The National Register.
London, England, 1822-10-20 00:00:00

'INISIMENTIL

CIPITAi PI

We know not when we have met with observa-
tion% which have pleased us so much as some on the
subject of our sanguinary Criminal Code, which
appeared in the last number of The Loadess Museum
—they are as fullows:—.
The will of society has set up and armed a remorseless power,
which may be said to be drank with the blood of miserable tad
mistakom erieriaals. That power is Law ; red-robed. Banged-
nary., fierce-eyed, unrelenting law. England cells herself a
Cbrietiaa essuatry ; sad the first title of her King is Defender
of the Faith.' Bat does the Christian faith then 'section those
terrible decrees by which the penalty of blood is affixed to so
many and so diferest offences, is which the degrees of evil to
mankind are of each vatious proportions No; we boldly
tine it does not : those delectable laws that take life fur light
°Tenors are contrary to the mild spirit of Chriatiasity, and are
an offence against its divine founder. It may perhaps be urged,
that the power of life and death is delegated by the many to
that law which is referred by some theorists to the voice of the
mass of society. Bet we would ask if society—that is, any
number, definite or indefinite, (it matters not which) of indiei-
dasle -OM delegate tbatjwhich not one of them possessed—the
right to take his own life !—Bither our laws are murderers, or
that sentence is an absurdity which pronoeuees the man who pats
an end to his own life. Fere de a. The time will come, we are
perseaded, though long years mast first elapse, when the opinions
*Meditated en this subject by the friends will prevail over the
ferocious spirit breathed at present by oar criminal code, so
diurseatat to a civilised nation, the enactments of which are
so monstrous, that we may even be justified in averring that the
Judges cannot fulfil them to the letter: So much indeed does

human nature revolt from their horrible Weeny, that we daily
see oompassiesate juries tampering with their oath, if not s,i-
solotely committing perjury, is order le save the miserable
creatures whom a few shillings more in the value of a stolen
iseamodity gives over to lie executioeer

CHAILICTRRISTIC TRAITS.

Half a dozen anecdotes will often give • truer
idea of a nation than a whole history—the following
may be taken as a proof of the boorish brutality of
the Russians in the present century and in the Bret
circles:—
" A court banker, M. llegovikeffi, since dead, really a well-
bred, sensible, polite man, was dieing with Dr. R. at Peters •
bargh ; dad after dieser, the Doctor having recently received
from England an improved solar microscope, proposed to MON
his guests with it. As usual, piths of p 'Mamie*, of lies and
other insects were resorted to; till at last it was suggested by
one of the party that some living subject should be procured.
Be not shocked, gentle delicate reader, when I tell you that a
house was meetioned. The difficulty was where to procure one;
bat the Russian servants being observed to scrateb their heads
occasieually, it was presumediressibia that a visit to their isbe
or dwelling-place might procure the wished-for treasure. On
this the court banker, with great amererte, sad kith suspecting
that his good breeding would be called in question. cried,
• Doctor, yoe need out give yourself sack unnecessary trouble,'
and at the same time potting his lager and halal, very seism-
Civilly to the back of his head, immediately produced use, the
least sad fattest of its kind."

CRUTBRIBURY, Oct. 17.—Sr. ETHIMBISRVB TOWIR.
I esterday morning the inhaiaitatita of St. Paul's. Long-
port. and Lady Woottou's Green, were thrown into
consternation by a tremendous anise, nearly resembling
the roar of cannon, and supposed by some to be an
earthquake; most of them eagerly left their beds to as-
certain the cause of alarm, which they soon discovered
to be the sudden demolition of that fine monument of
ancient architecture called St. Eliselben's 'tower, the
most conspicuous ornament of those sublime ruins, St.
Augustine's Monastery. The south and west fronts,
corroded by the hand of time, and probably materially
injured by the late winds and rain, fell with a tremen.
duos crash, overwhelming every thing that lay in its
way. It is calculated that not less than 1,000 loads of
materials have fallen in the Fives Court, the garden be.
longing to Mrs. Hills, and in the meadow belonging to
the Kent and Canterbury Hospital, the inmates of which
were extremely terrified. The remaining side is so much
shaken, that it must be removed. Thus suddenly is de-
stroyed one of the finest specimens of the monastic age.
Xhelbert's Tower was named in honour of King Ethel.
n, a Kentish monarch, who reigned over this country
from 860 to gfiti, during which period St. Augustirte,
monk of the Roman Church, came over as a missionary,
and obtained favour with the monarch, who embraced
the Christian faith, and bestowed upon the fraternity
the site of the monastery, with unity itnportant appen-
dages. The tower was built about the year 1047, and
the then Archbishop (Eidisots) contributed, with many
others, to its erection. Hafted, in his hivory of CAI.
terbury, lays—" 4Vheit we enter the site of the monas-
tery, the first object is Ethelben's Tower, whose beauty,
though much defaced, especially by sacrilegious hands
of late years. will witness to rucceeding ages the mag-
nificence of the whole, when all stood complete in their
glory together.' Ethelberis 'lower, the original form
of which was a square, composed of flint and stone;
there were the remains of a stone staircase, leading to
the top; it is supposed to have beets used at a (Nifty.—
The side walls were formed of arches of most exerstsite
workmanship, exhibiting she xe.l and liberality of the
professors of religion at the period of its erection. The
aptj 'Ming chapel or chancel has long been used as a
fees' court, in which, and the adjacent bowling-green.
the citizens resort to spend their summer evenings.
One day last week, as two old women were collecting
fuel Olt Jet ingion-hill. Sussex, they observed at no great
distance from them a bird of uncommon size, endeavour-
ing to make its escape by Right, which front some appa-
rent hurt that it had received, it was unable. to effect,
and Use w sssss en its cousequence speedily overtook their
game, wheat a desperate conflict ensued, and it was not
smill it hail been killed by the prongs with winch they
were armed that the object or their pursuit could he
secured. It proved to Ise site Prlicalass basinia of Lin.
tiaras, Gamier, or Sulam Goose, a bird rarely met with
!JIM: our coast : 01111 species 111, however, very common
in the Hebrides, and other solitary rocky isles of North
&tutu.

THE NATIONAL REGISTiii