The Sun.
London, England, 1822-04-04 00:00:00

THURSDAY, APRIL 4, 1822.

1.116 LONDON JOURNALS.

EXTRACTS FROM THEOAILY MORNING PAPERS;

April 4, 1822.

[MORNING CIIRONI,GLE.I
It is the report in a quarter possessing access
to correct information on the ,subject, that the
expectations entertained -with respect to the ac-
ceptance of the Russian Ultimatum by:Turkey
have not been realized. •If Alexander bad been
induced to, forego his pretensions founded on
Treaties, thereby renouncing the most favourable
opportunity that could present itself for gaining
the great object of 'Russian ambition for the best
part of a century, and risking I:'4e"Usual mode in
which dissatisfaction is ei:Nssed in Russia, _all
in deference to the- Holy I'lliance—then there
might have been abetter chance of peace: But
the Emperor has, it seems,: never varied. We
have always been impressed with the difficulty
amounting_ almost to impossibility of managing
the TUrks ; and the thing has turned out,
we understand, just as we anticipated. No.
sooner had the news of the acceptance been
promulgated at Constantinople, than the pub
lie became enraged, and the Divan catching;
the alarm, 0,-Jertnined not to accept the Ultima-
tum. This deliberation is said -to have taken place
on the 28th February. Our Government people
say they have had no account .of the sort, but
there is something in their manner which leads
to the belief that they know more than they
choose at present to tell. There is no doubt of
a private letter having been received froM Con-
stantinople, dated 25th February, confirming the
account of the stipulations of the Ultimatum hav-
ing been accepted, though it was stated at\ the
same time that this was brought about with great.
difficulty. The account it:this letter, and that of
the subsequent rejectimi on the 28th, are per-
fectly reconcileable with each other.

[NEW TIMES.]
We have again to record a proof of the bene-
ficial effect of that most admirable hittitution,
the Constitutional Association. It had long been
the aim of the great wholesale venders of sedi-
tion in London to impregnate with their infamous
principles the minds of the manufacturing popu-
lation in Manchester : and a wretched old man
of 70, a bookseller named Reddish, though tot-
tering on the brink of the •grave, had undertaken
to be the agent of this nefarious traffic. The
Police of Mauchester, with laudable vigilance,
fixed their eyes on his proceedings, and sent a
person to buy several of pamphlets. They
were all of a scandalous and seditious nature;
but the worst was one entitled 44 The Political
Dictionary, or Corruption's Glossary," (the same
for which a true bill has been found against Dolbt
in the Metropolis)4and which is replete with mos
virulent abuse of the King, the Constitution, the
Government, the Laws, th Judges, and the Par-
liament. This work, therefore, the Constittitional
Association selected for prosecution. Reddish
at first pleaded Not Guilty ; but as the time of
trial approached, he communicated to the prose-
cutors an affidavit, stating that he was 70 years
of age, and in a very infirm state of health ; that
since the prosecution had been instituted, he had
given up the bookselling business, and would not
return to it again ; and offering to plead Guilty,
and enter into recognizances for his good beha-
viour, provided he should be spared any further
punishment. The Association, anxious to temper
justice with mercy, agreed to these terms ; and
thus another verdict, on another libel, has con-
firmed the proofs before, given of the vast
utility of this Society in promoting the interests
of morality, law, and the Constitution.

[THE TIM ES.]
Sir Francis Burdett's motion for the liberation
of Henry Hunt has been postponed till the 24th.
To treat this subject with the utmost delicacy, we
must say, that all men were .surprised at the
length of Hunt's imprisonment; and it is impos-
sible to deny (in fact, no man can deny it in ear-
nest) but that in passing that sentence, circum-
stances were taken into consideration, which had
not been tried by a Court and Jury, namely, the
antecedent life and practices of the defendant.—
'A remission of the sentence, however, or of any
part of it, by the CTOWII, would, we are ready
to acknowledge, have been in the first instance
unwise, because it might have appeared to cast a
reflection upon the Judges : but since it has been
discovered that even that sentence has been ag-
gravated by the severity with which it has been
inflicted, it would have been no reflection upon
any man to have suffered the prisoner to buy out
the future duration of his confinement by its
past severity. What a powerful effect was pro-
duced upon the public mind, both here and
iu France, by the gentle sentence which was
passed upon Sir Robert 'Wilson, Mr. Bruce, and
Mr. Hutchinson, for saving Lavalette. The de-
fendants might by law have been sentenced to
two years imprisonment. We can well recollect
the agreeable feeling which was produced, by the
sentence of three months' confinement. The
most determined enemies of the Bourbons were
silenced, or forced to acknowledge that the
Judges had acted most wisely for the interests of
the reigning family. There was no murmur of
dissatisfaction any where. Government acquired
the reputation of being strong enough to shew
mercy. It is, besides, astonishing that Ministers
cannot understand the policy of humanity, even
exclusively of the religious obligation which all
men are under to forgive their enemies. If Hunt
were let out now, it would be clear to every one
that he owed his liberty to the clemency of the
Government; and let him conduct himself how

