The Sun. — London, England, 1831-06-02 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. Our readers have surely not forgotten the Pen sion List—we mean the snug, secret, c onfidential Pension List—which was exhibited a few months ago in the pages of the Times, and explained and commented upon from day to day by our friend " Radical," of courtier-hnted memory. That Pen sion list embraced the names of an almost incredible number of persons, principally membees of Tory families, on whose behalf advantage had been taken of the long possession of power by the Tory aristocracy to serve these dependents by syste matically applying the public money to their use. I Besides the grandee, of that heretofore successful 1 faction who plunged ostentatiously into the pocket of John Bull, and dragged out the contenta by hand fuls, there were myriads of less conspicuous and daring plunderers—men, and women too,—entree pickers of offal-feeders to the chief personages at that golden festival,—men, aye, and as we have said, women—to whom nothing came amiss in the way cf spoil, not having public services of any descrip tion to plead for them, became the proper and mul tip ied subjects of the most nefarious jobs. We will say nothing of individuals so specific as to point the finger of scorn at their persons ; but there is no great hardihood in affirming, that acts hardly to be named, much less acknow ledged, least of all rewarded,—and rewarded at the expence of those who would have been shocked at witnessing or hearing of them,—have been paid for by money wrung from the people of this country, paid in the form of sinecure places or pensions, to parties who could no otherwise have earned them but by some species of prostitution. Well, the place and pension list so made up, and filled with names which but to read in any mixed company through out England would have been to raise shouts of contemptuous indignation or laughter,—these lists, disclosing the manner in whieh tens of thousands of pounds sterling had been purloined from the service of the State, and perverted to that of worthless or useless individuate,—were laid before the last House of Commons,—and it was hoped by many upright persons, that his Majesty's present Government would have favoured the expectation pretty gene rally entertained, of a thorough overhauling of the pensioners, with a view towards accomplishing a serious diminution of the sums which had been mer cilessly squandered upon them, No such thing. The question was quashed by a sort of loose aver ment, that there seemed to be a point of honour involved in the continuance of the Pension List, foras much as the parties, although formally receiving the grants of such pensions for the life of the reigning sovereign, had understood them to be for their owe lives, therefore that there would be positive cruelty, and indeed a substantial breach of faith, in their withdrawal. There was no touch of discrimination between the classes of these pecuniary recompenses, some of iahich (not many) had been allowed for public and praiseworthy services ; others for such as, being rather unseemly, shunned the public eye. There was no intimation made from any official quarter, that the origin of the several pensions would be investigated, and that they would be con tinued or cut off, according to their respective merits. On the contrary, the argument by which the perma nence of the existing Pension List was justified, con fined itself to the " understanding" and consequent " expectation" of the pensioners, and therefore be came applicable to all pensions whatsover, which the grantees had looked upon as vested in them for life. Such being our conception of the case, de rived to us from the direct language of those high functionaries with whom the settlement of the ma• ter must be presumed to have rested, judge, reader, with what sensations we have seen a statement in a periodical publication of this month lately com menced (the Englishman's Magazine), assuring the world, as an official authority, that one class of pen sions, the only one, save that bestowed on brilliant military or political service, which the country ought not to regard with suspicion or shame—a class of pensions not given in wantonness or iniquity—not bribes to corruption, or encouragements to idleness, or wages of profligacy, or pamperers of insolent meanness—the pensions, but of late years, and with a parsimony which we hone was conscientious, doled out to men of the most distinguished order in this nation—pensions in acknowledgement of literary and scientific eminence—that they are one and all to be discontinued, while the other vile catalogue remains in safety and untouched. We subjoin the paper, which, if true, is dreadful. What ! take away from such men as Coleridge, Mathias, Ouse -- ley, Roscoe, Sharon Turner, and a few others, for the nation affords not many such,the wretched pittance of 1001. per annum, the niggard homage of a Govern ment calling itself enlightened to their talents, and in the case of some among them, the only support of their declining years. Our impression at first was, nay is, it and without further evidence it shall be, —that the charge is false. The King's Ministers know nothing of it. Lord Brougham assuredly does not. Mr. Hume, who well understands the difference between corrupt prodigality and base in justice,—Mr. Hume, we say, can know nothing of the treatment alleged to be in store for these inno cent, helpless, and highly distinguished ve'erans of our national literature, or he will rise in his place to protect them. It is not to be disputed that the worst stigma upon this country in the minds of foreign nations, is the neglect—whether contemptu otis or merely sttipid,or both—displayed by the Stale of England towards men of genius the mast eminent for their contribution to the cause of science and literature ; nor can we imagine any measure, as compared with that which we have now noticed for the sake of deprecating, more likely to wound the better feelings of the age, to fall with extreme harshness on the individuals affected by it, or to betray a revolting inconsistency with the spirit which appears generally to actuate at this moment the ruling powers of the empire. It must be understood, that in alluding to the eminent persons above re ferred to, we express no opinion with regard to the institution itself--the" Royal Society of Literature." The following is the passage to which we have alluded : " The Royal Society of Literature' was instituted in 1824, under the patronage of the late King, assisted by the zealous exertions of the learned Bishop of Salisbury. It consists, at present of 24S members, each of whom, with the except on of ten Royal Associates, contributes to the general fund, SUMS varying from two to ten guineas per annum, in addition to not unfrequent and liberal bene factions. The Royal Associates, on the other hand, have hitherto received one hundred guineas each from the King's annual bounty, and another hundred guineas, de rived from the same source, have been applied to the pur chase of medals, which have been presented, at the rate of two a year, to the most distinguished British and Foreign Literati. This, be it observed in passing, with two me dals placed at the disposal of the Councils of the Royal Society, and of the Society of Antiquaries, is all that the Crown has ever done for the advancement of science or literature in Britain.