The Express.
London, England, 1853-03-02 00:00:00

LATEST FOREIGN EXCHANGES.

PARIS, Musa 1. 70.
Mew.

°poste, Memo. Lairwiti Oki&
w 75 0000 MM, 00 CO
101.30 101.30 10300 f 108.13

per Cents. I so a
44 per 03 iga . , 1123 i ...
Ila per Cents., 1852 Ine 15 i
41 er Cents., is Is I ... ,
3 1.61 Centa.New Loan) i ...
inebszige on Lesibn:.atniiitt. 23 II: 00'&41.1; 24' 20:-
Bedidsnrt.lB.o Mossy ' Naples Rents — dewy.
ow - 4
Do. 1930 «....... ...
I 5 p.Ct 97 • Maeda ... «.
LIII.r. 1552 — Treasury
Bank Shun MO ..
Pawns, Maacn 1.-Bt. Germain, 1,626 ; Versailles (right
Inea), • ditto tlett bank), 310; Perim and Ork ans, 1,045;
Paris and. Ronan. 1,050 ; Rosen and Were, 497 50 ; Marsed.se
end Ananon (Coovortedl, • Strasbourg and Bale, SO;
Northam. $9O; Pads and 9474.b0u5g. 1115; Pori, and Lyons.
911 73; Lyon. and Mediterranean. ; Montanan and Trans.
375 ; Ones; 750; Bleent• and Bt. Meier to Gray, 635: rants and
Cherbourg, 119 13; ; Dijon and Beranam, 550; KIM, 591 75; Dieppe
and Peenen. 317 30 ; Andreeinn and Bowline, —; Centre of Italy,
• Part. and Bonus, 130 ; Bordeaux and Tone, 215 ; Cansal
homy 49e.
VIENNA, FEB. 26.—Fire per Cent. Metalliques,
901. New Loan (Series A),—; (Series B), 1061;
Four-and-a-Half per Cents., 82. Bank Shares, 1340.
exchange on London, 11.4.
BERLIN, FEB. 26.—Voluntary Loan, 1011; New
Loan, Four-and-a-Half per Cent. (1850), 102! ;
ditto (1852), 1021 • National Debt, 921; Com-
mercial Marine Society's: Premium, 148 j; Bank
Shares, 1091.

CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT.

THIS DAY.

OLD COVIIT.—Baron Lou. Om., loam CAMPDZIL AND Mu.
Juirrics limas.

Tim MORRIS at DROWNING IN TEN RIG/INT'll CANAL.
Upon the application of Mr. Parry, who was counsel for
I die prisoner, the trial of Thomas Mackin for murder was
postponed to the next session.
William Henry Hoag, 65, clerk, Thomas Wyatt, 35,
clerk, and Charles Hildebrent, 69, carver, were indicted for
feloniously forging and uttering a deed, purporting to be
an assignment of a judgment debt, with intent to defraud.
Mr. Ballantine and Mr. Metcalfe prosecuted; Mr. Parry
and Mr. Ribton defended the prisoners.
At the commencement of the case Mr. Ballantine con-
meted to a verdict of not guilty being taken for Hildebrent,
and that prisoner was called, in the course of the case,
as a witness for the prosecution. The circumstances of the
case were somewhat remarkable. It appeared that in
1846 the prisoner King managed the business of a Mr.
Lewis, an attorney, in Barnard's-inn, Holborn, and Wyatt
was also engaged as a clerk in the same office, and an
July, 1846, the prosecutor of the indictment, who is an at-
torney named Lee, being at the office had some conversa-
tion withLio‘upon the subject of the sale of the assignment
of ajudgeont that had been obtained against Lord George
Letts* ne= to over 6001. It appeared that tee
obtained in 1842, and that shortly after-
-7=11.111 Owns took the benefit of the Insolvent Act,
INS Ike wham/ King represented that from settlements and
dub ha had asaa, he had reason to believe that a sum of
10,00 W. would be obtained, which would go to the benefit
of Lord George's estate, and that there was every proba-
bility of a very handsome dividend being obtained. Upon
these representations, Mr. Lee consented to become the

