The National Register.
London, England, 1812-01-19 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL REGISTER.

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37

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Lord ( OCHRANE rose to make some pinery:aeons, elucidetory ot t, e
causes of the increase of crime. His Lordship ascribed the chief origin
of the evil to the Pension List, the lower class being hound to pay the
taxes which supported it, and not being able to pay those eliormous
taxes; hence they were drivtn to the cotmnissi.n of crime.
Sir F. BURDETT expressed his happiness at finding that no pretence
had been made, on the present occasion, either from sinister or perhaps
honest motives, to propose an extension of the Police. With regard to
the Night Watch, if it were made what it ought to be, or what it might
be, it would supersede the necessity of a Police—it would s &allay
tend to the prevention of crime. 'l'be Hon. Baronet recommended the
enacting of some such law as was in existence in the time of Edward
the First ; which made each parish answerable for the property lost by
any one of the parishioners, or for any outraces committed within their
district, and also comptiledthe several parishioners to watch in regular
set parties.
Mr. SItERIDAN had expected, after the recent progressive,' and
alarming increase that had lately taken place in the amount ot crimes,
and in the number of murders, that the Secretary of State for the
Home Department would have turned his mind to the subject, and
would have endeavoured to store it with information on the subject.
But to his surprise, the Right Hon. Gentleman had come down to the
House with the meekest, and, begging his pardon, with the silliest
proposition that he possibly could have imagined ! What was the mighty
proposition that had emanated from that Hon. Secretary's powerful
mind ? Verily, to examine into the state of the nightly watch / Writ
this the measure that was to ensure, in future, secnrity to the inhabit-
ants of this metropolis ? Why, the Right Hon. Gentleman might as well
have proposed to inquire into the state of the parish iumses I—l A
langh.)—ln the beginning of the Secretary's speech, he iotormed the
House, that there was a law in existence which compelled every pari-h
to provide its own nightly watch, coesistire eVe b:illiet! min."
He also was communicative enough t inform them that he believed
this law was frequently vi)lated—that meny poor, 1;41, decrepid
•vi hrlig, were eegaged as NVjtChin, nto prevent tinni fr becomeee;
exeensive teethe parish. Well, then, what woes the description of per-
sun: to be examined ? About whom was the Cerrimittee to make :
guides? Why, the culprits themselves ! Did the Hon. Secretary me.oi
that these netable sefegnards should be examined as the sureons did
recruits to discover whether they were " able-bodied men ?"
tVteo
could have expected such a propositi,,n.—who was prepared for such a
motion from the Secretary for the Home Department ? Net true it
was, that Right Hon. Gentleman bad come down th that ilou-e with
his accneomed gravity, for certain it was, that every thing done hy
him was psrfurmed with con.iderable pravity and solemnity-64,1
laugh !)—and bad concluded with troposing that inc,uiry should be'
made respecting the state of the nightly watch ! Such was his motion,
and a most ridiculous one he considered it ! As to the late murders,
and most horrible ones they were, much had been said about them ;
but what seemed to have occupied much of the attention of some, was
to circulate, that the unfortunete Williams was an Iris/mean ! After-
welds, gre..t pains were taken to show, that those murders originated
,1 in a hop& ss Popish plot to destroy all Protestant publicans—(Laugh-
ter.) Why. were all these endeavours made to fasten a stigma on any
' I set of men, instead of the' efforts bring coiltined to the grand object of
discovering the murderers?—As to the intercourse which the Head of
I the Police (bur such he considered the Secretary of State for the Home
Department to be) had with the Alagistrates, Sec, many strange and
i• almost incredible stories were told. Considering how this comitry is
situate with reepect to foreign nations, it would be supposed that Aliens
would be the natural objects of some of the Secretary s attention, and
that he would have frequent communication with the Head of the
!I Alien-Office; bet, if he were rightly informed, the Right Hon. Seen--
tary had not even sren the individual to whom I e had alluded for more
11 than a year and a half: Siv:h way his watchfulness—stich was his
in-
dustry in making inquiries respecting the efficiency of the police at tho
1 fountain head ! But with what surprising facility did he acquiesce in the
amendwent—an amendment, too, so different from the original pripo •
{ sition ! Adding the amendment to the motion, was fastening a boat
I upon crust !—(Much laughterj—it was as if a motion had bei-n
i to inquire what quantity of pitch and tar was in any one of les
jesty s duck-yards, and afterwards tacking to it an amendment " t r-
! miqe the state and disposition of the *hole of his Majesty's navy !"
(Continued tau titer.) The original motion ought to have been queii as
to supersede any such amen:din:mt. In 1780, he (Mr. ti.) made ti011!e •
;notion respecting the police, when be ventueed to assribe the alr.rming
i riots of that period to the ill state of the police. He complained at the
Lord Lieutenant, charging him with filling the Maeistracy with int-
proper persons. In rebuttal of this charge, the late Duke ot Northmn-
I berand replied, " Well, you, Burgoyne, and Fitzpatrick, shall be
made Magistrates—and then we shall have a remedy !" But such v. us
not the way to silence such a charge. He then asserted and still ceo-
tended, that the filling of the Police Magistracy had descended to nu:t.e
jobbin; in tile hands of Government. It was a fact those offices wt re
mere lobs ! He challenged any one of the Ministers to et .n, that I,er-
sons had frequently been put into those offices who were unfit. A: to
the list of the names which had been suggested, it would he ;in no.
dioui task to describe iudividuais ;• but this jabbing ought cot to ck4l-
- To Mr. Graham the Public we-re munch indebted. The 1:4;!±s
Hon. Gentleman then made Some observations respecting the pr-Ar;::e.
of (active reward.. 2?1,1 ch4erTeci. that nv.vy of the officers beioitjno-

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JAN. 19.