* That in the present in stance these small rewards of merit have never been indiscreetly disposed of, the list of celebrated per• Nonage's, upon whom they have heretofore been con ferred, will abundantly testify. It contains the names of Mitford, th e historian of Greece, i Angelo Mai, librarian of the V a ti can , Major Renn , ei,t , he r S geo , gt h •apher, Wilkins, the emin e nt Orientaqst, Profes so r l i zeuser, Dugald Stewart, Scott, Southey, ' R Crabbe c Arch deacon . ei Coxe, W. Roscoe, and - Baron Silvestre de Sac And justly renowned and deserving of distincti on as this • illustrious group of authors is, it is scarcely rich er i n cha racters who have toiled their laborious way to the highest su mmits of fame, than the selection of individualsseh o now form the body of ' Royal Associates.' They are, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the Rev. Edward Davies, Dr. Jamieson, the indefatigable compiler of the Scottish Dic tionary, the Rev. T. R. Malthus, Mathias, author of the Pursuits of Literature, James Millingen, Esq., Sir William Ouseley, William Roscoe, the Rev. Henry J. Todd, and Sharon Turner. It is our painful duty to add, that four of the gentlemen whose names we have given, and perhaps the most co nspicuous of the number, are ec tually, or, in a gre at measure, d e pendent for their sub sistence on the paltry pittance which they receive from the funds of the Society. Think, benevolent and enlightened reader; and oh ! think of it with more than pity! that some of those, under • see Observations on Historical Literature, by Nicholas Harris Nicolas, Esq. the influence of whose pages Many of your most blessed and instructive hours have been spent, and whose career of worldly prosperity has been thwarted, not by evil propen• cities or luxurious indolence, but that', by the unwearied toil of their great genius and understandings, they might establish themselves in the inemories and direct the virtues Of future aget;---nnly think of such men, in the evening of their , days, and the steril winter of their minds, being reduced to the necessity of prising a wretched pension which many of your illiterate' and soulless menials would scorn! But—shat: we be believed When we state ?—in timation has actually been given, on the part of the Crown, to Mr. Coleridge and his brother associates, that they must expect their allowances very shortly' to cease. Such is the melancholy, and, our feelings compel us to say, most disgraceful fact. And this, too, at a time when that vile engine of corruption, the Pension List, has been sa credly presetwed in all its entireness of political infamy; and while Lord Brougham is attempting to persuade the House of Lords to settle a retiring pension of 2001. per annum on '7O Commissioners of Bankrupt, who, accord ing to his accoent, were enormously overpaid for services which they were generally quite incapable of performing, hut who he amiably considers entitled to a liberal remu neration, because—and pray do mark the cogency of the reason---their expectations, pool - dear sensitive darlings, had been excited by their appointments, and in the joy of their hearts they lead forgotten the warning voice of Mal thus. We sincerely wish that his Lordship, particularly as he is the official keeper of the Royal conscience, would teensfer a little of his superabundant sympathy to the in terests of literature, and prevent his patriotic master from being unconsciously guilty of committing an action so un worthy of the dignity of the beloved Sovereign of Britain." Times. The conductors of the Press in those Colonies of this country which are without Assemblies seem to be placed under circumstances of the most embar rassing nature. The moment they utter any un pleasant truth, especially regarding that subject on which all Governments are naturally sensitive—the expenditure of the public money—they are reduced to silence, and subjected to great loss, if not total ruin. We are led at present to make this observa tion by a communication from the Guiana Chronicle Office, George Town, Demerara, of the number of that Journal of the 14th March last, which contains au article that led to its suppression on the 16th of March. For publishing that article the license has been arbitrarily withdrawn (says the Editor), " Without subjecting the question of our delinquency to the decision of any Court of Justice, or affording us any notice or explanation whatsoever. This is the thh d time that our Paper has been stopped, in the same abrupt and arbitrary manner, by the same indivi dual, Major-Gen. Sir Benjamin Dlirban, the Lieutenant • Governor of this Colony. On the 18th of Nov., 1825, the same thing took place, and from an equally insignifi cant cause, viz., having published in our Paper a most outrageously gross expression made use of publicly on parade by a Main- in the Militia to a very respectable in• habitant, a private in the same corps. Our Paper was then stopped for a considerable time ; and it was only in conse • quenee of making a personal application to the Colonial Secretary in London that we were allowed to resume its publication. On the second occasion the grounds were so trifling that the interdict was withdrawn in the course of tiro days. The circulation of our Paper is very con siderable, not only in this Colony, hut also throughout all the West Indies, and even in Great Britain. The loss, therefore, to us, occasioned by such suspensions, must be obvious to you, and the inconvenience and annoyance to the public, occasioned by the suppression of the only Paper which attempts the discussion of our local grievances, is very considerable. As a proof that our statement of the public distress here, and of the existence of most oppres sive and rapidly increasing abuses is by no means exag gerated, we inclose for your inspection a memorial, drawn up, and about to be transmitted by the planters and mer chants of this Colony, with