The Sun.
London, England, 1822-01-29 00:00:00

gislative measures is a point on which, .we believe, non-
differ, except those who, for mere factious purposes, would
wish to encourage this opinion. That it in part lies there may
he true ; and to what extent must be again and again examine
ed, until it is so far demonstrated, that the minds of thinking
persons may he set at rest. To that investigation we leave it,
being assured that there is bia intelligence enough to. settle
the question, and public spirit enough to go to the remedy,
should it bi found a sate and practicable one. In the mean
time, these distresses are pushing the land proprietoes to dif-
ferent measures; some it urges to reduce their rents, and
others to hold inflammatory public meetings. The former is
certainly the more rational and the more• difficult mode
of proceeding : the latter, as we shall shew just now,
is eminently absurd, though easy enough in the application.
The papers have lately recorded a very praiseworthy instance
of a timely yielding to circumstances on the part of Earl Fitz-
williani, who has gone to what may prove an effectual remedy,
in the case of his tenants, never, we believe, severely rented,
by a reduction or 40 per cent. Several other considerate in-
stances have occurred of, we shall not say liberality, but of pru-
dence and wisdom; for it can never be the policy of land pro-
prietors, to break down into absolute poverty and ruin the culti-
vators of the soil; and they have shewn to those who have sor-
didly and reluctantly moved in this recurrence to a peace ar-
rangement of things, and to a natural state, by their 10,15, and
20 per cent. reductions, that they must go to the root of the evil,
as far as rent is concerned; and, as the farmer must sell at what
the public can afford to pay, so the landholder must let at what
the farmer can, by economy and industry, afford to give. A.
meeting has been held in Norfolk, in which, though it is con-
' fessed that the "leading men" in the county were not present,
the leading Whigs were active enough. It is not, however, a
little remarkable, that, at this meeting, convened to take the
agricultural distresses of the country into consideration, not
one of these gentlemen could see the connection, even in any
degree, between high rents and the distresses of their tenants.
Now, let us allow to them that taxation ought to be reduced ;
that Parliament ought to be reformed ; and that Mr. Peel's Bill
ought to be repealed. It is somewhat marvellous, -that so very
obvious a matter of pounds, shillingS, and pence should not
strike them, as that their insisting upon war rents, when the
farmer can only get peace prices, should not, at least, greatly
increase his distresses. No doubt these gentlemen would be
happy to retain their rental, and to obtain relief for their tenants
by the repeal of taxes ; we do not blame them fdr that ; and
if they could shew that the public faith could be maintaislcd,
and the necessary expenditure of the nation provided for, with-
out altering the figures of their rent-rolls, we would oppose
nothing to their career of patriotism. It cannot, however,
_but
be suspected, that when men shew themselves disposed to do
any thing rather than take their share in the common circum-
stances of a country, and look anywhere for relief,rather than
contribute their own quota to it, that the measures theypropose
have more of the character of shifts and expedients than of the
results of sobriety or patriotism. In this meeting the Whig
landholders get to the upper end of the Shire-hall, and their
needy tenants surround them to know how " agricultural dis-
tress" is to be cured ; but they hear every thing but what they
are most interested in hearing; they hear of' Mr. Peel's Bill,
reduction of taxes, and reform in Parliament, but not a word of
reduction'of rent ! It is equally observable,that whilst these Nor.
folk landholders are so quicksielited to the errors of Government,
as the cause of agricultural distress, they should be so blind
to the grand blunders of the very county whose distresses they
deplore. In no part of England, perhaps, has the system of
enormous farms been carried to so great an extent, and the un-
natural attempt been more assiduously persevered in of creating
gentlemen farmers. Mr. Coke has not laboured more assidu-
ously to encourage a monstrous brede of cattle, than the
Norfolk proprietors to feed and fatten, to an overgrown
luxuriousness and magnitude, this equivocal race of culti-
vators. Whilst the war continued this did well enough ; the
landlord found his account in it, and the farmer imitated
his landlord in luxury and splendour, and sometimes out-
did him ; but, instead of laying up capital, he was, in fact,
laying it out on his extravagances, and he has sunk the
more rapidly under reverses. Again, the plior-rates press hea-
vily upon them. This is complained of at the meeting; but not
a glance is bestowedi'on their own agency in the affair. To what
is this pressure chiefly attributable, in a county
,managed as
Norfolk has been, but, there and in many other places, too,
to the system of invading every cottage which had a lii tie land
appended to it, by which the labourer might eke out low wages
from•the fruits of his own field and garden ? The rapacious
system swept all into the neighbouring farm, and the pressure
of the times has thrown the_ day-labourer and his family, in
whole or in part, upon the parish.--If these gentlemen had
shewn a little more regard to a mode of relief to their tenants
which is, at least, practicable, and a disposition to confess and'
to amend their own errors in the management of the affairs of
their county, their opinions on other subjects would have had
much more weight. Nir..c do not, however, intimate that
further relief cannot be• extended by the reduction of
the national expenditure. and, consequently, the aboli-
tion of some taxes, in whole or in part. bis, howevere
must be in addition to a proper reduction of rent, and not a
substitute for it. But how have some of these Whig proprietors
endeavoured to,accomplish this? By throwing obstacles in the
way of such a measure ! For this reason we observed above,
that such Meetings as the Norfolk one are absurd. The expen-
diture of the Army, for instance, has not been brought down to
that of a proper peace establishment ; but this has been ren—
dered necessary by the attempts made to inflame the populace
by demagogues ; and though, in the present quiet state of the
country, further reductions may probably be made, yet, if
Meetings for the purpose of considering Agricultural distresses
are to be converted into agents for inflaming the public mind ;
if Whig Lords, as one of them at the Norfolk Meeting, are
to imitate Bunt, with all his mischievous propensities, and
nearly half his talents ; the only conclusion which can be drawn
is, that. either these Meetings are got up under false pretences,
oI that they are marked with so egregious a folly, as to lose all
their weight, both with the considerate part of the puhlic and
with the Legislature.