graidsweVef the jndgen. oral, and agreed to pay 701. when
the interest on the judgment should be assigned to him,
and after some little delay a formal deed was drawn up,
which a person named Francis Gibbons, who was repre-
sented as having the interest in the debt, and who was
stated to be a carver and gilder, assigned all his interest
to the prosecutor in consideration of his paying him the stun
of 701., and the deed was delivered to the prosecutor by the
prisoner King, apparently duly executed by Francis Gib-
bons. It appeared that nothing occurred until the latter
end of last year, when, in consequence of some information
received by the prosecutor, he made inquiries which had
led to the discovery that there was no such person II
Francis Gibbons to be found, and that consequently the
signature to the deed was a forgery. llildebrent was
called as a witness, and he said that happening accidentally
to be at King's office in August, 1846, the prisoner asked
him to sign the deed in question in the name of Francis
Gibbons, and when he objected to do so he told him that it
was only a matter of form, and that he need not be afraid
that he would get him into trouble ; and upon this repre-
sentation he put his name to the deed in two plates, one
for the execution of it, and the other acknowledging the
receipt of the 701. The evidence against the prisoner
Wyatt was that ho had engrossed the deed refereed to, and
that he signed it as the attesting witness, and it also ap-
peared that, upon his being asked some question with regard
to the assignment deed, his reply was " Oh, it's all bosh !"
The counsel fur the prisoners contended that the evident,
was not sufficient to justify a conviction, and that with re-
gard to Wyatt there was nothing to show that he had done
anything more than appertained to his position:as a clerk in
the office.

lite jury returned a verdict of Not Guilty for both pri-
soners.

REPRESENTATION OF CLITHEROE.—Riehard Fort,
Esq., of Read Hall, Lancashire, late a director of the East
Lancashire Railway, is spoken of as the new candidate in
the liberal interest for the vacant seat for this borough.
Mr. Fort was a candidate for North Lancashire at the late
general election, against Mr. Wilson Patten, but withdrew
at the last moment, on condition that the tory opponeLt of
Mr. James Heywood was also withdrawn. Mr. Fort's tither
(Mr. John Fort) was the representative of Clitheroe in the
first reformed parliament.
TUE SAILORS' STRIKE AT SOUTITAMPTON.—Seee-
rid of the seamen on strike at Southampton have givi n ia.
They have applied to the Peninsular and Oriental Company
for employment at their former wages, and have ob-
tained it.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT
HOUSE OF LORDS.—TvMDAT, MARCH 1.
The Loan CIIANCRI.LoII took his sestet 6 o'clock.
PETITIONS PRESENTED.
P•I.I.IAMiNTAIIT P .—By Lard BROUGHAM,
from the Porten Athenaeum and another institn:i4n in the
Mate district ; sad the Dole of ARGYLL. from several
Caen, praying fur a free distribution of Parliamentary
Papers.
- CANADA CLiaDY Resattere.—By the Doke of NEW-
CASTLE, from a place sot beard, in favour of the govern-
ment measure.
J twin lnsa al trriti. —By the Earl of HARItOWDY,
fram Southampton, against the removal of.
Bet astrues.—By the Earl of RARROWBY, from
Southampton, praying for a consideration of the law on the
subject of.
THE CONVICT ESTABLISHMENT AT BERMUDA.
TRANSPORTATION.
The Bishop of MANCHESTER wished to ask the noble
duke the Colonial Secretary, whether any steps had been '
taken for assimilating the treatment of conricts .n Ber-
muda to those in Portland. An imp. ninon of a most sari-
our kind ha I gone forth MS to the system which had been
practised heretofore in the hulks at Bermuda, and persons
who were iaterested in the wellbeing of the convicts, were
anzious to learn whether there was any foundation for the
reports which had gone abroad. He begged, therefore, to in-
quire what arrangements were going en with reference to
the new buildings said to be erecting for the reception of
convict prisoners ?
*The Duke of NEWCASTLE said, that when this sub-