an appendix containing the details of their difficulties, and a statement of many of the abuses which now grievously oppress them." When the license was last restored, among the other conditions imposed under a despatch, dated 6th June, 1826, from the Colonial Secretary, were the following:— " 2(1. Abstinence from all abuses of the local authorities. " 3d. Abstinence from all violent and angry expressions on any subject (whether original or extracted from other paper.), which are manifestly calculated to create irrita tion and encourage acts of violence in the Colony." The grounds on which the licenses are withdra.vn are the violation in the article alluded to of these two articles. On turning to the article in the Guiana Chronicle of the 14th March, we confess we are unable to find in it any justification of the ruinous measure adopted by the Governor. The following is the article : " The meetings of the Combined Court for this Colony, will, we understand, terminate their sittings this day, when the public will he made acquainted with what measures of economy they have, in their wisdom, thought proper to adopt, commensurate with the present unparalleled de pression of prices for all our staple commodities, and conse quent general and overwhelming distress. The example of the mother country will not, we trust, be lost upon our legislators. The necessity for a Reform of both legislative and financial abuses is certainly not lees here than at home, and we hope that among those to whom the important task has been delegated of legislating for this Colony, some few, at least, will be found sufficiently honest to discharge their trust with fidelity, and who, unawed by authority, uninfluenced by any petty vanity of time-serving servility, will stand forth the uncompromising champions of public rights, and declared enemies of abuses under every form, whether of encroachments on the legislative tights of the people, or of profligate expenditure of their means, on sinecure appointments, or salaries disproportioned to the present coneition of the Colony, verging on the very brink of general bankruptcy. These are considerations which the present awful aspect of the times calls, not only upon all legislators, but all citizens, to entertain and seriously to discuss. On their conduct on this occasion may probably depend their future safety or ruin. The poli tics of Europe are at this moment highly interesting; but to us, individually, the politics of our own little republic are infinitely more so. What consolation will it afford to na to hear of kingdoms in the old world, who, having broken the sceptre of despotism, have nobly asserted their just right to free and cheap governments, if we, in this small distant settlement, continue oppressed by legislative abuses and financial extravagance, and become, in conse quence, reduced to the worst of all slavery—the wretched dependence of beggary? Time was in this Colony when the profits on private adventures were so liberal as to ren der the extravagance of public expenditure a matter of minor importance. Bat now, when those may be deemed fortunate whose earnings suffice to meet their daily out lays, the burden of public expenditure presses hard upon the very necessaries of life. Such would be the case even were the expenditure most frugal; but what shall we say of an expenditure which has gone on increasing with reck less and unfeeling indifference in inverse proportion to the general prosperity, which has been doubled within those few unfortunate years, which has witne ss e d the decay of more than half our resources. These are the subjects to which we shall shortly deem it our duty to draw the at tention of the public in detail, unless we find our labours fortunately anticipated by others better qualified for the undertakine. In the mean time, we shall content our selves with throwing out these few preliminary hints, and await the results of the last week's secret deliberations of our legislators." We are tumble to discover any circumstances in the situation of Demerara which should render free discussion more dangerous than in our other sugar colonies, and We see every day in the newspapers published in the colonies where the Press is not under the controul of a Governor, articles, compared to which the above is mildness itself. There is nothing in the article to justify the suppression— nothing which properly falls within the limitation of the despatch of the Secretary of State. The Governor, being the Judge, naturally enough con ceives all that tends to limit his influence or autho rity culpable, and, unfortunately for the poor Editor, the opinion of Sir B. D'Urban is law. It appears, from a Memorial of the Planters and Merchants of the Colony to the Privy Council, and an accompany. ing Report of a Committee of Planters and Mer chants, that a construction has been put upon the Legislature given to them in 1812, with a view to the assimilation of the Colonial Representation to the other institutions of the Empire, has been re ourgcaetdliztaotirsonmoefrethreqnetitsyla. turAeftbeyr Governordescribing t a h r e . financial observe-- " inieh r uc he l, fi th aa e representatives tieinit e l hosen by ballot of the proportion in whom they re colonists, were clearly the of money to posed their confidence to pro the resources of the constituents ; and a: estimates ',nought forward in the combin ed w As e s h em w h . lye cow na u turally were followed that the same Assembly hi vote away' the public money, was also the body in cl° u which the expenditure of the past year should be scanned, an d in which the abolition of unnecessary salaries was to be ths. cussed, as well as where any other waiteful expenditure of the public funds should be checked. Such was evi dently the intention of Governor Carmichael, and the colonists felt that their new Legislature had been or ganised with a just regard for their interests. Different constructions have since been put on the functions of the combined Assembly : and the benefits which the new organization at first held out to the public have been frittered away, and the representation of the co lonists has no* become a mere non-entity. It will be seen, chat at the new organization of the Court of Policy it con. sisted of three ex-officio and four colonial r e presentative Mem bers—his Excellency the Governor having a casting vote on any occasion when the Court was equally divided, which could only happen when some of the Members were ab sent. The first step taken to destroy this salutary pro tection in favour of the colonists was by Governor Carnal. chael's successor in the Government, who introduced the President of the Court of Justice