The National Register.
London, England, 1819-01-11 00:00:00

Trig NATIONAL REGISTER

SIR FRANCES BURDE'I7 AND CORBETT.
A Correspondence, which has t,,ken place between Cobbett and
Sir Francis Burdett, has excited much curiosity. The reply of Sir
Francis will, if any thin; can, illumine the bronzed check of the id.
diurrrt Corpol:6 with a blush, and pretty clearly elucidates the caw,
of that enmity which this honest and patriotic character ha% exhibited
towards the baronet.
TO MR. WM. CORBETT.

" St. James's-ploce, January M.. I it S.
"Stn,—l have jua received yoor's of the tot!: r.f November, and
carefully, and according to yuar desire, perused the enclosed to Mr,
" It is not toy intention to enter into any controversy respecting
the honesty or dishonesty of paying or not paying debts according to
the convenience of the potty owing, It seems that if it should ever
suit your convenience, and take nothing from the comforts and en-
joyments of yourself and familycsuch condi:di and enjoyments, and
means too tddiatinguishing themselves, as you think they are entitled
to, all this being previously secured, then you think yourself bound
to pay your debts ; it, on the contrary, that cannot be effected without
sactilices on their and your part, in that case your creditors have no
claim to prefer, and you no duty to perform. You then stand ab-
•.lveil, ; t
:Pro cdmicienti<r, and for this singular reason, be-
cause those who lent you their money when you were in difficulty
and thnre..s. in order to save you and your family trims ruin, wet e
and are unable to protect you either against your own fears, or the
pots er of an arbitrary Government, under whsco they have the lids-
tbrtune to live, and to which they are equally exposed. These prin.
ciples which are laughable in theory, are detestable in practice. That
you should not only entertain and act upon, but openly avow them,
and blind your own understanding;, or think to blind that of others,
by such flimsy pretences, is one more melancholy proof of the facility
with which self:merest can assume the mask of hypocrisy, and by
means of the weakest sophistry, oserpower the and:gest understand-
iag.—llow true is our connuoa law maxim, that no man is an upright
judge in hie own cause; how truly and tar tily said by the French,
" L i -Wail- a: Pipe ;" nor less truly, though inure grossly in Eng•
1;311, • Nature's her own Bawd."
'• In exorcising my alniorrenee of the principles you lay down for
your conduct, and concerning which you challenge my opinion a
a little in:thirty, counsidering the ridicule with which you at the
same time threaten to overwochn the unfortunate wight who pre-
sumes to differ from them, Ido not desire that you should act upon
any other with regard to 1111's ; I should be sorry your family were
put to any inconvenience on my account, should your circumstances
ever prove so prosperous as to enable you to discharge your debts
without infringing upon those new principles of moral obligation you
have adopted, and which for the first tirne since the commencement
of the world have, I believe, been, though frequently acted on,
openly promulgated. As to complaint or repro:Lill, they arc tine
oft' pring of weakness and folly ; disdain should stifl,! them ; hut
nothing can or ought to stifle the expre,sion of disgust every honest
mind must feel at the want of integrity in the principles you pro-
claim, and of fe.hing and generosity in the soffit lICIILS you expre,s.—
ani, Sir, your most obedient and humble servent,
" F. BUIIDETT."

EnlXllt:nGil. Jan. .I.—Olt TOC,illity night hat, a formidable party
Of 12 Highland smugglers. with `i horses, loaded with about 160 gal-
lons of whiskey, was intercepted near Kintore by Mr. Gillespie, the
excise linker Al hal, ItSSiStlll only by too men, he, with his elia-
racteriAie courage. notwithstanding the great disparity of numbers,
attacked the smugglers, some of wlttau having fl d. a long and des•
perate battle insticil, which terminated in favour of Gillespie, he
sacceeded in securing six of the horses, with their loads, about 14
linkers. Mr. Gillespie was wounded in the face, and much bruised,
and one of the smugglers was :evcrely wounded, hating received a
pistol shot in the leg, and another through the shoulder, and the ball
from the latter not being extracted, he hes dangerously ill. A horse
and a dog were shot in the heat of the fray.
SAOCKING DRPROVIr v.—An elderly man of the name of Dela •
Eons, near 70 years of age, was on Monday fully committed from
Lanibetli Street (Kee, for robbing Mr. Twaits, of Sugar Loaf Court,
Swan Street, Minories, where he was a lodger, of u valuable brooch
sod a gold ring. On starching liims4 duplicates were found, amongst
which was one for the ring. The brooch lie had sold to a publican
in ltan-liffe Highway for 14s. In his apartments were founil upwards
of split, of melted pewter, and several publican's pots : he is respect-
ably connected, and a few years since kept his carriage. One of his
female servants at that thile, now keeps the Three Lords in the
Minories, one of whose pots were found in his room.
Sittings appointed in Middlesex anti London, before the
Right Hon. Sir R. Dallas, Knight, Lord Chit of his
Majesty's Court of Cilltillotl Pleas, at Westminster, ill and
alter Hilary Term, 1811)

IN TERM.
MIDDLE:IBEX. noN.
Monday January 25 Tu May January 21;
Friday ... January 29 At onday February
Saturday ... Feb. ti I Monday ... February $