera tion the following statement of an an occurrence on board his Majesty's ship under my command. " John Miller, a smuggler, was discharged from his Majesty's ship Barham to his Majesty's ship Espiegle, as part complement, last September. On the 23d of December, the ship being at sea, he re ported on the quarter-deck that his period of five years' serve expired that day, which, by reference to his ticket, proved to be the case. I at that time expressed to him my opinion, that his discharge would not be granted until the ship was paid off; and that therefore I thought it unnecessary for me to apply for it; he answered—' Then, Sir, I will.' " During the following night, in a gale, whilst the hands were on deck, it was reported to me that he was below, assigning as his reason that he had left off work, having ceased to belong to the ship. When called before me, I explained to him the nature of his offence ; and on his expressing con trition, and a wish to be allowed to return to his duty, I consented, in conside►ation of the high character he had previously borne. " Upon my arrival at Plymouth, finding the ship likely to be delayed, I applied for his discharge, and, in reply, received their Lordships' direction that he should be paid off with the remainder of the crew. This was communicated to him by me. " He was this day ordered by Lieutenant White to go in a boat ; to which he replied he could not.' Lieutenant White repeated his order, and received the sante answer. On his being filially asked if he meant he would not do his duty ? be said ' I will not.' Upon which he was placed in confinement. " I am perfectly aware that the regulations of the service give me full power to act in similar cases; but as I look upon this as involving peculiar consi derations, I have thought it advisable to refer it for your opinion. " I have the honour to he, Sir, your obedient servant, (Signed) " R. ELLIOTT, Commander. " To Admiral the Hon. sir Robert Stopford, K. C. 13., Portsmouth." The Members and Judge-Advocate being sworn, the following evidence was called Lieutenant George William White—Were you the Commanding Officer of the Espiegle on the morning of Tuesday, the 12th Jan. inst. ?—Yes. Did you desire the prisoner John Miller to go into a boat, and what was his reply to that order ? I ordered John Miller, the prisoner, to go into the cutter. His reply was, " I cannot go." I repeated my order a second time to him, and he said the second time, "He could not go." I then said, " You will not go into the boat ?" and his reply was, " I will not, Sir." I put him in irons directly, and reported him to Captain Elliott when he came on board. The conviction of the prisoner by Edward Mil ward, Esq., produced, dated the 22,1 of December, 1824, for five years, for carrying and conveying eight gallons of spirits. Commander of the Rami lies to take the prisoner. Cross-examined by the prisoner—How long have I served in the Espiegle whilst you have belonged to her?—Between four and five months. What has been my generaLcharacter and conduct in the service during that period ?—ln general very good. The pay-book of the Espiegle produced, in which was the entry of the prisoner as one of the crew from the Barham, and his navy-ticket on his being discharged from the Barham to the Espiegle, in wlich it is specified that his servitude expired the 21st of December , 1829. _ _ Lieutenant White called by Captain ELLIOT. Did you clearly understand the prisoner's reason for declining to do duty was because he had com pleted his five years' servitude as a smuggler ? Yes. Are you quite clear as to the prisoner having re fused to obey your order ?—Quite. Do you believe the prisoner was sent on board as a srr.uggler ?—I believe he was : he came from the Barham. Cross-examined by the prisoner—How long did you know me in the Barbantf—l believe seven months. What was my general character and conduct during that time ?