as another ex-officio Member. This extraordinary measure, which was sub. versive of the then vested rights of the Colonists, was looked upon at the time as an act of aggression, and highly improper; and there has been but one opinion entertained of it ever since in the Colony, where it is deemed to be incompatible for the head of the Judiciary to be involved in questions of local politics, and to have a voice in regu lating the financial concerns of the Colony. The intro. duction of this new ex-o f ficio Member made the Court of Policy consist of four ex-officio Members and four Repro tentative Members ; and his Excellency having a cisting vote, can at any time carry a measure, under semblance of law, against the united votes of the Colonial Members." This is, no doubt, in the eyes of the Governor, the true way of constituting a Legislature. He has ably profited by the lessons of other great men, who admire Legislatures best only when they are packed. An appearance of protection is a good thing; but the reality an enormous evil. The colonists, for instance, think that a practical plan of retrenchment might be carried into effect without the least detri ment to the public business, which would lessen the direct and indirect taxation to the amount of 15,000/. or 20,0001. sterling per annum. The Go vernor and the ex-officio representatives, of course, have very different notions respecting retrenchment. Men do not go out to Demerara, as Governors and Functionaries, to set examples of retrenchment, and an Assembly with power to vote the abolition of useless salaries and sinecures would be in their eyes a nuisance. The Colonists say : " The extent of the Civil Establishment is felt to be exceedingly burdensome, and the necessary provision which has been made for the Clergy makes it more in tolerable. Reduction in every department is loudly called for; and the abolition of many unnecessary offices and at. lowances has become indispensable, in consequexce of the distressed state of agriculture. The fees and emoluments of the patent offices are excessive: the principals, residing in the Mother Country, farm them out to deputies; the Patentee of the Secretary's and King's Receiver's Offices receiving annually 4,0001. sterling ; and a sum of about 2,000/. sterling is paid to the First Marshal. These de puties could not afford to pay such large amounts to the principals were not the fees and emoluments on a scale of extravagance which subjects the Colonists of Demerara and Essequibo to the derision of those of every other British Colony in the West." No wonder that the Governor should dislike the liberty of the Press. It is pretty clear that a free Press and such a system of extortion cannot long co-exist. But it would be better to allow of no Press, than to make the Governor the Judge of it : a Press like this is worse than none.—Morning Chronicle. It is high time that the public attention should be called to the system of Government established in several of our most important Colonies. For merly it was the custom of this country to give to her Colonies a Constitution similar to her own; under the late corrupt boroughmongering Adminis trations, however, this practice has fallen into dis use, and, instead of establishing in the Colonies a free Government analogous to that of King, Lords, and Commons, they have given them Kings and Lords—that is, Governors and Councils ; but no Houses of Assembly, or representatives of the people. The consequence of this system may be easily imagined. The Colonists are ill governed arid dissatisfied. Englishmen are so much accus tomed to a representative system of Government, that no removal from their country, however distant the place, or however different the clime, to which they emigrate, will reconcile them to arbitrary power—and they never fail to instil this feeling into the minds of their children, and those, of all others, by whom they may happen to be surrounded. As'! a proof of the assertions which we have made with regard to the arbitrary system pursued by the late Administrations, compared with those of former times, we may mention, that while such old, and, comparatively speaking, unimportant colonies as New Brunswick, Prince Edward's Island, and se veral others that might be mentioned, have Houses of Assemblies or Constitutions analogous to our own, the Cape of Good Hope, Deme rara, New South Wales, the Isle of France, and Van Diemen's Land, are subjected to arbitrary Governments, or Governments the Members of which are appointed by the Crown. We need not say that this is not as it ought to be. We need not say that the last-mentioned colonies are ill go verned, and that the people are dissatisfied. Thus, for instance, we see that these arbitrarily appointed Governors and Councils (we use the word " arbi trarily" not in its bad sense) are perpetually laying restraints upon the Press, knowing full well that despotism and free discussion cannot exist together. The Governors and Councils of Van Diemen's Land and New South Wales have reduced the Press of those colonies to a miserable state of dependence, while in Demerara, and some other colonies, it exists, if it exist at all, only by sufferance. We have been led into these remarks by the recent suppression of the Demerara Gazette by an arbitrary order of the Governor of that colony. The Editor, it appears, had ventured to make some (in our opinion) very just remarks upon the expenditure of the colony, for which the Governor, Sir B. D'Urban, two days after the publication, and, of course, without trial, with drew the license to print the journal. The conse quence of this proceeding, as regards the proprietors, will be their ruin, and, us regards the colony, the suppression of all free discussion. But we will lay before our readers a specimen or two of the kind of writing which is considered so dangerous in Deme rara as to justify the ruin of the writer :—" The ex ample of the mother country will nut, we trust, be lost upon our legislators. The necessity for a Re form of both legislative and financial abuses is cer tainly not less here than at home, and we hope that among those to whom the important task has been delegated of legislating for this colony some few, at least, will be found sufficiently honest to discharge their trust with fidelity, and who, un awed by authority, uninfluenced by any petty vanity of time-serving servility, will stand forth the uncom promising champions of public rights, and declared enemies of abuses under every form, whether of en croachment on the legislative rights of the peoples or of profligate expenditure of their means; on sine cure appointments, or salaries disproportioned to the