The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1822-10-09 00:00:00

NEW SOUTH WALES.

EXTRACT FROM THE REPORT OF THE COMMIS.
SION ER OP INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF THE
COLONY OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

(Custinued froze our Pape► of Monday hut.)

A school, for the children of the convicts and sol-
diers, was established by Capt. Wallis, of the 46th
regiment, sndisvontinued at pretest. The school is
kept in the vestry of the church by one of the con•
vice, who had suffered the puni►hment of transports-
tion to the Coal River; and the progress of the
children, as tire!! as their appearance, was very cre-
ditable.

I cannot conclude this part of my subject with.
out expressing to your Lordship the satisfaction
that I deri►ed frosts observing the great attention
paid by Major Morisset to every part of his diffi-
cult and disagreeable duty ; his vigilance and con-
stunt superintendence of the works, his attention to
the coshplainui of the convicts ; his patient invesli-
tion of them, and his efforts to maintain dis.
cipline, are eqoally conspicuous and successful:
although aware of the necessity of inflicting severe
punishments, he has always accompanied them
with admonitions, calculated to impress upon the
minds of other convicts his reluctance to resort
to severity, except upon occasions where it was
obviously required ; occasions have entirely
arisen from the imperfect security against el,.
cape that the situation of the place afforded,
weakened as it was by the connivance of the
constables, and the daily increasing knowledge
of the country that separates Hunter's River limn
the settled districts of New South Wale.. In the
punishment of all other crimes Major Morisset
has strictly obeyed the instructions with which he
was furnished, and has endeavoured to adapt
them to the characters of the several convicts,
avoiding corporal punishment where he could, and
endeavouring to prevent the commission of crime by
taking away temptations to it. The good judgment
of this officer has been no less conepireous in the
public works that lie has conducted, by directing
the means that he possessed to the accomplishment
of objects that were i nmediately required fur the
purposes of the establishment, and attending to the
solidity and durability of their construction, rather
than to their ornamental effict.

Nature and extent of Remissions of Punishment,
and their ejects upon the Convicts.

Reserving for future observation an account of
the buildings and works at Newcastle, and having
now concluded a description of the penal character
of that establishment, 1 shall proceed to submit to
your Lordship a statement of the several mitigations
and remissions of sentence that have been bebtnwed
upon the convicts in New South Wales and Van
Dieman's Laud, by Governor Mecinorrie, during
the last ten years, in the exercise of the authority
that he derives from the 'statute passed in the 30th
year of his late Majesty's reign, C. 47.
The authority of Governor Macquairie to miti-
gate or remit the sentences of canvicia trat.sported
to New South Wales, has been derived from the
general power that his Majesty is authorised by
'Ws statute to confer upon Governors of New
South Wales; for the commission that was given
to Governor Macquarrie in the month of May 1819,
and under which he has acted ever since, contains
no special power, although his Majesty's instructions
of the same date recite and refer to it.

Governor Macquarvip's gcomuniesion authorises
him to pardon in crier envoi, and to grunt
reprieves; but that •jtower evidently epplics in
crimes committed in New Smith Wales, and not to
offences committed in Great Britain. The effects
of this omission upon the absolute and conditional
pardons conferred by Governor Macipiarrie, ire
too obvious to re-quire further explanation; and they
furnish an additional reason for the final confirma-
tion of pardons, that is now livid to be necessary,
before remitted convicts can enter into the full en-
joyment of the benefits that such exercise of autho-
rity Was intended to convey.
Until the first declaration issued by Governor
Macquarrie on the 22t1 June, 1811, no period of
the term of service for the several cheeses of con-
victs had been known or declared, at which appli-
cations fur the conditional or entire remission of
their sentences were to be made. The declaration
alluded to begins by stating, " the importunity
with which the Governor had been troubled, of ap-
plicants fur free end conditional pardons, many of
whom were very uudeserviog such high indul-
gences."

( To be continued)

PRICE OF LEATHER.
Butts, 50 to fsilbs. each 19.1 to 220 per lb.
Ditto, 56 to 66145. e••ch 24.1 to 24$d
Dressing Hides lBO to MI
Fine Coact Hides .. 190 to Old
Crop Hides 35 to 40 lbs. foe cutting 19.1 to 20d
Ditto 45 to 50Ihs ...
Calf Skins 30 to 401bs 22.1 to 26d
Ditto 50 to 70Ihs V.l to 32.1
Ditto 70 to 801bs 26J to 28d
SsoallSeals (Greenland) 18,1 to 19d
Large ditto 16.1 to 19J
Tanned Horse Hides 16.1 to 111.1
Spanish Horse Hides I7J to 21gd

[From " The London Memnon:a Prke Current,"
of Toeoday, October 8, lett)