The Express.
London, England, 1847-10-05 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, TUESDAY EVENING, OCTOBER 5, 1847.

entirely clear of the duke's pleasure•grounds oa the south
side of the river ; the private grounds of Blair being entirely
to the north of the river. All the elder persons of Blair
Athol—if they dare speak—will testify that up Glen Tilt was
the common passage to and from Braemar; and all the guide
books of twenty years' standing and more—Anderson, Itlac-
eulloch, and, to go further back, if my memory does not
deceive me, Pennant—mention this as one of the known
bridle roads of the country ; and there is no other
means of communication, except by an enormous cir-
cuit, between the adjoining perished of Braemar and
Blair Athol, Two other roads of similar character
lead from Blair through the ducal estate—one by Glen
Bruer and Glen FaLie to Kingusaie ; the other by
the Forest of Gawick to a higher point in Badenock. I have
not yet heard that these roads have come under the ducal
ban ; but if he can shut up one, I presume he can shut up
the others, and the consequence would be, that near thirty
miles of country would be rendered impervious, not only to
the curiosity of tourists, but to the intercourse of the coun-
try. And other people besides the Duke of Atholl have deer
forests. Next to, and adjoining him, is another gentleman
of the same character, the Duke of Leeds, who has already
commenced a crusade against tourists. Adjoining him is
Mr. Farquhanon, of Invercauld, and still adjoining is the
Duke of Richmond's extensive forest of Glen Avon, held by
one of the Lords Bentinek. lam not aware that these two
gentlemen have engaged in the highway crusade; but bad
example is catching, and if they follow the duke's example,
not a passage across the Grampian, would be left, from the
highland road at Dalwhinnie to the old military road from
Mar to Strathspey, by Tomantoul, a distance of at least
60 miles.

TifsiS no light matter in a public point of view, and may
justify journalists in bringing the matter continually before
the public until it is settled, if need be, by a law-suit. For
my own part, if I had occasion to go up Glen Tilt, I should
care little for warning, unbacked by the via major;
and I do not believe either the duke or his keepers
dare lay hand on a quiet passenger. I know well
that if Charlie Crerar be still the duke's keeper, he dare not
deny that during his own time and his lather's, ever since!
John Crerar came to be the old duke's keeper, now sixty
years back and more, he never heard of than being stopped
travelling through Glen Tilt until the present peer came into
psasession ; and if that does not establish a prescriptive right,
the Scotch law must be very different to the English.
I learn, from the duke's polite interview with the profes-
sors, that there is a society for preserving the glens, and am
delighted to hear it. If you would publish some account of
it, fresh names would_probably be added, and among them
that of As ENGLISH HIORLAND PROPRIETOR. OCT 2,1847.

THE ADULTIVATION OF MEAL CASI.--SENTENCE.-00
Friday Alexander Bannatyne, grain-merchant, was placed at
the bar of the Glasgow Circuit Court, to receive sentence for
fraud and wilful imposition, in mixing oatmeal. The Lord
Justice Clerk, in addressing the prisoner, said : You have
been convicted of falsehood, fraud, and wilful imposition ;
with the exception of that part of the charge which re-
lated to the allegation as to your having mixed bran with
the oatmeal; and the charge with which you have been con-
victed does not consist in any constructive form. It is a
charge of direct, manifest fraud—fraud committed in plain
matter of fact; and it consisted in this, that having under-
taken to furnish the article of oatmeal, you did wickedly and
fraudulently mix and adulterate it with other articles and
substances—barleymeal and third flour—intending thereby
to deceive the committee to whom that article was sent. And
you did deceive the committee, in consequence of your mix-
ture being, inch that those who undertook to examine it
passed the sample, understanding that they were receiving
pure oatmeal. Therefore the fraud of which you have been
convicted is, unhappily for you, of plain direct dishonesty.
The jury, in returning their verdict, telt, and felt most
justly, that in the condemnation pronounced by such
a body lies the real weight and severity of the
punishment which has followed; an/ that the effects of
that condemnation are, in truth, not to be measured merely
by the nature and extent of the sentence of the court
which follows. In respect of that punishment, they have
recommended you to the utmost lenity of the court, and no
consideration can weigh with the court more powerfully, in
regard to the nature of the sentence, as that recommenda-
tion came from a most intelligent jury, concurring unani-
mously in the verdict of guilty. But they felt, acting on
the just authority which belongs to them as jurymen, that
their verdict of guilty was indeed • very severe and over-
whelming punishment of your offence. We, therefore, feel
that we may give in to that recommendation. From the
very character of the case, and from the condemnation of the
offence which the verdict implies—guilty of falsehood, fraud,
and wilful imposition—there is greater weight and greater
effect than in many ways we should allow ourselves. But
still, we cannot change the character of the punishment
which ought to belong to this case. It may be short in its
duration, but we ought not to alter its character. We may
shorten its duration, by adding to one part of the sentence
another which may tend to mark how grave is the nature
of this offence, and how severely, if repeated by others, it
most be punished, and we hope it may have the effect of
deterring others, and, at the same time, be adequate punish-
ment on you, the offending party of this day. The sentence
of this court is, that you are to be imprisoned four months
from this date, and pay to her Majesty • fine of 3001. ; failing
to pay which, at the expiry of that term, you must suffer the
punishment of other four months' imprisonment. The pri-
soner was then removed from the bar.

Flan tx GLasoow.—On Saturday morning, a fire broke
out in a wood-yard, in Holme-street. The work-shops and
tools of two joiner firms were destroyed, as well al a quantity
of wood, the whole loss being estimated at 1,0001. At a
later hour in the morning, a hay-stack, in Crescent-road,
was on fire ; but particulars of this second conflagration have
not been ascertained.

0111LNEI Matta.—The recent gales have made the arrivals
of the Orkney mails both few and far between. Were it not
that the steamer takes the bags once a week, our Orkney
neighbours (says the John o' Groai Jaffna!), even at this
early period of the stormy season, would be as hard up for
news es they generally are in the dead of winter. As many
as from six to twelve bags are sometimes received at the
post-office here at one time, the aggregate of several days'