The National Register.
London, England, 1819-03-07 00:00:00

Tur, ISIVIIONAL REGISTLIt._

' A Message has been received (rum the President,
transmitting to Congress, the answer of the Treasury
and War Departments, in reply to a Resolution re
questing information respecting the laws in force in
Amelia Island, St. Mark's and Pensacola, the revenue
collected there, and its disposition. The Secreary of
the Treasury says there has beca no revenue received
from either of those places.
'cite Secretary at IVar says, that those ports are yet
held, and gives en extract of a letter from A:ajor Bank-
head, commanding at Amelia, in which the Major states
that he has appointed two Justices of the Peace, and
has exacted imposts on importations, in order to prevent
smuggling. These papers arc referred to the Com-
mittee on Foreign relations.
Another Message was transmitted, in answer to a
Resolution of the House, inquiring whether any agents
of the Independent Provinces of South America bad
been refused to be recognised by the Eseeutive ? The
Secretary of State says, that Don Pains applied to be
recognized as a public agent ; but his commission was
signed by Mr. Clementini, in Philadelphia, and the
Government could not sanction such a commission
issued within its jurisdiction. Mr. Defutrest applied
to be recognised as Consul General ; but the Govern-
ment could not receive him, as such an net would ac-
Intewledge the independence of the Government of
which Puerreydon was Supreme Director.

A Dutch Mail brings an article from Brussels, dated
the 27th nit. states, that the persons sent betbre the
Supreme Court, on a charge of conspiring to carry off
the Emperor of Russia, us a hostage for Bonaparte, in-
tended to effect their purposz by the assistance of a body
of 500 French military men on half-pay; and it is added
that the lunatic plot was di. covered by the number of
circular letters sent to assemble the party. The King of
Wirteroberg, it it said, has consented to invoke the States
of the Kingdom. The intelligence from Tanis is most
alarming; 300 penults are carried off daily by the
plague, which prevails in every quarter of that Regency.
All Swedish vessels, arriving from Spain, Portugal, and
the parts of the Mediterranean, must sail with black
flags until they have performed quarrantine. Com-
plaints are loud at Aiz.ia-Chapele, on account of the
decline of commerce, occasioned by the prohibition of
importation into Brabant, France, and Italy. The
little manufacture that is carried on, is done by ma-
chinery ; which, it is said, has reduced a thousand fa-
milks to usisay, and in consequence of which robberies
have increased to an alarming degree

The impnrts of Bullion lately from tho Continent are
most extensive : a week, nine casks of specie
from Holland, and two from Ostend, are reported at
the Custom house ; a great proportion is reported to be
Gold. It is stated, that, from the late high price of
Bullion in England, the Jews have found it very lucre•
tive to import the coin of the Continent, and melt it in
England. Dollars, which lately were Ss. Sid, per
mince, have fallen to ss. 61 ; Gold from 41. Ss. per
ounce to 41. Is. 63.

A letter from Madrid contradicts the rumour of Can.
Elio having been disgraced by the Spanish Government;
which is said, on the other hand, to have loaded him
with honours; Ferdinand himself acknowledging to
this General, that he has ken twice indebted to him
for his Crown. Eighty individuals, many of them dis-
tinguished by rank and services, had been seized at
Valencia when tlic post came away; and the number
liable to arrest througloat Spain, from a supposed con-
flexion \vial the :,r..ae plot, amounted to the claming
number of 4700 pen.ons.

A letter from Dzintlies says i—We are sorry to state,
tliat so • great is the mortality at :present in this town
from the prevailing fever, and otbcr causes, that no leis
than 70 funerals have taken place since the commence-
ment of the present year—a number truly alarming and
unprecedented."
An Ambassador from the Dcy of Algiers to the
Court of Great Britein, limiag performed the necessary
quarrantine at a port it the Mediterranean, is now on
his way to this country. his arrival is daily expected.
Sir G. Cockburn dots tint retire from the Admiralty.
The appointment of Sir G. Clerk takes place in the room
of the Marquis of Worcester, a Lieutenant of the army
on half-pay.
The Lord 11111, Op'ey, of Dover, was lost on Wed-
nesday morning, at two o'clock, off Boulogne, and the
whole on hoard drowned.

'fhe waters of the Rhine were never so low within
the memory of moo 33 they am at preseut.
_ .

HUMP. CIRCUIT.

HF.RTFaIM, MArtra 3.