present condition of the colony, verging on the very brink of general bankruptcy. * * * What shall we say of an expenditure which has gone on increasing, with reckless and unfeeling indiffer ence, in an inverse proportion to the general pros perity, which has been doubled within these few un fortunate years, which has witnessed the decay of more than half our resources." We have purposely extracted the strongest observations in the article of the colonial editor ; but, we would ask, is there army thing in them which can justify the Governor in suppressing the journal in which they appeared ? We know not who this Sir B. D'Urban is—we know not for what services hevbtained his appoint ment, but we cannot help suspecting that he must be of the true boroughmongering breed. At army rate, we arc quite satisfied that his reign will be of short duration. The present King and Ministry, who have conferred liberty on the mother country, will not suffer the colonies to remain subjected to lespotic rule ; or, if it were possible that they could pursue a different course, a reformed Parliament will not be in existence many months without settling the business in a manner satisfactory to all parties, except those who live by tyranny and cot ruption.—.Morning Herald. The communications of our private correspondent at Lisbon, which used to be but an indignant record of some unprovoked atrocities by the tyrant on his own subjects, unrevenged insults by his ruffian minions on those of other states, or gloomy fore bodings of worse treatment for the future, have now a second time an exhilarating aspect ; the voice of retribution is speaking strong and loud, and justice, tardily bestowed, is filling upon the guilty man with a heavy hand and a cutting axe. — The " monster," as the French call him, may in deed exclaim " misfortunes love a train!" for no sooner has he humbled himself to the dust before one injured party than another appears to require new sacrifices, and another still is in store to drag more largely upon his servility, or, perhaps, which ,would be most desirable, to exhaust his patience. Upon the 16th of May the French squadron, con sisting of two line-of-battle ships, two frigates, and some others of smaller size—in all eleven—appeared off the bar of the Tagus upon the honourable mis sion of calling Don Miguel to account for his unjust treatment of Messrs. Sauvinet and Bonhomme, two subjects of France. Their presence is said o have thrown, as upon a similar visit from the English, the Councils of the coward into the greatest confusion. The Endyinion French brig was sent into the river, and her commander immediately communicated his instructions to one of the Mini sters of Don Miguel, who undertook to place them before his " Majesty." But the Don was nowhere to be found ; in the extravagance of his alarm, he fancied that he heard the enemy's bullets already whistling about his ears at Lisbon, and bet jok him -elf for safety and comfort to hit favourite compos ing draughts and his country palace. Thither the Minister followed him, and explained the very un pleasant conditions which the French commander required. Forty-eight hours only were given for deliberation. The time was pressing, but Don Miguel was unable to make up his mind. A longer day was asked, but refused. The exact terms of the requisition do not seem to have been known, but they were thought to be—the dismissal of the Council and Judges who condemned the two French subjects, compensation for the French ships unlaw fully made prises of by the Portuguese squadron that blockaded Terceira; and a reimbursement of the ex penses incurred in fitting out the squadron off Lisbon. —One of our correspondents adds, that it was made a condition that the Don should quit for ever Por tugal, having his estates secured to him ; but he gives it as a rumour not entitled to much attention. We are told that an answer was at last given, with which the Endynzion sailed out upon the 21st; but the nature of it was not known. From the general despondency, however, which pervaded the party of the Usurper, it was expected that the answer would not prove satisfactory, and the affair is not, therefore, yet terminated. The good effects of these vigorous proceedings were already beginning to be felt in Lisbon : the arrests and imprisonments had ceased ; the police were less insolent, and something like confidence was beginning to be felt even by the Portuguese. The Don has only one more party now to deal with, which is the American ; but he may prove the most stubborn of all. We hope " Bro ther Jonathan" will perfect the good work which has been so gloriously begun, stow away this scion of legitimacy in the hold of one of their vessels, and instal him chief of some of his kindred tribes of Chippawas or Cherokees. Europe would be well rid of him.—Morning Herald. The Brussels Papers, which arrived yesterday, have brought us the important information, first, that the Congress of London is willing to mediate between Belgium and Holland for the surrender of Lnxemburg—secondly, that they are equally de termined to maintain Holland in the possession of Limburg—and, thirdly, that the protocol, respecting the joint debt of the two countries, is to be considered rather as a proposal than a definitive resolution. These important resolutions are stated to have been communicated in a note from Lord Ponsonby to the Secretary for Fo reign Affairs, communicating the additional resolu tion on the part of Prince Leopold to accept the throne of Belgium, in case of his being elected Sovereign. The note itself, however, is not given, and we arc therefore still at a loss for the con ditions specified by Prince Leopold, as those on which he can consent to accept the throne. 