ATTEMPT tf) BREAK OUT Of NEWGATE.-On
Saturday night, a daring attempt was made by
13 convicts, under sentence of transportation, to
break out of this prison. On Sunday morning
the turnkeys went to one of the north wards
near Newgate-street, and on letting out the above
culprits, they observed some mortar and lime on
the floor. Upon examining the place, they found
a "horse bedstead" raised up, which they re-
moved, and discovered a hole, two feet square,
in the wall, penetrating even to the outer stone
work. . This circumstance being communicated
to Mr. Brown, the governor, he instantly made
every inquiry, but the convicts all denied any
knowledge of the transaction ; however,
.he
threatened to confine them in separate cells, and
feed them on bread and water, when one of them
confessed the ringleaders to be three desperate
ruffians, named Foley, Perceval, and Davis, the
first Linder sentence of transportation for seven
years, for robbing Mr. Alderman Wood's bro-
ther ; the second for life, for a burglary. ; and
the last for fourteen years, for forging the mark,
of the Goldsmiths' Company. They immediately
had body irons placed upon them, and put in
another ward from the. other ten. Mr. Brown
then informed them that he had orders from Go-
vernment to send off convicts, and, in conse-
quence of their conduct, they might rest assured
they should not be 24 hours longer in-Newgate.
Foley d d him, and told him to do his worst;
however, they began to feel the inconvenience of
body irons, and yesterday morning addressed the
following letter, literally as we- give it, to Mr.
Brown :

" Newgate, Jan. 28, 1822.
" SIR—We, the undersigned, most humbly Vg, of your
great kindness, to unburden us with the body irons ; we also
wish you, Sir, to understand, that we regret our foolish attempt,
and shall feel ever grateful should you so far condescend to re-
lieve us.

" With much humility we beg leave to subscribe ourselves,
" our most obedient Servant',:,
" JOSEPH FOLEY.
" WILLIAM PERCEVAI4.
" ROBERT DAVIS." .

" W. R. IL Brown, Esq."
The other men have since confessed that the three
ringleaders stood over them with large knives,
and swore the first man that gave an alarm they
would butcher on the spot. They accomplished
their work by taking the winder of the range,
and expected to have succeeded through the stone
work on Sunday night, lead not the discovery of
their design taken place. The above convicts,
with 22 others, were last night sent off to i.he
of dragoons. hulks at Sheerness) epcorted by a party