he might, he must do them service. If, from
a sense of. obligation, he were temperate and
mild - in
,his. future proceedings, they would
• have the advantage of the altered tone : perhaps
he might even .be cast off by his followers, as too
tame for their purposes. if he recommenced his
reforming career with equal violence, to the other
faults, with which he has been reproached, would
be added that of ingratitude ; and as the fate.of
Old Cobbett shows the appearance.of .some =oral
qualities is necessary even in those who lead the
meanest of mankind, Government Trould have
gained by the apparent: deterioration of charac-
ter in one, of its adversaries. Should the motion
.of Sir Francis Burdett fail, whenever Hunt dOes
come forth from his prison, he will come forth as a
martyr,.and• be will be hailed, cheered,- and so-
laced by admiring myriads: If the only legal object
of•human punishment be the correction of offence,
the end of this punishment, thus unwisely pro-
tracted, will be to increase,.offence,' and to tuu.l-'
tiply incalculably the partisans . and friends' of
the offender. Hunt will .be -thought to he re,
tained in prison simply and exclu4wrly froth a
vindictive feeling. And if, as is acknowledged
on all sides, he has, from the manner of his_oon
finement, suffered more than the Judges intended
to inflict, it is now proper to ask—what compenr
sation is to be made him for his excess of punish-
ment ? A proper leniency towards him for the
remaining part of his term cannot undo the
rigours of the past. He is, therefore,an aggrieved
•
subject.

[MORNING POST.]

The proceedings in the House of Commons
last night, call for some observations. Mr. Ben-
net, it will be seen, was gratified with one, of
his 46 small discussions" on the Agricultural Re-
port, and if we are to have a few more, each of
the same description, we think it would be very
difficult for the lion. Member to find any corner
of & debate small enough for him to hide in,,by,
the time they are concluded. The discussion
was provoked by Mr. Benett, of Wiltshire, who,
in presenting a Petition from that county,.
launched info various calculations, to shew the
great distress of the agricultural classes, labourers,
tenants, and- landowners, and also to inveigh
against the Report which had been lately d
upon the table, During the next foftnieW-the
country,he thought, would be plunged into despair
at not finding any reduction of taxation recom-
mended by the Committee, nor a measurf that
sort introduced before the recess by Minaters.
Mr. Ellice, of Coventr ,followed up the.opening
speech by a long an rather inconsistent state-
ment off-Agricultural grievances and their causes.
Besides the sins of commission which the Com-
mittee was guilty of,som heavy ones of omission
were also
_chargeable upsn it, and those princi-
pally in not doing what the lion. Member him-
self, as we have said, attempted, namely, to trace
the manifold causes of the existing distress.—Mr.
Peel's Bill of 1819 came in for the honour of al-
most all the evil) but still it ought to be devoutly
adhered to—the Report was nothing but a tissue
of nostrums, while any reduction of taxation would.
afford but trifling relief—the large recent sales
of wheat in the corn-market were caused by the
wetness of last harvest which rendered it unsafe
for the farmer to retain his cern—the Currency
Bill of 1819, however, he repeated, was the
origin of all the mischief, though he confessed it
had most materially benefited all the working
classes of the conntry, by lowering the price of
provisions and other necessaries one-half, while
no fall, comparatively speaking, had taken place
in wages. The Honourable Member assured the
House at the same time, that he was the friend
of the consumer, and he principally stigma-
tized the Report, because its sole object was
to raise the price of corn. Mr. Frankland
Lewis had often heard Mr. Peel's Bill ar-
raigned, but, strange to say, he had never
heard a single Honourable Gentleman approve
of infringing upon that law, much less repealing
it. He also truly observed, that the remission
of taxes was not the business of the Committee,
but of the House, nor was the object of the Report
either to increase the prohibition on the price of
corn, but to make a salutary change in the mode
by which the principle of the Corn Bill at present
operated. In these sentiments respecting the
Committee, Mr. Western (also belonging to it)
fully concurred. He thought, notwithstanding,
the measures proposed inadequate to the exigency
of the times, though they were, even in his opi-
nion, conceived in a proper spirit.

[MORNING HERALD.]
We yesterday gave the Report of the Agricul-
tural Committee without any observation. It
does not appear, on perusal, to be the most-katis-
factory document of its kind.—There is a disre-
gard of arrangement. The sentences are run to
a length which produces obscurity, and there are
instances in `which the Committee have scarcely
made themselves intelligible. For instance; how
are the conclusion of the second paragraph and
the beginning of the third to be reconciled to
reason or to each other ? It may be true that
the quantity of British wheat, &c., sold at Mark-
lane, from the first of November to the first
of Alarch last, exceeded the quantity sold
in the corresponding months for the last
twenty years ; but if, as expressly stated,
this increased quantity was sold, how can
that be called an excess of supply beyond de-
mand ? Is it not rather to be inferred that the
demand has risen with the supply ? The Report
scarcely rises in its tone even to faint recom-
mendation, and confines itself rather to throwing
out mere suggestions, accompanied with observa-
tions—sometimes just—sometimes disingenuously
or timidly reserved—at other times, makinc, ad-

PRICE SEVEN PENCE.

