The Sun.
London, England, 1824-08-19 00:00:00

ST. JAMES'S PARK.

" In the time of King HENRI( .says a
note to Dr. KING's Poems, in CHALMER'S Collection, " the
Park a wild wet field ; but that Prince, on building St.
.James's Palace, enclosed it, laid it out in walks, and collect-
ing the waters together, gave to the new-enclosed ground and
new-raised buildings the name of St. Jameslhi, It was much
enlarged by Charles IL, who added to it severarfields, plant-
ed-it with rows of lime-trees, laid out ,the Mall, formed the
canal with a decoy, mid Other plonas fbr 'water-I'OA, The lime-
trees or tilia, whose blossoms are uncommonly fragrant, were
probably planted in consequence of a suggestion of Mr. Evelyn,
in his Filatifuglum' published in 1661." Charles 11. was very
fond of the Park : his habit of walking there, attended by his
dogs, both sad and merry, has been noticed before. His ducks,
Which he also amused himself with feedtvg, inhabited a spot
called Duck Island, which was erected into a " government,"
in order to furnish the French exile and wit, St. Evremond,
with a pension.--,Bird-cage-walk must not.be forgotten, which
was an aviary of Charles's raising, anti retain:. its appellation.:—
In boas of fifty and a hundred years hack, if you met with
a hungry gentleman who did not know where to'get a dinner,
you always find him sitting on a bench' in the Park. Others
generally accompanied him, most of whom are politicians.
Bickerstaff meets here his acquaintance the Upholsterer,
who lets his affairs run to ruin in his zeal for the King of
Sweden.—lt would appear from novels, that the Park.cnjoyed
some privilege from arrest. In Fielding's Amelia, the hero'
often walks in the Mall. when he can go no where else. During
the existence of the old Cathedral of St. Paul's, the inside of
that Church was the resort of the hungry ; who, in allusion to
a tomb supposed to: contain the hotly of Humphrey, Duke of
Gloucester, gave rise to the saying► of dining with the Doke
Humplirey.—The 'Mall is so called from the gaine of Mall,
to which Waller alludes. Charles H. transferred it front'
Pall-mall.—ln a house looking into Mr. Bentham's garden, in
Bird Cage-walk. lived Milton. The front of it is in York-street,
and, without being the ancient one, is in a very'squalid comb-
tion.The Ilorse:guards was in a poor condition in the time
of Charles. The stables looked like the open corridors of an
old inn ; and a toy of a building, with a staircase outside, ap-'
'pears to have• been the guardhouse. These conclusions are
drawn from the print in Pennant.

POLICE. INTELLIGENCE.

MELANCHOLY CASE.

110 w-ST ft-6:r T.—The case we reported under this head in
our Paper of Tuesday, which related to a poor woman that had
been committed from this office on a charge-of stealing► a piece
-of bacon,.of tl-e value of tenpence, has excited a considerable
deg►ree.of sympathy, and several sums of money have been left
with the Mag}►,istrates for the use of the distressed' family-31.,21.,
and 11., which Sir It. ItruNre will humanely see applied, as
the, benevolent donor; no doubt, wish. Most of these kind con.
tributions have been anonymous—" The left hand saw not
what the right did",--Good has been done by " stealth"---and
those who- have thus obeyed the dictates of Christianity, have
in their own bosoms,the sweetest reward.

Mr. Careless, the master of the young man by whom the
charge was preferred, and whose callousness of heart has in the
end worked good for the poor object of prosecution, yesterday
appeared before Mr. MINSIIIII.I., and stated most distinctly
that the proceeding in question was in direct opposition to his
wishes—and so far was he from desiring the business to proceed
further, that it was now his particular wish the woman might
be discharged. As a proof that prevention of crime rather titan
its punishment was his object, he stated that he employed five
persons on a Saturday night to guard against petty robbeeles ;
and in a very few years had pardoned no less than 50 delin-
quents.
illmstrum. Said he was willing to give credit to the
huniane feelings by which Mr. Careless seemed to be actuated;
but at the same time he thought it a very dangerous doctrine to
go thrth, that, In a state of distress, the commission of crime,
apparently under the. influence of necessity, was the Mode by
which public sympathy was to be created. The laws of this
country were such that no man or woman need to be driven to
this extremity.
,An application to a Magistrate, or a parish
officer, woUld undoubtedly lead to present relief. The case of
Mrs. Jones and her family was one of a very 'melancholy dia-
racter—the public, through the medium. of the press, had so
viewed it; lie confes'sed his mind, was not less impressed with
the like.feelings ;• and although not strictly within the line of
his dtify, he should, in the absenee of Sir R. Birnie, who was
the committing Magistrate, take upon himself the responsibi-
lity of meeting the humane views of M. Careless, by ordering
the woman.to be discharged.
Mr. Careless thanked the Worthy Magistrate, and luta proof
of the sincerity of his feelings, he begged to leave a sovereign
for die use df the family, having already seen the husband and
having given him some temporary assistance.
Shortly after this; a messenger was sent to the prison to bring
the unhappy woman to the Office. She was brought, she scarce
knew why, once inotai to the scene of her disgrace ; and here a
joy awaited her for which she was unprepared. Her husband and
her two little ones, from whom her parting had been so agonizing,
were ready to receive her. She knew not what to hope—what
to expect—but she once more saw those most dear to her affec-
tions. She sunk on a scat, ,overpowered by her feelings, and
scarce' breathed till an old lady, apparently a friend, whispered
to'her the welcome intelligence that she was to.be again free—
that she' war( again to return to the society of those dear objects
for whose sake, and to preserve whom from starving, she had en-
dangered her own personal safety, by committing a felony. The
title of pleasure was too strong—she burst into an agony of tears,
and, but for the ready hand of an officer, would have dropped
the infant, which hung to her emaciated breast, upOn the
ground. The scene was, affecting in the extreme, and not less so
from thelisping delight manifested by the little creatures who had
remained with their father, and who now nearly devoored their
mother with their kisses, and, in their way, welcomed her once
more to happiness and to liberty. The poor woman was then
taken before lUr. MinsFull, 'Who, with suitable observations, an-
nounced his intention to discharge her, in consequence of Mr. C.
I having abandoned the prosecution. I3oth husband and wife
expressed their warm gratitude for the lenity of Mr. Careless, and
for the benevolent sympathy which had been evinced towards
them. by the public. In addition to other misfortunes, the poor
woman had met with an accident in her right arm, which pre-
vented her from doing all her heart suggested for the support
of her offspring. She was worn nearly to a skeleton, and went
away, although comparatively happy, still humiliated by the
recollection of the situation in which she had stood.