ject was More the house a few days ago, he had stated
with referer.ce to transportation to Bermuda, that there was
no intention on the part of the government to make any
alteration in the system whereby convicts would ecom to be
scut to the public works at Bermuda and Gibraltar. With
reference to the question of the right rev. prelate, he had
the satisfaction of informing him that all the convicts at
Bernuda would rapidly be placed on the tame footing as
those in tho new prison on the improved system. There who
had paid any attention to this subject would find that it
was impossible to maintain any proper system of discipline
or to ensure morality and health on board the hulks. The
present governor of Bermuda Capt. Elliot, drew the atten-
tion of the government to this subject some time ago • and,
with the permission of the government, he purelaissi a
small island at Bermuda for the purpose of erectieg a prison
upon it for cons icts. That prison had now been erected,
on the meet improved plan, and it had promised so far to-
wards completion that 30J convicts had been removed there
from the bulks; and he hoped that in the course of the
present year the whole of the convicts now employed in
Bermuda could be taken there. The right. rev. prelate
had not asked him any question with reference to any other
convict establishment ; but he thought it right to add, that
so impressed was the government with the conviction that
it would be desirable to remove, as far as possible, convicts
from the balks, that at Gibraltar every attention would he
paid to that subject without delay ; but the spate for the
erection of prisons there was very limited. About onc-
e ird of the convicts at that place were now on board the
froths.
Lard CAMPBELL knew he should be 'eked by the
grand juries on the circuit whether it was the intention of
the government to put an cad to transportation as a second-
ary punishment • and he hoped the noble duke would be
able to inform him that it was not, as he believed that no
other mode of punishment could be substituted for it
which WOll4 have as salutary an effect.
The Duke of NEWCASTLE said there was some little
intone( nience iu giving an answer at present, to such a
qatstion, because, as he had stated on a former occasion, a
great alteration of the law of secondary punishment and
prison accommodation must be decided upon before any
boat arrangements on this difficult question could be
arrived at by the government. As at present advised, he
could not but believe that it would be necessary before any
long period had elapsed, to bring the punishment of trans-
portation to a close. When the noble and learned lord
spoke of transportation, and said that, although it might
Le requisite to abandon it as regarded those colonies who
were unwilling to receive convicts. they might
be sent to other places, and that it might be easy
to find such spot., he (the Duke of Newcastle)
did not know whether the suggestion as to an
island on the north coast could be entertained ; but, as at
present carried on, the system of transportation was very
different from that. After n certain period of punishment
convicts received tickets of leave, sad became incorporated
wits the free and pure part of the population. All the
colonies of Australia, eaceptiog Western Australia, had
protested against the continuance of this system; and
there were none of our more ancient colonies who would
not solemnly and strongly protest against receiving convicts.
Where, then, were we to look for any society in which
convicts c said be introduced on the system that had here-
tofore been pursued in Van Diemen's Land, New South
Wales, and Western Australia? There were many ques-
!AUT./ to be considered before they could arrive at a final
determination on this subject, and that proved the incon-
venienee of the question which bail been reiterated by the
noble lord ; and looking at th• duty we owed to our colo-
nos he could hardly anticipate that we could continue the
system of transportation in the form in which it had been
hitherto carried on.