U asr(

The business of the Assize ha. the limne Cleekiit
commenced at Hertford on Wednesday. Ihe judii„,
were, Sir John Bayley and Sir Allan Park. Their
Lordships urriv,sl in town early in the morning. at.
tended by Samuel He.itlicoute Unwin Head:estate, EN.
.uf ,Itephailbury, the High Sheriff; the javelin man, and
others, raid at eleven o clock they proceeded to church.
Here the ilev. Or. I loyd delivered a most excellent
and appropriate discourse, from the well-known pas.
sage—" Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is
reproach to any people." The congregation was most
numerous and respectable. burarslistely idler diviu.l
service, the. Judges proceeded to Court; when the Cow.
mission was opened, and the business entered t,po
Mr. Justice Park took his seat at the Crown Side, .141
Mr Justice Bayiey presided at Nisi Pries.
The calendar uf the prisoners is unusually heave ;
not, however, in crime, hut numbers, which antoetet t;
nearly 80. 'is were charged wish burglary, four coat![
huasehrea • i og. two with arse s, six with higk way rcl..
berg, two shcoting with intent to kill, on.;
tout slaying, two with higmvy. Emir with passing c 00,..
terfeit coin, five stealing tio,u the perseu, three rasa:
poaching, twenty with grand larceny, rind eight arse
petty larceny.—On the civil side there arc ten (two
them Sp ecialJury) causes set down for trial ; unit upon
the whole the Assize, it [.,ought, win continue to an
unusually protracted period.—ln the Crown Court,
after the usual solemnities, the Grand Jury wet.;
sworn in.

Mr. Ju•tice Park addressed the Grand Jnituca at
great length, and nearly in the follow.u., terms :
" Gentlemen of the Grand Jury,—We iL.Zhere
bled his (ley to discharge one of the most important
duties which pertains to civilised society, by the
nistratien of justice. It is, in fact, a duty which, il•
impartially and Li:litany performed, will have the
due effect of proving a tenor to wicked doers while it
tviil also be a security to the upright and the inn cent,
as subject matter ofesarnple and p:utection. In appear-
ing beforeyou, however. thr the fiat time in ►his cutout y,

I lament tint, I ,hearld have presented to my nutica, so
henry a calen tar of prisoners; I tuft in a couati too
which has hitherto been disti.i,ol4l,.t.l tiT its m:rals,
and the gmteral correctness et arid po-
pulation. Ido nut mean to say LIU tile careadar pre-
sents any thing shocking even now; bat recol,ect, ail
crimes are serious, and we who, ore entrusted with the
exercisa of jurisprudence, must lum.nt even the must
trifling addition to offence There;is one crone, howevcr
upon which I wish to animadvert, and I do not du it in
order to influence you, t God forbid') bat rather to ad.
dress it to the It-altitude who hear mc. I allude to the
crime of sheep-stealing, practised of late kit) 6enerally,
and indeed almost wholesale, thretN;liout the county.
This is a crime which in my opinion, demands the most
exemplary punishment of the law, because such pee.
perty from its nature must be exp,rsod ; a .d the law,
therefore, is the protection of that property, to when:-
sourer it belongs. In counties where 1 have had the
honour to preside as I now do here, I found the offence
of sheep stealing to have been carried, on as I before
and, almost wholesale, and in several instances the law
took its dreadful course upon the oanders In this
place the same effect must pursue the crime, fur toe
law still continues to inflict its desperate extremity,
until the offence of which I am speaking is eradicate-.!.
I have not, Gentlemen, gone so minutely into a acted
of all the offences in the calendar, because in some in.

stances there have been wit,.ting the depositions taken
before the Magistrates. This inconvenience, however,
if time would' permit, might readily be obviated, by ti:e
ample attendance of the Magistrates themselves here
this day.; There is a circumstance, however, cotinectrsl
with the business of the Magistracy, which I feel my-
self bound to advert to, and that is, that in making out
the commitment of prismters, by the Clerks of the Ma-
gistrates, it is done in too general a way. I will not
point out a particular instance of this nature in the ca.
landar now before rue, but merely state, that the cm•
mitrnut of prisoners et all times should be clear and
specific. I should dismiss you, Gentlemen, with these
few observations, but a subject presses itself upon are,
which I feel it my bounden duty to present to your se-
rious notice. It is a subject which at present engages
much of the public attention, and of ilia Le-islatire in
particular. I allude to the State of and of tours:
to the prison of Hartford more particularly. Unfortu-
nately for you, I understand this is crowded at the prr;
sent moment to a dreadful state, and ineupolde of ai
fording that room and accommodation- which are so es-
sentially no.-essary in a prison. This, however, can be
no fault vith the Magistracy, or the county generall:',
who could never have fbreseen or expected that increase
of crime which would have thus hided the gaol wits
wretebed inhabitants. The subject of gaols, Geatle-
mea, as I said before, has matte u considerable noise.
but I must confess, that having read, heard, and consi.
sidered all which has yet been adduced, or winch eve
could be thought of by the philanthropist upon the r.r..2.
Oct, I do think that the Legislature has most sew
provided is remedy for alrucst, every c :11 which