'We believe, however, that there is no more doubt of his willingness to become Sovereign of Belgium, pro vided the points above referred to be satisfactorily settled, than of the certainty of his being chosen King. All parties,—with the exception of a few republicans,—and all the leaders of parties, are in his favour; while the Belgic people are so harrassed and tired out by the late struggle, and subsequent uncertainty respecting the fate of their country, as well as by the stagnation of trade, and almost total want of employment, that any sovereign who would bring hack to them the blessings of peace, would be hailed with enthusiasm. How this triumph of the foreign policy of this country will be received on the Continent, we are at little loss to conjecture. We Ind , ed know, as a matter of certainty, that Aus tria and Prussia are unfavourable, though not de cidedly opposed to it ; and that Russia is straining every nerve to prevent its accomplishment; while in France the event is viewed with a mingled feeling of jealousy and hope,—of jealousy that the power of England may be unreasonably in creased at the expence of France,—and of hope, that if the proposed elevation do take place, it will tend to unite the Governments and people of France and England in closer bonds of amity and mutual defence against the other continental pow ers. With regard to the former, we confess that we do not see much in the election of Prince Leopold to the sovereignty of Belgium, to excite the jealousy en e e bt to pltotuintrs.onEtthigelatnhdronwe,illi,n doubt,nporefer o f e a o s n e r d t n o e s g e h e b any other candidate; but she has, on the other hand, no interest in exercising any influence over the policy of the Belgian G overnment, and can derive no advantage from the circumstance, except that which might be contained in a commercial treaty. With regard to the other point,—the hope that France will be indemnified for the loss of a close union with Belgium by a closer union with Eng land, the ii!essagev des Chanzbres has some sensible observations, which, we trust, may produce a salutary influence on our somewhat jealous neigh bours.—Morning Advertiser. An attempt has been made to show that the House of Lords, if it should, as we anticipate, ex press on the first day of the Session any opinion upon the question of Reform, will not confine itself " within the bounds of duty," but seek " an aggran disement of its powers at the expense of the other House of Parliament." To prove the utter futility of this attempt, no more is necessary than to in quire whether the House of Lords has ever been without the power and the right—whether its power and its right has ever before been even ques tioned to mould its reply to the King's Speech into whatever form it may deem most expedient, or s pontaneously at any moment to address the Throne, whenevern in its judgm en t the state of public affairs may require its interference ? Nothing in the British Constitution is more certain than that this power and right are inherent in both Houses of Parliament—nothing in British politics is more certain than that either House of Parlia ment which permitted this power or this right t o be called into question must sink into a e i ri t i; t andati and puselesso,ver being disputed, body. From an the d e graded , very fact i of this a dditional argument arises for their prompt and vigorous exercise, more particularly when it is con sidered that the denial springs from a quarter whence certain " great persons" in ambush are generally supposed to dart their traitorou s shafts against every Constitutional principle, and every established in stitution. How, it is said, can the Lords make a declaration against Reform generally, when almost all the Members of the Upper House have been brought to acknowledge the necessity of some Re form ? How indeed ? If a majority of their Lord- chips have becu or call be bought to this acknow •edgment, our contemporary surely need not be rnuel , ►larmed by the apprehension that they will make a de :•luration against Reform generally. But why thei, question their right ? Why talk in a manner se childish or so revolutionaiy, of an aggrandisement of •heir powers ? Is the Times or the Ministry afraid chat the House of Lords will address the King in Ipposition to the sentiments of almost all its Mem 'iers ? But the Lords, notwithstanding they all ad alt the necessity of some Reform, may address thr King against the specific measure of his Majesty's Ministers; and in this case also they will it seems transgress " the bounds of duty," for " what right can the Upper House have to declare its opinion tomn Bill only just introduced into Parliament, and as yet before the Lower House ?" The plunge desperate but feeble, and reminds us of nothing se much as of the final floundering and dashing of the whale long after the harpoon has been driven to the quick. Why, it is notorious to all the world, that the late Parliament was dissolved, and the present called together, in order that the Reborn question might be settled. This the House of Lords knew from the highest authority—from the mouth of the King himself, even although the Ministers should practise the pitiful and cowardly evasion id abstaining from all mention of it in the Royal Speech on the opening of the approaching session. Nevertheless, say the Revolutionists, it is the duty of the House of Lords to be silent upon the subject, or at the utmost to re-echo the words of the King's Speech, until a Bill shall be presented to them by the Commons. Thus we proceed step b)' step. It will also of course be the duty of the House of Lords to rem sin silent whenever Bills shall be On progress through ten-pound householder House of Commons, to reduce the three per cent. to one and a half, to withdraw the garrisons from all our dis tant colonies and possessions, to establish a Popish hierarchy in Ireland, to repeal the Union, to rho. lish the Peerage, and to dethrone the Sovereign! The Peers will however effectually crush the Re• form Bill of his Majesty's Ministers, without taking the trouble of specifically alluding to it, if they give utterance to the least syllable of common sense on the subject of Reform in their address to the Throne. Let them but mention as a condition of their favourable reception of any measure of Reform which may be presented to them, that it shall pro• vide for the fair and equitable representation in the House of Commons of all the great classes and in terests of the empire—or that it shall not leave any of the great masses of property, which are liable to attack in the House of Commons, without adequate protection in that Assembly—or that it shall not tend to supersede the wholesome conflict of patties in the House of Commons, and introduce in its place a fierce and dangerous conflict of classes and interests—or that in the event of such a conflict the property and the rights, which have the least alliance with physical force, and are therefore most exposed to democratic assault, shall have prepared for them the largest share of Legislative protection —or that the measure shall ensure the introduction into Parliament of a due proportion of men of the first-rate talent connected with all the various inte rests of the country, landed, funded, mercantile, manufacturing, and colonial—or that it shall not prepare the way for the entrance of an ex essive proportion of men distinguished chiefly by the talent of mob-oratory,—let the House of Lords, we say, distinctly insist upon any one of these conditions as indispensable to its acceptance of any measure of Reform, and the Bill to