The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-06-22 00:00:00

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gtEPORT OP-.THE SEL.ECT COMMITTEE ON
POOR RATE RETURNS FOR 1825.
The Select Committee appointed to coneider`of the several Returns
noade tt the Order of the House in 1094, relative to the sums
.Aseeseed, Levied, and Expended, an ;lucent pf the. Poor in
• England and Wale's; and to report an Abstract of the shine, to.
gather withttbeir Observations thereon, to the Houre, have, put-
erten, to the Order of-the House. coroidered the Matters to them
referred, and have agreed to the following Report :
Theamount of the Poor Rates levied in the year ended on the
• 43th of 31arch 1824, was 0,833,6i01. This charge is less than that
▪ of the preceding year. but the diminution is very iccurosidersble.
I • la comparison with the year 11117-18, which has been noticed in
. teenier Reports at the year ot highest ltmount. there loan been a de.
t raise of 2.486.8101. but compared with 1821.3. the returns of the
"wog levied in 18Z-4 ezhibit a declension of no more than
5002-1.
The'n'e comparisons refer to the total sums levied, including
aunty Rate% and other charges not appertaining to the Poor.
These other charges, which in the hist triennial period had been on
the increase, have within the last three year* bier/gradually reduc-
ed; but they still amount to more than 1.200.000.
• The expenditure upon the Poor in 1813.440 p short of the
ammmt ot 1832 3 by 38,7421. only.
The year 1823-4 completed a fourtbof the trleatt,ial periods, of
which the average expenditure was ea follows
The Average of three years entail's: •
In March 1813 (tia coopaclad4nondial Mute war) was &Mitt/.
March 1818 • e.. . . 6,844,293
March 1821 "." . • . 7,273,333
• And-1n the three years eadifttfeldarch; 1024 - 6,933,293
'the Homo: will observe that the last of these averages is con-
siderable lower than the preceding corn. • '•
The diminution in the, fourth period, a compared with the first,
or war average, in less considerable ; and in seventeen Counties and
Ridings of England, and in eight Counties of Wales, there is an
Increase. The expenditune in the year 1823-24 being 5,734,216/., is
lower than that of any yeas since 1813.16, and only exceeds that of
1816-16 by 9,7101.
The most remarkable circunwtanoe attending the Returns of
1823.4 is, that although there has been, upon the whole, a dimi-
nution in the amount, the diminution has hren much mote partial
than in former yeast; so that while one ('runty (Leicester) exhi.
brut a-decrease ot eleven per cent. as compared with the erecedirg
year, another County ((Vilts) returns an intense of eight per rent. ;
and the unfavourable difference in nineteen other Counties, is such
as to reduce the diminution, in the whole of England and Wales,
to one per Cent.
• The Counties in which the Poor Rates hare increased. OTC Bed.
toed, Meeks, Cambridge, Dorset, Essex, Lincoln, Norfolk, Ox.
ford, Southampton, Safi:lk, Warwick, Wilts,Cardigan, Gurnee.
then, Carnarvon, Detobioh, Flint, 3lerioneth, Pembroke, and Rad-
nor. The rate of increase vaties; it is, as already stated, eight'
per cent. in Wilts ; seven in Berke and Suffolk ; six in Southainp-
top ; five in Norfolk ; font in Essex ; three in Bedford and Car-
rnarthen, and less than three in the other Counties r.ntned.
The only two Counties (Anglesey and !Sefton) in which in 1822-
3 the expenditure was Ineptr than in 1821.2, now exhibit a decrestee
of expenditure. In these, and in Buckingham, Cornwall: Devon,
Durham, Hereford, Hertford, Huntingdon, Kent, Mid:nevi,
Monmouth, Northumberland, Nottiegham, Salop, Somerset. Stat.-
ford,Surrey, ffuesex," 11'orceater, York, Glamorgan and Mont-
gomery, it is leas than five per cent.; it is fiveper cent, in Chester,
Cumberland, Derby and Westmorland ; six in Gloucester; seven
in Lancaster and Northampton ; cight.in Rutland ; and (as before
stated) eleven in Leicester.
As compared with 1817.18, the rate of diminution 'cies from
ems per eent. in Huntingdonshire to forty•five per cent. in Lan.
Ileeeees Leicester and Worcester; to the causes to which it is to be
ascribed the check which has been put to the progressive diminu-
tion of the Poor Rates. Your Committee will no further Terre than
by citing an observation frorn the Report of tut yetr :—" The de.
gree in which the amount of the Poor Rates is affected by the vari.
atiun of the price of wheat, will be more correctly ascertained when
. the'expeneiture of 1823-4 is known; because, in that )ear, wheat
rose stain to an average, according to the legal returns, of 665. &I."
Your Conenottee hare inserted in the Appendix, a table, in which
the Count's, are classed according to the degree in which their Re-
turns exhibit reveftively, a favourable or an unfavourable result ;
they have ale, framed a table, similar to one appended to the Re-
port of !let year, in which a calculation Is made of the expenditure
upon the Pa •r in each County, as compared with the population. I
Angleeet is still the only County which shows an encreased rate '
per head, as compared with 1812.13.
Sussex all appears as the County in which the expenditure
upon the Poor l ears the highest proportton to the number of the
people; and Lancaster contioues oat the other extremity of the
scale.
As the year now under review complete. a Triennial Period,
Your Committee have appended, in the hope that the House will
order them to be printed, a Paroch oil Abstract of the Returns. I
They have also extracted the more remarkable of the observations'
which the Pariah Officers have annexed to their Return,.
And for the convenience of reference, they have added to this
Report a Table which was appended to the Report oflait year, and
intended to distinguish the descriptions of property upon which
the Rates are levied.