—Very good indeed. Here the evidence for the prosecution closed. When the prisoner was called on for his defence, he requested a short time to prepare it. The Court was then cleared. In half an hour the Court opened, and Mr. Min chin read the following defence for the prisoner : Mr. President, and Gentlemen of this Hon. Court, may it please you, Sir, and Gentlemen, — Brought as I am, a prisoner before you, to be tried for an offence which it is alleged I had committed against his Majesty's naval service, I now, by the advice and assistance of my friend, with profound respect, entreat of the Court its patient and most serious consideration of what I have to offer on my own behalf; involving, as it does, not only the liberty of the subject and the rights and privileges to which, as an Englishman, I am entitled, but those privileges which have ever been held sacred in the glorious Constitution of this realm, and of which, even the navy itself, is justly deemed one of the guardians. I might formally, and as I humbly conceive, effectually,•have pleaded in bar to your authority by law to try me, as the term of my ser vitude in his Majesty's navy had ceased on the 21st of December last, which was just 23 days be fore the alleged offence was imputed to me ; and that my subsequent detention in his Majesty's ship Espiegle being, as it is, against my will, when the first opportunity occurred, by the ship's arrival at Plymouth, and when I could have been liberated (and which was on the second day after the offence imputed), my subsequent detention, I say, i 3 not warranted by any or either of the Acts of Parliament wider which I had, for an offence against the Revenue Laws, been originally sentenced to five years' servitude in the navy. lam a native of Bexhill, in Sussex. I am a free holder of that county, inheriting freehold hereditaT meats which descended to me from my father. am now in my 31st year. I was never hot opcp in my hie accused of any violation of the revenue laws; but unfortunately, in December, 182 , 1, having so small a quantity as eight gallons of contraband fo reign spirits in my possession, I became amenable to the law, an offence, merely as malum prohibilum, questioned by many whether there I.e mo - 4tl tcrpi tude in it; and for this minor deliniuency in the fy of the law, I was summoned before Edward M - ward, ESq.; one of , his Majesty's Justices of i 4 peace for the county of Sussex, and 1-IVl7lg convictect of haying those spiTifs in my possession, and my vo- PtiPil Wing that of a fisherman, I was on the 22d of Dec. 1824, as a punishment, sentenced to save in his Majesty's navy for five years. I was first sent to the Ramilies in the Downs; then to - the Prince. Regent, the Parthian, the Victory, the Ferret brig, the his, the Aurora, the Barham, and the Espiegle, in succession; and I have in all those ships been detained against my will. It was not that I originally entered the service as a volunteer, but that the law condemned me to five years' servi tude as a punishment for the above delinquency, and when in either of the above ships, not in actual ser vice, I have been, as all persons are in my unfortu nate situation, constantly kept in close confinement as a prisoner, and in the respective ships' books I have not been borne as an en tered seaman, but as a smuggler; and except when on active service treated as under imprisonment. In all other cases of imprisonment, and in that of transportation, the period of the limitation of the restraint is the punishment for the offence cop mitted; and when that punishment is undergone, by the period being elapsed or the King's pardon being obtained, the offence is fully atoned for, and law satisfied ; and the instant it so expires, the offender is entitled to his liberty, and becomes again a free man as he was before his conviction. Thus was it with me : the instant the five years of my captivity and imprisonment had elapsed, my punish ment expired, and I was entitled to my discharge. I ceased then to be a seaman in his Majesty's ser vice, and, I respectfully submit to the Court, ought to be set at liberty at the first opportunity of the ship's arriving at an English port, and in the meanwhile that I became as a supernumerary, and had I resorted to my remedy as a subject of the realm, I was entitled to a writ of Habeas Corpus on the ship's arrival at Plymouth, which was on the 23d of December, and any judge of the land must have instantly discharged me. From the letter of Commander Elliett, it is evident that as soon as my term of servitude was expired, I conducted myself with strict propriety. Nothing en earth could be more natural than that I should be then anxious to regain my long-lost liberty as soon as I was entitled to be restored to it ; and Commander Elliott says, that on the 23d of Decwillaer, the ship being at sea, I reported, on the quarter-deck, that my five years' service