create a 101. householder House of Commons is at once dead—dead as the Protectorship of Cromwell or the India Bill of Fox. .Morning Post. POLICE INTELLIGENCE. MANSION-HOUSE. A cad, named Death, was brought before Sir C. S. HUNTER, charged with having assaulted a police offieer., Dewh, whose robust appearance indicated that he bore no affinity to his meagre namesake, had shown a strong inclination to see a gentleman who happened to be drunk to his home. To this, however, the officer and other people objected, inasmuch as a gen tleman who had raised his elbow a little too much,‘ had been seen home by the said benevolent ctid somu nights before, and found himself minus a few sove reigns in the morning. Death did not relish the re fusal, and began to blow up; but finding that his language was not likely to be persuasive, he thought proper to apply a whip to the shoulders of the offi cer, and made him fling his limbs about as if he had been made of pasteboard and pulled by a string. Sir C. S. HUNTER—Why what an awful name you have got, defendant—why don't you change it Other people change their names for different rea sons, why don't you get rid of your's ? There are plenty of names in the world, and I am sure you'll be allowed to give uo your's, Mr. Death, without genting an Act of Parliament for it.—(Laughter.) Death—Please you, my Lord, I a'nt ashamed of my name. Your Lordship never heard of any riar of my name yet that has been hanged.—(Laughter.) Sir C. S. HUNTER—No. It is after the people are hanged they take your name, and I'm sure that's quite time enough.—(Loud laughter.) The officer said he believed the cad's name was not Death, and that there was some strong reason for changing the name in the first instance. Sir C. S. HUNTER —Aye, aye, perhaps he has taken his pre-ent name as a sort of penance to re mind him constantly of what he well deserves.— (Loud laughter.) But, upon my life, it's an ugly name ; I would get rid of it. You can easily take the name of Smith, or Jenkins, or any o th er re spectable name. Death—No, please you, my Lord, I don't choose to change it. I never had cause to be ashamed of it Sir C. S. HUNTER—Upon my word, then, I be lieve that is more than you can say of your life, Mr. Death.—(Laughter.) The officer said that the defendant was a very violent fellow. Sir C. S. HUNTER—Aye ; why then if he doesn't take very good care he'll meet with as vio lent a namesake.—(Laughter.) I say, Mr. Death, if you don't take care of your life it will be too late for you to call yourself any thing else.—(Laughter.) The defendant was then, upon his promise to reform his life, and begging t h e officers pardon, per mitted to depart on his own. recognizance. GOOD PILOTAGE.--Nothing is more amusing than the alacrity of Irishmen in getting into scrapes, and the happy naivete and blunders by means of which they endeavour to extricate themselves. A captain of a man of-war, newly appointed to a ship on the Irish station, took the precaution, in " beating out" of harbour, to ap prise the pilot that he was totally unacquainted with the coast, and therefore he must rely entirely on the pilot's local knowledge for the safety of the ship. " You are perfectly sure, pilot," said the captain, "you are well ac quainted with the coast ?" "Do I know my own name, Sir ?" " Well, mind I warn you not to approach too near to the shore." " Now make yourself as y , Sir ; in troth you may go to bed, if you plase." " Then, shall we stand on?" " Why,--what else would we do?" " Yes, but there may he hidden danger s, which you know nothing about." " Dangers like to see the dangers dar hide themselves from Mica. Sure, don't I tell you I know every rock on the coast?" (here the ship strikes) " and that's one of 'em !"—Metropolitan. There is now living in Advocates'-close, High-street, Edinburgh, a woman of the name of MACKIN TOSH, aged 95, who says she has herself used a quarter of a pound of tea every week since she was 20 years of age ; 975 so that she has consumed the enorm ous quantity of pounds weight, amounting on an average of 6s. per pound, to 292/. 10s. The duty on tea is 100 per cent. ; she has paid to Government the sum of 1461. ss. for that article.— Scotsman. A melancholy and fatal accident occurred on Friday morning, a' Gatcornbe ['Ark, Gloucestershire. As the only son of DAVID RICARDO, Esq. a youth between five and six years of age, was taking his usual exercise in the park, with a servant attending him, the pony on which he was riding suddenly turned round in the direc tion of the stable, and threw the unfortunate young gentle man with such violence on his head, as to occasion his • death in two hours afterwards.— Glouceeter Jovrnal. THE LATE MR. ABERNETHY. (From the Metropolitan Magazine.) Mr. Abernethy, although amiable and good natured, with strong feelings, possessed an irrit able temper, which made him very petulant and impatient at times with his patients and medical men who applied to him for his opinion and ad vice on cases. When one of the latter asked him once whether he did not think that some plan which he suggested would not answer, the only reply he could obtain was, " Aye, aye, put a little salt on a bird's tail and you'll be sure to catch him." When consulted on a case !)y the ordinary medical attendant he would fre quently pace the room to and fro with his hands in his breeches' pockets, and tuhistle all the lime, and not say a word, but to tell the practi tioner to go home and read his book. " Reed _ mg book," was a very frequent reply to his patients also, and he could seldom be prevailed upon to prescribe or give an opinion if the case was one which appeared to depend upon im proper dieting. A country farmer of immense weight came from a distance to consult him, and having given an account of his daily meals, which showed no small degree of addiction to animal food, Mr. Abernethy said, " Go away, Sir, I won't attempt to prescribe for such a hog.' He was particular in not being disturbed during meals ; and a gentleman having called after dinner, he went into the passage, put his hands upon the gentleman's shoulders, and turned him out of doors. He would never permit his patients to talk to him much, and often not at all ; and he desired them to hold their-tongues and listen to him, while he gave a sort of clinical lecture upon the subject of the consultation. A loquacious lady having called to consult him, he could not succeed in silencing her without re sorting to the following expedient :—" Put out `•our tongue, madam." The lady complied. " Now keep it there till I have done talking." Another lady brought her daughter to him one day, hut he refused to hear her or to prescribe, advising