Lord CAMPBELL repeated his former statements that
no other sentence, even imprisonment for life in this coun-
try. would, he believed, have the *llea which transports-
ti,n beyond the seas would have; and he should like, if
possible, to have known whether, when pawing the sea-
teen of transportation, it would be a mockery or a reality.
lie admitted that respectable colonists ought not to have
convicts forced upon them; but still there were some ad-
/outages in the prestnt system of transportation to role-
nine, fur the object was not only to punish but reform the
criminal, and, in many instances, convicts had become re-
spectable members of society, and earned their living ho-
nestly, whilst their fami:ies were often well educated and
ma.lc usetul members of the community. (Hear.)
The Earl of HARROWBY said the subject must be con-
sidered in various relations. What was to become of the
convicts after their sentence had expired in this country ?
Wvre they to be turned loose on our thickly-peopled coun-
try, amid their old haunts of vice, and surrounded by their
former temptations? Would they not have a greater
chance of employeneat and reformation in a thinly-populated
country, away from their old anociations ? Lundy Island
and the Fol.-land Islands had been sir-tested, but some
place no doubt might be found to which they maid be
sent.
Lord MONTEAGLE said that colonies which had
reached a given stage of civilisation, and were almost enti-
tled to take rank eassnist the nations of the world, had •
rutht to oblieet to Pads convict settlements. if the
Falkland elands be toned into a convict prima, sad
be made use of he the parse of reformation m well as I
discipline, it night be desirable to send convicts there.
The convict system hod been administered in a way to nuke
it hateful to the selesists, as would appear from the cone-
aponloass on rear lordship' table. Convicts might sin-
fully be employed as the pismore of shilintion, and whore
they amid Aldo empboymont they might afterwards be-
come festal members elletwiety ; but to pour the whole
mum of eat Navies predation into one colony--as in
Via Diumee lased—orinst the will and eatreaty of the
ishobinsese eata the very went policy that could have been
punesed, and enough to maks the convict system detestable
all Poe the world.
Lied BROUGHAM referred to the committee which eat
slime pan goon the subject of secondary punishment,
sad stir divides of opinion on the subject. It was • sub-
jut *at must be well considered, the difficulties which It
prnseitsd being eumwsous„ both as to the nuation of trans-
pereadea sad giving it up. He considered the difficulties
on meedie as pretty nearly balanced by those on the other ;
but, vffiriaiseer system war adopted sea substitute for tram-
ported's, be biped that nothing similar to that which was
celled es the eladnent trawls: forces—falsely termed tke
penitential enteni—would ever be ianoditeed into this
country. (Hear, hear.)
Lord WHARNCLIFFE said it appeared to kin to be a
very great defect in our present system that the country to
which our convicts were lent should be • plate of attraction.
Transportation lost many of its terrors from that cause—a
free pongee to the district of the gold fields was rather a
source of attraction than otherwise.
PRIVATE BILLS.
Lord REDESDALE moved the following resolutions,
which were agreed to :—That no private bill be read a
second time after Tuesday, 12th of July, unless the chair-
man of committees shall report to the house special names
for extending the time of any such bill; That no bill, con-
firming any previsional order of the Board of Health, shall
be read a second time after Tuesday, the 19th of July.
LAW OF EVIDENCE (SCOTLAND) BILL.
This bill was read • third time and passed.
Lord BROUGHAM said that it gave him great soden-
tion that this bill had passed their lordships' house, and he
hoped that it would soon become law. It made the Scotch
law of evidence identical with the English law, except in
one particular, wherein it was en improvement upon the
law of England.
BAIL IN ERROR BILL.
On the motion for going iota committee on this bill,
Lord CAMPBELL explained the object of it. It
was formerly the law that a defendant remained in prison
pending • writ of error, and it happened that a defendant
was discharged before the writ of error was
determined, the period of his sentence having ex-
pired. This grievance remained unnoticed till the year
1145, when the celebrated case of the late Mr. D. O'Connell
occurred. Pending the writ of error in that case, it was
proposed that the law should be altered, but Lord Lynd-
hurst, though favourable to the alteration, war of opinion
that no change should be made till that case was decided.
After judgmect was promiunced in that case, Lord Lynd-
hurst brought in • bill, which enacted that where a west of
error was brought, the defendant might be discharged from
custody on giving bail that he would surrender himself in
nee the decision on the writ of error was averse to him.
This bill, though it proceeded on an excellent principle,wu
detective, inasmuch as no provision wee made for recap-
turing the prisoner if the judgment was adverse. The ob-
ject of the present bill, therefore, was to take care that the
defendant should be always forthcoming on the different
stave of the cases, and that, if the judgment was affirmed,
e should be sent back to underro the residue of hie
gamine,. Another evil of the bill of Lord Lynd-
hurst war that it enabled the defendant to tamper
with the prosectror, and there were many cases in
which the prosecutor received • rum of money from the
defendant on thi- understanding that thy former was not
to take the step. which were necessary, tor having the
Writ of Error decided, and the defendant, in consequence
of this scandalous bargain, was discharged out of custody.
In order to guard against this it was provided in the till
that no reversal of a judgment could take place till notice
was given to the Attorney-General, and if be certified to