had expired, and which by refe rence to my ticket, proved to be the case; and on his expressing his opinion that my discharge could not be granted until the ship was paid off, and that he thought it was unnecessary for me to apply for it, I answered him that I would; and in this I submit there could be no disrespect. I trust I have de- monstrated that as a British subject I was entitled to my liberty, and that therefor. by wrong I was de tained. However this may be, it happened that 1 presently afterwards became an invalid, and was on the sick list, and when two days only before the ship was paid off, I was ordered into the boat by Lieut. White, I answered to the call made to me, feeling my weakness, " I cannot," and repeated it. Now, Sir, I protest I never meant to say " I would not." I was ill, and, as just observed, feeling my own weak ness and indisposition, I merely said that 44 I could tior," and it was unaccompanied with the least con tumely or disrespect towards Lieut. White. That gentleman is certainly mistaken in his recollection of what did pass. The marine, John Jones, called to confirm his testimony, proved to you that he only heard me say " I could not go ;" and I shall call another witness to confirm that fact, so that I shall establish by two witnesses, that the words I used were not " I will not go," but these, " I cannot go ;" and they were only induced by the weak state I was in. SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. Meetings are becoming frequent throughout the country, and they all seem to turn on the uneasiness occasioned by some severe distress affecting one or more orders of the community ; but there is none in which we do not find the la borious classes dwelt upou as a matter rn , st peculiar and unexampled sufferings of the deeply to be deplored, and received by the hearers as a fact open to denial. There is, in truth, no public interest whatever, nor any ques tion of enlarged state policy, with which the causes and consequences of' the working man's wretched condition are not closely mixed up, or indeed, we may say, incorporated. Whole vo lumes of laws have been made by Parliament for the protection of the rich against the poor man's assumed hostility, and others for the accommo dation of the opulent, at the poor man's expense. The Game Laws, worthy of the spirit of Draco, may be cited as an instance of the former branch of English legislation ; and of the latter, the numberless Enclosure Bills, which are, one and all, direct robberies of the peasant, tending at once to demoralize and to starve him, by strip ping his home of its most innocent occupations, and of its cheapest comforts. Even that hu mane and liberal code which was at first designed and has always professed to have the poor man's welfare for its great, or perhaps exclusive object, has, through an unfortunate concurrence of ac cidents or blunders, accumulating large discre tionary prerogatives in mean and worthless hands, degenerated from a relief to the deserving pauper, into a fetter that curbs and galls him, — confounding the alms bestowed on poverty with the wages of active but half-remunerated industry, and corrupting, by an habitual consciousness of degradation, the whole character of the British peasant. 'We rejoice to see that there are some gentlemen left who sympathize with the poor man's grievances, and defend his cause by their moral authority, even where their power as Ma gistrates may be insufficient. Mr. Dundas, Member for Berkshire, at. a recent Quarter Sessions, the proceedings of which we have ex tracted from one of the country papers, expressed himself in terms equally honourable to his good sense and humanity, on the state to which the poor of his county and neighbourhood had been reduced. Two shillings and eightpence given by Overseers to maintain a human being for seven days, in the winter season, and with the gallon loaf bread at ls. 6d. ! Is this the mercy of the Poor Laws of Great Britain ? Weil may the Honourable Chairman affirm that such mercy is an incentive to crime. We believe that wages are too low, because in certain parts of England there is a surplus of labour in the market ; but it would be infinitely better to CM ploy few labourers at fair and decent wages, than a great number on a pittance which disables them from supporting themselves, or doing ser vice to their employer. We should, as country