DREADFUL CONFLAGRATION.
Yesterdzy afternoon, at three o'clock, a dreadful alarm was given
an the preenisev end back workshops of Mr. Cruzett. ratter and
gilder. in consequence of a sudden explosion of flame, which. catch.
Eng some combustibles, spread instantly upwards, and the work-
!ten had only time to make a hasty retreat before the lames spread
throughout. the floor of the workshops, end communicated to the
tire building, extending left and right, back and front, through
the range of Mr. Cruzettbi building, and the hay-loft and stables
of Mr. Woolley, the livery.stable keeper, in the rear of Titchfield-
street. From the suddenneseof the alarm great apprehersionx for the
valuable stud of Mr. Woolley took place, but by great exertion and
posonal risk they sere all rescued. The flames receiving no cheek
bunted onwards with irresistible violence in a direction N.N.E. by
lti.W., the wind from the first quarter favouring the destructive
element. Plenty of water was obtained, but the flames unicorn:-
palely received no check, in consequence of the absence of the en.
gives, which did not arrive for Italian hour, when they came in
great numbers, but the conflagration had obtaired so alarming an
aseentlarcy that in lees thereat, hour the whole of theneighbeurhord
was in flames. The work of dAtruction spread over the houseaon the
right of lelargaret.street, Mortimet-oreet, Titchfleld.street, and
Great Portland-street, and a Mews behind, including in the im-
Mense tuin the houses of Mr. G. R. Wales, turner, Messrs. King,
the cht.makers, the factory of Mr. Suielart, the pianoforte-menu-
facture., the house of Messrs. Hunt, neatly the entire of the thu-
ber-yard of Mr. Stoats, who is absent at Meetings. Mr. Fisher's,
Mr. Wyatt. Mr. Pinells, Mr. Pearce, perfumer, Mr. Read, and
others, in Well-street.
At four o'clock the fire burnt with tremendous fury, although
Dearly thirty engines were in full play upon the burning pile. Un-
fortunately most of the houses being in the rear, it was impossible
to work whiten), effect for a length of time, until the hose was in-
troduced through the buile:inge, and the firemen. with the most
praiseworthy daring, risking their lives uncle' the burning ruins.--
At a short time before four o'clock, the moat distressing scenes were
witnessed in the streets in which the houses on fire were situated,
by persons appearing with bedding, furniture, apparel, dec. rushing
to and fro; some of them with infant children, endeavouring to
save themselves and little property; and the immense crowds col-
sleeted on all sides, added to the general confusion and distress,
caused by the calamity. Some active individuals and constable
collected together, and formed avenues through the crowd to
assist in the escape of the inmates of the houses, and save their
property. But the immense body of flame, actually extending
amnas the Mires, formed an awful and fearful canopy, which
created such universal terror, that the rush of the populace from
the burning streets was tremendous. Fortunatey at that moment, a
strong detachment of the 2d Regiment of Foot Guards, under the
eormitand of Captain Powys arrived on the spot, and
under the direction of Mr. Conant. Mr. Dyer, and other
Magistrates, were so placed, that the firemen continued
their exertions without much interruption. The detachment
being formed in line soon cleared Mortimer, Margaret, and
port of Wells streets, and, forming a kind of square, firmly kept a
Mitten that was not broken during the continuance of the ens-
meow catastrophe, and added much to the saving of the adjoining
bosses In the rear of the houses we have above named the tire
tlegod with tremendous fury, sod soon caught the back of Mar-
gore -stteet Chapel, and four other houses, including the Rear and
Drummer public-house, and the remainder of Mr. Stout's timber.
pate,. By much exertion the valuable pipes, dec. of the Chapel
organ were paved, and some plate and valuable furniture was borne
awry. About six o'clock, the wind slightly veering to the N.E., the
houses in lilittimer.street, fire in 'lumber, soon were included in
the general rain, and the flames extended on all sides with alarm.
log fury for a great extent, and bidding defiance to every effort to
check their fury. At length some of the walls fell in with a tre-
mendous crash, and the water being ILA in great quantities, the fire
became somewhat subdued ; but as fast as the Litres 'tank in one
position a fresh danger arose in another, and it seemed impossible
to check it. However the firenien persevered to preserve the
four following houses, and succeeded in a trifling degree in re-
ducing the Ham.. and preventing any further extension of this
dreadful calamity. which has upon the smallest calculation caused
the destruction of above 21.111,041191. worth of property. Between
twenty end thirty bnilding" are reduced to a pile of
and the Lets to many persons is almost irretrievable. Many alight
c▪ cidents, eccired, but we Lase not hard of any lives being lost.
The engines were in full play mein the rules up to an early how
this motning.

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William Wright, Esq. was yesterday called to the Bar,
by she Honourable Society of Lincoln's
Mr. Bid dips will commence selling, this day, the 6;1 cm 7 id
collection of furniture, that has formed the centre of at•
traction in the fashjonable world for some days past, at his
house in Bond-street. .Yesterday, we Obsigved amongst
others of the Nobility, the Marquis of Londonderry, Sir C.
Long, Ban. &c. &c.
By a late surrey it has been ascertained that West Water
Lake is the deepest of all the Lakes in the neighbourhood,
as appears by the following list :
fathoms.
Wias Water Lake - . Ni
Darwent Lake - - 134
Beesenthernite Lake . 13
Slav emcee Lake . - la!
slinsattootk Lake - 22

fathom&
Lowswater Lake - 10
Windermere Irks .
Coniaton Lake - 40
Unswater Lake - -
Lancaster Paps. ,