her to make the girl take exercise When the guinea was put into his band, he re called the mother and said, " Here, take the shilling back, and buy a skipping-rope for your daughter as you go along." He kept his pills in a bag, and used to dole them out to his patients, and on doing so to a lady who stepped out of a corouetted carriage to consult him, she declared they made her sick, and she could never take a pill. " Not take a pill ! what a fool you must be," was the courteous and conciliatory re ply to the Countess. When the late Duke of York consulted him, he stood whistling with his hands in his pockets, and the Duke said, I suppose you know who I am." The uncourtly reply was, " Suppose 1 do—what of that ? His pithy advice was, " Cut off the supplies, as the Duke of Wellington did in his campaigns, and the enemy will leave the citadel." When he was consulted for lameness following disease or accidents, he seldom either listened to the patient or made any inquiries, but would walk about the room imitating the gait peculiar to dif ferent injuries, for filo general instruction of the patient. A gentleiran consulted him for an ul cerated throat, and, on asking him to look into it, he swore at him, and demanded how he dared to suppose that he would allow him to blow his stinking foul breath in his face ? A gentleman who could not succed in making Mr. Abernethy listen to a narration of his case, and having had a violent altercation with him on the subject, called next day, and, as soon as he was ad mitted, he locked the door, and put the key . into his pocket, and took out a loaded pistol. The professor, alarmed, asked if he meant to rob or murder him. The patient, however, said he merely wished him to listen to his case, which he had better submit to, or he would keep him a prisoner till he chose to relent. The patient a nd the surgeon afterwards became most friendly towards each other, although a great many oaths passed before peace mas established between hem. THE MARKETS. COAL. MAR: Bensham Main 2.35. Od L'ontop 22 0 l'antiel 4 Cown '27 6 willington Wylain • 27 0 Bearnish South Moor 21 6 Lambton 31 0 Walls End Lambton— 33 6 Walls End Stobart's— '23 6 Walk Ftsl Stowart's 34 0 Walls End Adelaide—. 31 0 W. E. Cleveland Hetton 29 0 ,lkips at market, 34!..i—.5h :rr.—June 1. W. E. South Durham...- 2Ss. Ort• Walls End South Dur ham & New Etherley 2S 0 Norwood's Hetton 30 0 Cowpen Dysart MIe•••••W"... , • •••••••,... 19 0 Hartley 27 0 New Flockton, Milne and Co. Soughton 20 Wall's End 23 Walls End Henderson 23 0 Pontop,Trader 21 6 vs gold. 25.4-Unsold, B}(s. 6 COUNTRY CORN MARKETS DURING THE WEEK. '.'heat. Barley. Vats. Beans. Per Quarter. s. to s. s. to Ps. s. to i• e. to Abingdon—... 62 SI 31 4 3 22 30 46 Andover 73 80 37 41 20 Birmingham--. 79 82 4 0 48 26 32 5_7 itridport ---....... 56 74 28 39 26 30 rr, Cirencester --- 60 72 38 46 32 34 54 86 36 40 26 3 8 -4 " Guildford 48 74 23 32 26 35 43 qenley-----. 54 83 30 35 20 30 -- 40 Hereford ------ 84 92 44 48 36 40 -- 11 2 Efighworth 62 SO 32 42 28 34 -a; Maidenhead --... 73 84 28 38 22 30 51 5 . Monmouth.---. 72 77 38 46 23 29 leading .------ 65 90 31 47 21 32 42 45 Salisbury----- 54 68 34 42 27 32 54 Southampton —.... 54 58 37 40 28 32 46 Stroud ----- 64 78 34 38 22 45 Tewkesbury 65 74 40 42 30 38 44 Uxbridge ----- 48 78 32 ns 9.4 34 Vantage....,,....,.-.. 58 80 3 0 43 21 3 0 38 41 Warminster ........ 44 70 28 45 24 35 42 Windsor 39 72 26 34 21 22 -4 " Worcester-----. 64 68 24 36 27 32 -- 44, Wheat, Old -- Foreign Oats, Poland - Small or Feed - Foreign Barley, Norf. & Suf -- Foreign ;ULT. MARKET.—May 31. ~... —s. 635. 65 New —.9. 6C5 Os. —s. 655. 63;. ln bond... —s. —3. - -If " —s. 245. 28s. —.Old —s. —s. 30s. L... —s. 245. 2 6 s —s. —s. —s. 225. 9.1 q —S. —3. ---,. —s. 40s. 425. Line. & Wold —s. 36s 38 6 . ...... —s. 365. 38g 6 16:: 3. 46s k. 4 48 n5 , .. 1 1 , (; o rre r e e ey ig , p n e . , 1a ..... 5 . t . . ....—5............ :: 40c._ .. I :tu tls: —s 50s. 708. Foreign ...... ... — s. 30s. 063. none. Beans Pease, White Tares Rapeseed. in hind IA ItIkET.-31ay 31. d r: to Pei lb. Beef 6 Mutton r. .! 6 Veal Pork ............. b 0 Lanb to 31. l3s. Fd. per CHELTENHAM Per Busher s. d. to s. .' Wheat Barley 4 0 5 6 Oats 4 0 4 3 Beans Pease 5 0 8 0 Hay `31.35. DUMFRIES MA. B.d. 0 o , d• s. Wheat, Imp. Bush... B d.o 0 to oto 8 8 Butter, 1 602 0 0 ° " Barley 4 6 5 0 Eggs, .Ic7.3in Oats 1 6 4 0 Beef, per lb. Flour, 1116. 0 7 ° ' Potatoes, cwt. ____........n•r: It K El S.—May t! BIRTHS. of On the Ist inst. in Meleombe.place, Dorset-place, the lady R . E. Broughton, Esq., of a daughter. Ch an t- On the 31st ult. in the Regent's Park, the lady of T. berlayne, Esq., of Cranbury Park and Weston Grove, Hants, - a daughter. hre . At Ardglass, the lady of Captain Henry Kean, of a daug,..-r MARRIED. On the Ist inst. at Birmingham, Mr. T. T. Dobson, of c, ka a ' derminster, to Miss Mary Jooes, youngest daughter of Joo, Esq., of that town. At the Ambassador's Chapel, Paris, the Count G. M . Posse of of Rome, to Mary, daughter of the late Colonel Roberts, Weston-super-Mare, Somersetshire. On the 31st ult. at Cheltenham, W. Harrison, Esq., to Char lotte, second daughter of the late W. Whitmore, Esq. DIED. voQ.U, On the Ist inst. Robert Andrew, Esq. of Harlestone .- On the 39th ult. at the Rectory, Hamb'eden, aged 17, Northamptonshire, aged 60. R • A' , On the Ist inst. at St. John's Wood, John Jackson, E 6.3., - - ' of N ewman-strcet. titiJ IA ' Matilda, youngest daughter of the Rev. 11. C. Ridley. the Hon Erni ' W- Park , a" On the :30th ult. at Brighton, Granville, son of Nicholas 3511 • '1" estbv, of York-gate, Regent's ...it, grandson of W. Westby, Esq., of Merrion.square , and Thorr-n. At 'Upper North_pl ace , Gray's-inn.road, G. county of Wicklow. if his 71st year, --..—..... Ilornby, Ft* . AND PUBLISIIED BY MURDO .YOUNG, AT Sirq Okelcei 112; STRAND. I.ON liON• . i ROYA THE Admission ( PART wei Part 108 Arabia ; 2. 1 • Birth-0 6• St. Gem Part 109 ; Old House orougha al VOL. X VOLS. 1 Jot Just publid A" PR ing a descri of the Anci tient Temp different St Decripti Cathedrals t , n., intend Illation oft: This ( ASE each Part . 4 * p f , Ind Anus chasers of Tweed t( bold separa VIOV 4 -1. 52, and DEC, Without tt arrests the and noun( invited to Artifiei il $2, Fie PASTEN TEE] Art T ] a-TX DILLY, TRONAI Profession tropolis, 1 Public it S PORE MINER) mended ration is out the allay s the for man! WRETI bISEAE NERAL PLETE LOURA incumbri lower MASTII W 1 brat sele GOOD'. the Soci the cott: Parham, Meehan' articles 71 Lea ..—_.— C " C Solc totter don, whom MA Cerate ulcers, le. I N , en evi vortex the Is' midi as wel as to 1 whose cessfu debilii eve r) parts vice tin e oblei