gentlemen, prefer seeing 10 men working at the rate of ls. Bd., or 2s. per day, and two others left to be employed by the parish, or even sup ported by it gratuitously, than the whole 12 less than half-fed, and doing less than half work, with a wife and family of four or five children, trusting at the present price of bread to a stipend reduced by eager competition within the famine limit. Even where the farmers are overloaded with rent, it is their obvious interest to pay liberal wages, employing a smaller proportion of hands, than to take as many as offer, and have the work of each sluggishly and imperfectly exe cuted. The political effect of this would lie a much increased Cacility of determining what was the true state of the agricultural population, be cause the numbers actually thrown upon the overseers of the poor for subsistence would be far more easily returned (and the inference thence drawn would be more unanswerable) than the degree of privation endured by badly-paid and worn-out labourers could be calculated, or the reasonings founded on such indefinite data recognized by sceptical minds. There has been a meeting, we perceive, in Bury St. Edmund's. of which the only interesting particular which has reached us is the perusal by the Chairman of a letter from General Sir James Affleck, stating indisposition as the reason which C O M, pelled him to be absent, and likewise his mot:ives for dissenting from the purpose of the meeting, which appears to have been a petition against the Malt and Beer Duties. The worthy Baro net avows his belief that the repeal of the Malt duty is impossible, and encourages ?Ministers to the other , , f in re e the trade nation, in corn"—to wit, th e freedom established say so without hesitation. Si r J ames goes refur ther, and with great n a i ve t e d ec l ares that the farming a nd every mustb interest, berutted until by the present Corn Law !—shall be repealed, and the warehousing system got rid of. This of course is a free country, in which a man may say what he likes ; but we suppose that in gthe Corn Law a law of free trade, Sir James means to be ironical.—Times. We yesterday observed, that the permane n t commutation o Tithes was quite a distinct question from that of the distribution of that part of the public property now enjoyed by the Church. It is of great importance to keep this distinction steadily in view, because, with re spect to the final settlement of Tithes, there can hardly be any difference of opinion, whereas, much difference of opinion unquestionably exists with regard to the mode in which the Clergy ought to be remunerated. Our Contemporary (the Standard) observes, that " the Act of last Session for the east) and growth of Popery • is considered by many as severing the Church from the State s and the active part taken in forwarding that Bill by ten Prelates, to which THE SERPENTINE.—The exhibition of skill we may add the luketvarvoms of above ten among the skaiters on Tuesday afternoon wa e , the best we I more, has, in many cases, taught men to look have witnessed this season upon such s e p arat i on the Hon. P. Byxo was amon g with less r:sgret than any the performers, The light and airy waltz was admirably I one who knew the strong attachment of the executed on ice of the finest q uality. There was one us- pcuplk ttl their Church P.:mid have anticipated." fortunate exhibitor among the "awkward squad "-,311, e l Our Contemporary is, no doubt, too well ac straightforward set—who, in falling, brok t thk , o4h the quainted with, the History of the Church and ice at some distance from the glom I;.u.t was speedilyl with human nature, to be surprized that a num extricated by ropes and ltlder'i t The contrast was great ! ber of Bishops should vote in whatever manner between the uew ice and Ow old, the latter being covered ! they wwo told to vote by Ministers. The only with sraw, and the former pure and transparent. Yester- thing surprising is, that any Bishops should be day, as early as eleven o'clock, there were many px.ri k ons found sturdy enough to vote against Ministers. skaiting and sliding, but within a confined space, owing to It was reckoned a wonderful thing in the last a heavy fall of snow during th; eecedinß uig44. At noo k , I mitur -- , y when there was a great outcry against rain came and spoile4the the demoralizing effects of gin-shops, one or 14A ~ssss TitonEsAY.