the Court of Errol that he had received intim and that be
ecneurred in the abandonment of the prosecution of the
writ, thee, and tl en ocly, the defendant was to be die-
charged. Thus these shameful and corrupt bergaisa which
now occurred would be put an end to.
The bill then posed through committee, and was ordered
to be re-printed.
RAILWAY ACCIDENTS.
•

: ---- . -- -
The tart of MALSIESBURY in moving for certain re-
turas relating to the accidents on railways which took
place in 1652, said that he did not think he was
going beyond public opinion in calling the attention
of the government to this subject which excited
considerable attention at the present moment. There was
a strong feeling is which he participated—that those rail-
way accidents had lately increased, and were still increas-
ing, and greater sacrifice of life and limb had taken plasm
than ever occurred before. Scantly a week passed by in
w►ich the papers did not record some lamentable accident,
attended by mutilation sod loss of life in many cases. The
public naturally felt alarmed at this, and there was a strong
feeling abroad that the government should step in between
the railway managers on the one hand, and the travelling
public on the other. In this great commercial country he
knew that it was necessary to protect industry and capital,
I but it was the duty of the government to see that the
lives of the Queen's subjects were protected also. Although
the system of locomotion had entirely changed during the
last 60 yeses, yet they seemed to be returning in one respect
to the state of t►ings that then existed. Sixty years
ego, when it was a week's journey from Edinburgh
to London, persons used to insure their lives, and now,
although the journey was performed in one day, the travel-
lers were invited, by bills in the different railway stations,
to insure their lives and to make provision for their families,
as, before t►e journey was over, they might became shape-
less corpses. He understood, on good authority, that the
proprietors of the railway accident companies divided 7 per
cent. of the profits they made in this way. Formerly,
when the innkeeper provided the means of travelling, he
stood with his hat off to the public: but now it was the
public that stood with their hats off before the railway
directors. The locomotive details were then in the hands
of men of the most inferior and ignorant class—the ostlers.
(Laughter.) Whereas now men of station, wealth, and
education presided over the details of railway management.
The time was, be thought, arrived when they should endea-
your to tranquillise the public mind, by ascertaining whe-
ther, without usurping the rights or interfering with the
railway companies, it would not be possible to draw
up and enforce certain regulations and improvements
which would be calculated to give greater security to !
1
her Majesty's subjects.
Lord VIVIAN wild that he wished to know whether the
government had the power of stopping a line in the event
of its becoming dangerous?

Lord STANLEY of ALDERLEY said that after a rail-
way was once opened for traffic he believed the government
had no power of stopping it. No railway could be opened
till the government inspector certified the line, but when it
was once opened the government had, he believed, no power
to interfere. There was no subject more deserving of at-
tention than the one introduced by the noble earl; and
although he was of opin:on that in ordinary cases it would
be unwise to interfere with the natural course of com•
mercial transactions, and that it would be no slight matter
to interfere with railway concerns, in which 250,000,0001.,
or more than a quarter of the national debt, was invested ;
yet in this, as in other cases, be was of opinion that the
solos POpai was the supresna les. The noble earl was of
opinion that the government should have additional powers
of interference in railways. But be cautioned the noble earl
and parliament to hesitate before they relieved the railway
companies from the responsibility which now attached to
them. (Hear, hear.) It' they relieved the railway com-
panies from the responsibility which attached to them, by
giving a department of the government the power of pre
scribing to them certain rules and regulations, those com-
panies would perhaps consider themselves relieved of all
further liability and responsibility by a mere literal observ-
ance of those regulations. He thought that the present
system, especially when combined with the act of the late
Chief Justice, threw an amount of responsibility upon rail-
way directors which they found no trifle. He did not know
that it would afford QOM safety to the public if they were
shut up in boxes such as horses travelled in, however soft
they were made. As to the power of inspection, the govern-
ment at present possessed the power of sending en inspector
to investigate the cause of accidents; and, upon his report,
the Board of Trade made such suggestions to the railway
directors as they deemed fit. At present there was
no power of compelling the directors to carry these
suggestions into effect ; and it might be worthy
of consideration whether the government ought not to
possess such a power. Ile did not think it would be desir-
able at the present moment,when a committee of the House
of Commons was investigating the subject, to enter into
greater detail. (Hear, hear.) With regard to the returns
moved for by the ankle earl, there would be no objection
to give those which related to accidents which happened
last year. Those of a later date could not be given, as the
returns were not usually prepared till after Easter.
THE EAST INDIA CIIARTER...

Lord Moslfitallgii;nnetieetinihewOnid, en Fri-
day, present a petition from residents in Bombay, on the
subject of the renewal of the East India charter.
the house adjourned at half-past 6.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.-TUESDAT, MARCH 1.

The BrsAiza took the chair at the 'natal hoar.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.

SECOND READING/I.—The following balls were reed a
second time :—Bscup Waterworks ; Galway Harbour ;
Galway Improvement; HAM' Waterworks and Improve-
ment; Norwich Waterworks; Salisbury Waterworks, Bills.