•
' missions which, however true, look like 'apses of
indiscretion, considering the influence under
which the deliberations are 'supposed to have
taken place, Was it timidity, or interest, .or a
vain attempt to manage conflicting interests,
'opinions, aid parties, that induced the 'COM-
'mittee, In stating. (or rather slurring over) the
causes, of the great increase of agricultural
supply, to omit altogether the occurrence of
twO or three successively abundant harvests,
the extraordinary quantity of waste land ,blade
amble, and the facilities afforded by the em-
ployment of agricultural machinery ? Again—
the Committee indirectly admit (or rather-assume)
that England cannot grow corn at as cheap a rate
as other countries, and there they stop short,
leaving the ~:re4Or or hearer of the Report
supply, as he must inevitably, the cause of tliiitt
difference—viz.. the great excess of taxation
which the people of this country are loaded with,
as compared with the people of' the Continent,—
We do . not mean 'to foment a quarrel between
The Committee and the-Ministers; but we call-
hot help saying: that this partial admission; of
one of the consequences pf taxation is an " un-
kinder cut" than the most violent outcry of the,
very Radicals against" the burdens under which
the people groan."

[BRITISH TRESS.]
The House of Lords adjourned yesterday even-
ing to Thursday,,the 18th, and the House of Com-
mons•to Wednesday, the 17th of this month. The
Agriculturallieport was made the subject of
some interesting and important observations in the
House of Commons, from which may be collect-
ed the disappointment Which must be generally
felt throughout the country at the result of the
labours of-the COmmittee. High hopes, we fear,
had been entertained of the. henefits which were'
to be derived frOm the investigation of the .pe-
titions relating to, the distressed state_
.of the agri-
,•,
cultufe of the country; but, if these hopes
looked to an elevation in the price of corn,
'they . must of necessity have been disaPpoint-
'ed. The plan proposed of enabling the Op-
vernment to advance money upon the depo-
sit of corn, is not altogether free from objection.;
but considering every circumstance, it is perhaps
the most advantageous method that could be de-
vised of accomplishing the purpose of distribut-
ing loans of money, among the suffering agricul-
turists. It might; indeed, be presumed that even
now farmers could, without much difficulty, ob-.
tain- loans of money upon the deposit of corn
from private persons ; and if such could be
effected, no doubt can be entertained that it
would be much better for the country, and even.
for the distressed farmers themselves, that the
prices of agricultural produce should be suf-
fered to find their proper level, and the far-
mers to work out their own, preservation,
than that the Government should be enabled to
interfere in the private concerns of individuals.
We are not fond of having recourse to these ex-
traordinary means, and nothing but a very unu-
sual concurrence of circumstances—some nodes
tindice dignus, can ever justify so wide a depar-
ture-from the established principles of free trade
and self-adjusting markets. It may be well to con-
sider whether the earnest desire now evinced by the
Landholders " to dispose of their produce at any
prices," arises from the pressure of necessity,
or from an apprehension that by the operation of
some trick or speculation the averages will be
o much raised as to bring the permissive part of
the Act of the 55th of the late King into ac-
tion, and thereby overwhelm domestic agricul-
ture with a flood of foreign corn. The Land-
holders labour under a constant panic; they never
cease to dread the sudden influx of foreign pro- -
duce, so that their operations can never be wholly
free front embarrassment and alarm. This is one
of the evils of the present corn law ; a successful
speculation by some few interested individuals
may derange the natural, prices in the markets,
alter the averages, and open the ports without
duty, limitation, or condition, to the unrestrained
importation of the surplus or the low-priced corn
of the Continent.

MAGISTERIAL RESIGNATIONS AND REMOVALS.—In
consequence of GEORGE BOLTON MAINwARING, Esq., the
presiding Magistrate at the Police Office, Great Marlborough.
street, having resigned, it is expected that Allan Stuart Laing,
Esq., now Magistrate at Hatton-garden, will be appointed in
his room, and that 'William Marmaduke Sellon, Esq. will take
Mr. Laing's seat at Hatton-garden. Sir Daniel Williams,
many years presiding Magistrate at Lambeth-street Office, has
sent in his resignation to the Secretary of State, and Mr.- Story,
of the Thames Police Office, has resigned also.

An advertisement appeared in our last paper,
signed a " Prudent Man," and directed against
the NORWICH UNION INSURANCE SOCIETY, for
which we take the earliest opportunity of ex-
pressing our unfeigned regret. We have always
held it to be a sacred principle, in the manage-
ment of our paper, in no case to insert any thing
that can either wound the feelings or hurt the
interest of any individual, and it has been ac-
cordingly a standing rule, often and anxiously
enforced, that all advertisements, which contained
matter in the least degree doubtful in its ten-
dency, should be submitted to the Editor, as it
is impossible that he can read over all the matter
previous to its appearance in the paper. By
some unaccountable neglect this rule was not, in
the present instance, complied with, and the ad-
vertisement in question having got insertion
unawares, was not observed until it was too late
to remedy the evil. We can only repeat, that
this mistake has occasioned the most unspeakable
vexation, and that we are anxious to make any
reparation that may still be in our power.-
-(Caledonian Mercurh March 28, 1822.)