---The name of Thoresby two Bishops should have the liar iih d oo to speak has long been familiar to tho public ear. In the anti- against a Gin Rill (a length to which th e htl a quarian literature oouutry be ranks deservedly hi g h. y His " Du c atus Leodiensis, or Topography of Leeds," h as never gone again s t any ot h er o di ous mi.:Asure, always been a book prized and l opular, and the re iy such as sanctioning the Slave Trade for in scarcely an antiquary or a distinguished Nat t vall k t of his stance) ; and a very pious ant learned clergy time with whom he was not ititiT;;;eiy acquainted, and 'man, in hig Memoirs tanents th a t o ur Bi s h o p s ' am o n g others with I'i:y.O.4,SON, GIII.SON. 'the G ALES , `II,Y E 11EARNE , and BAK KR. D V ,t should s almost all of them be political, and perb4s lip is best kno w n as the possessor fjf very eater- spend so much of their time not in their own sive and curious MuseuT 7 414 ky ware deposit e d t h e dioceses, wh ere t h ey oug h t b ot h to l i ve and die, rarest specimens Pi and Paillifl% The forthcomin g but tile capital city and in . Parliament. It piEq, i s inA Gorrespowelice of this distinguish e d individual . may he worth our while to Cake 'Some no • .tree may consequently be expected to contain a variety oa( s • e- original and curious notices of nearly all the lik/rar36.h little good they do there;-either to learning, and scientific characters who flourished at the dose of tlik morality, or religion ; ttiky being too weir 17th and at the beginning of 1.4 e Wt 4 co;itujies. % known to be little better t tools of the, ,t . / - • 4 4 :\ . 1 47Z1W C")::;71. The prisoner then called witnesses to speak to his character and conduct, as also to corroborate some of the statements, especially the one regarding his answer to Lieutenant White, contained in his defence. The Court was then cleared for upwards of an hour, when it was again opened, and the following sentence read : SENTENCE. " That the charge had been proved against the said John Miller; but that it appeared he had been led into the commission of the offence by a mistaken idea of his situation, and not from any disposition of insubordination; and in consideration of the cir cumstances, the contrition expressed by him, and the extraordinary good character given to him, do only adjudge him to be admonished to be more care ful in future." Immediately after passing the sentence, Vice- Admiral Sir Robert Stopford, Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth, ordered the prisoner to be dis charged; and we understand he has since received his full pay at the Navy Pay-office in the dock-yard. HUNTING INTELLIGENCE. ♦TPOINTMINTI FOIL TWIT INSUINO wincr. (In consequence of the frost, the Appointments for 'cruel Fox Hounds have not been made as usual.) The Kempstone Hounds, on Tuesday, at Beetle) , ; Thursday, at Sporle-hill ; and Saturday, at Immanuel Lodge, Castleacre—at Eleven. Mr. Meynell's Hounds, on Monday, at Sudbury; Thurs day, at Teddesley ; and Saturday, at Black Slough—at Half-past Ten. The Glossop Harriers, on Monday, at Marple.bridge ; and Thursday, at Hoolly Wood—at Half-past Ten. The Shropshire Fox Hounds, on Monday, at Acton Burnell ; Wednesday, at Wytheford Wood ; and Friday, at Woodcote—at Half-past Ten. The Montgomeryshire Fox Hounds, on Tuesday, at Garth ; and Friday, at Cae Howel-bridge—at Ten. Mr. Wickstcd's Fox Hounds, on Tuesday, at Wistaston ; and Friday, at Woore—at Half-past Ten. The Brookside Harriers, on Monday, at Newmarket- Hill; Wednesday, at Asheombe, the alternate Wednesday at the Kennel ; and Friday, at Telscombe Tye—at Half past 'fen. Mr. R. K. Sampson's Hounds, on Monday, at West• dean ; Thursday, at Bourne ; and Satut day, at Mr. Ades, Duttles—at Ten. The Brighton Harriers on Monday, at Patcham ; Wed nesday, at the Race Course ; and Friday, at the Dyke—at Half-past Ten. Mr. Boycott's Hounds, on Tuesday, at Windmill, Spittle Brook ; Thursday, Crackley Bank—at Half-past Ten. The Cheshire Hounds, on Monday, at Barr-bridge ; Wednesday, at Shavington ; Thursday, at Cholmondeley; and Saturd.ly, at Wrenbury—at Half-past Ten. The Badsworth Fox Hounds, on Tuesday, at Elmsall Lodge; Wednesday, at Pollington ; Thursday, at Stsple, ton-park ; and Saturday, at Notton Half past Ten. Lord Yarborough's Hounds, on Monday, at Weelsby house ; Wednesday, at Kirmington Vale ; Friday, at Thonock-house; and Saturday, at Greyingham-bar—at Eleven.