The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-07-29 00:00:00

OAS LAMPS.

MARY-t.a-BoXlvt-Orvtc2, JULY 28.—Thomat Porter, a
groom, was brought from Mary-la-bonne watchhouse, in the cos.
Indy of James Ford, a watchman, charged under the statute of tte
4th of George 11, sec. 28, with having extinguished one of ilia gas
lights belonging to the Imperial Gas leght Company, on Wednes-
day night last.
The prisoner was convicted in the mitigated penalty of 40s. which
he paid and was discharged.

LIABILITY OF CONSTABLES TO PAY TAXES.
MARLBOROUGH-STREET, JULY 28.—The time of Sir George
Parrant the sitting Magistrate at this office, was occupied in de-
ciding the cases of a number of the parishioners of St. James's pa-1
rich, who appeared upon summonses, at the instance of the collec-
tor of the rates of that parish, to account for their refusal to pay
certain arrears due by them. The only defence that possessed any
interest was that of Mr. Bernard, a grocer, in Little Pulteney.l
street, Golden-square, who contended that he was not liable to be
called on for the payment or any parish rates, inasmuch as he
had for two years served in his own right, as a constable for the
parish.
The Magistrate explesseo, his surprise at this alleged cause of
exemption, and said, that although he had never heard it stated be-
fore, he was quite sure there was co law to entitle parish constables
to such exemption.
Mr. Bernard persisted that it was both the law and the usage in
some parishes ; for instance, in the parish of St. Giles's, a con-
stable serving in his own right was never called upon to pay pa-
rish rates.

The Magistrate said, that it might be a courtesy allowed to con-
stables in St. Giles's parish, but he did not believe it was law in
that parish; and although St. Giles's parish thought lit to afford
that indulgence, that was no reason why St. James's should.
Mr. Bernard said, that it most undoubtedly was the law ; for it
was laid down in " lmpey's Bung's Bench Practice."
Mr. WTNGFIELD. the Solicitor, who attended on the yart of the
parish of St. James's, assured Mr. Bernard that there was no
such doctrine laid down In " bopey ;" nor was such a subject at
all treated of in that wcrk.

Sir O. FA BRANT was decideely of opinion that Mr. Bernard was
wrong in his law on this subj.-et. but if he still thought himself
right, he should have a fortnight to produce his authority, or any
cases in point to bear out his objection.
Mr. Bernard said, he would avail himself of this time, and he
had no doubt of discovering the law, and the cases too, in the Mee.
rim ; at all events, he could produce St. Giles's law.
Mr. WiNor It t.n again suggested that that was not law ; it was
merely a usage, if it even existed.
Ilere the knotty poin•resta for the present.
The Magistrate had scarcely disengaged himself from the above
intricacy, when he became involved in another, to which the last
was but a trifle. It was no less a problem than to divide three don.
kiss amongst four ladies, so as to satisfy each lady that she had got
her right.
The thing was this:—lt appeared, by the statement of one el
the Inspectors of St. Giles's parish, that about twelve o'clock the
night Wort, ho met, in going his rounds, throkdookios (by some

vulgarly called asses) walking in company along the street, and I
they being out at that unseasonable hour, and apparently without
any owner, or " local habitation," he thought tt his duty to take
them to the watch•house—he begged pardon, he meant the Green.
yard, where he lodged them for the night. That morning a man,
who appeared himself as if he had been out at unseasonable hours,
came to the Green-yard and laid claim to the three prisoners (the
three donkics he meant) ; but en unsatisfactory was his description
of them and of himself, that it was clear they did not belong to
him, and that he only heard by some chance they were in custody.
and thought to make a property of them.
It was not long after his departure until the four ladies new
present came in succession to the Green-yard, each claiming a
donkey, end each ready to swear that some one of the ihr.c tn.
longed to her. He (the Inspector) having a very strong suspicion
that these claimants, or a part of them, were in league with, and
sent by, the man who called in the morning, he refused to let
them have the donkies until the Magistrate decided their :riper:ire
claims, if they had any.
The four ladies here **pried forward, two of them appeared :0
be of that Egyptian tribe at present sojourning in the neighbour-
hood of Norwood, andmho are well known to be of that accommo-
dating sort of disposition as to be always ready to take under their
protection any description of etc? property that may be want os
an owner. The other two were rish ladies, part occupiers for the
season of that well-known mansion, in the county of Middlesex,
called Mat's Castle. in the parish of St. Giles. Each curtsied a
turn as she approached the Bench, but not so in turn did they speak,
for the Magistrate no sooner gave the word, by inquiring of tbe
first what her claim was, than the Whole set off together; so that,
with the unintelligible corruption of the Eastern language of for.
mer times from the two first, and the no less unintelligible jargon
of _half Iriah and half English sentences from the two latter ladies,
the Babel confusion was a trifle to the chaos into which t'e.,
threw the whole subject for about half an hour, until at length the
Magistrate dismissed the affair altogether for the present, iirife,s.
ing himself totally unable either to comprehend the claims of the
ladies. or to divide the three donies amongst them with any degree
of satisfaction either to them or to himself.

As well as we could at all guess at the matter, three of the ladies
made a direct claim, in their own right, to a donkey each, and the
fourth lady claimed some one of the donkies, she did not ctre a
inn which, in right of a brother-in-law of bet's, who lent her a
donkey, which she had lost. The donkies siill remain in the
Green-yard, until some better understanding can be come to with
the claimants.