The Sun.
London, England, 1840-12-10 00:00:00

SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS

FROM THE EVENING PAPERS OF TIIIS DAY.
(From the Globe.)
We find that the observations contained in a late
number of our journal, on the defects and the mischiev-
ous tendency of the present Game-laws, have been
copied into several of the Provincial Papers—and we
do not regret that we have been thus instrumental in
directing the attention of the public to a subject of
grave and pressing importance. The wanton sacrifice
of human life is, under any circumstances, a matter of
painful interest : but it can never be more so than when
the agent i❑ the foul deed manifests a reckless deter-
mination of purpose, or is actuated by motives of savage
revenge—and such is precisely the spirit which has
been evinced of late by that class of miscreants,
1 who have perpetrated murder, while they were in
the pursuit of game. The gamekeeper of Sir Ro-
bert Sheffield was shot, with scarcely any warn•
ing, in the immediate vicinity of his master's
dwelling. Mr. Christopher's servant shared a si-
milar fate. The man at Huxley, in Cheshire, was
inhumanly murdered within three hundred yards of his
own door ; and other cases of a like nature have oc-
curred, showing a degree of depravity in the offenders
which is truly appalling. It would seem that the de-
struction of gamekeepers is almost as essential a part
of the modern system of poaching as the capture of game
itself. Indeed, it is well known that there are bands of
poachers in Lincolnshire so closely confederated, that
they are bound by a solemn pledge never to betray
each other—and have vowed their determination
to go to any extremity rather than be taken.
The tendency to the commission of a most diabolical
crime among these people, is not more remarkable than
the security with which they carry on their nefarious,
and, too often, bloody adventures. In ordinary cases of
murder, the vigilance of the police or the compunctions
of the offender's conscience lead to detection—and Jus-
tice takes its proper course ; but in the instances re-
cited above—and in some others which we cannot now
call to mind—notwithstanding the offer of large rewards
—the culprits remain unknown. Great efforts wero
made by Sir Robert Sheffield and Mr. Christopher to
discover the parties by whom their servants were as-
sassinated ; but nothing has been effected beyond sus-
picion and conjecture, and the impunity thus obtained by
a few desperate ruffians cannot fail to operate as an encour-
agement to others to resort to the same violent and deadly
measures. The rigid enforcement of an act passed under
the sanction of Sir R. Peel, inflicting the penalty of
transportation upon any two or more persons going to..
gether armed at night lor the purpose of taking game,
would undoubtedly have operated as a check to the
evil practices of which we are now speaking. But our
country Magistrates, being most of them addicted to
sporting, and having occasionally to sit in judgment
upon parties detected in the act of poaching upon their
ground, have dreaded to enforce the provisions of that
Act, lest they should be charged with a vindictive or
selfish feeling in the execution of their duty. Some-
thing must be done, ere long, to alter this state of
things, and we shall probably recur to the subject, in the
hope of promoting a beneficial change.
(From the Standard.)

Rabelais says that the most melancholy moments
in our lives are those in which the tavern-bill is pre-
sented. Persons of more genial habits than ourselves
must decide whether Rabelais is right, but we must
think that the early recognition of the unpleasantness
of a reckoning after enjoyment by the French wit,
ought to have prevented Sir Walter Scott from chard.
ing a dislike to reckoning-day as an English pecu-
liarity.
John Bull was in his very worst of moods,
Raving of sterile farms and unsold goods ;
His wars were ended and his victories won,
But then 'twas reckoning-day with honest John ;
And authors vouch 'twas still this worthy's way
Never to grumble till he came to pay ;
And then he always thinks, his temper's such,
The work too little and the pay too much.
It is now reckoning-day with our neighbours across the
Manche, and, to say truth, they seem to relish the sum-
ming up of accounts as little as John Bull himself. It
must be owned, however, that they have some reason to
complain ; they have had " no wars ended or victories
won ;" all that they have had of war is a little vista of
a war to begin, a year or two hence—the only victories
have been gained over their protege Mehemet Ali,
chiefly by the arms of a Power which they are not
very desirous to see aggrandised either in strength
or renown. Yet, thanks to M. Thiers, they
have an extraordinary charge of no less than
between 10 and 11,000.000 sterling fastened
upon them to pay, as our Paris Correspondent inti-
mates, for the performance of the " Nlarseillaise." It
would be difficult to point out any other return for the
money. The whole annual expenditure for the current
and future years is thus inflamed to sixty:four millions
sterling. These disclosures were made by the Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer in the Chamber of Deputies
on Tuesday, and it may be easily believed that they
have not been very welcome. The Quotidienne men-
tions that the submission of Mehemet Ali was preceded
by an insurrection in Alexandria. The truth of this
story is doubted. If the insurrection occurred, it must
have been on on a small scale, or it would be known to
the officers of the British squadron ; 30 of Mehemet's
guns were spiked ; but this was most probably done in
secret, and the circutnstance may have served as a foun-
dation for the tale of insurrection.
(From the Courier.)
The principal topic of discussion in the French
Papers before us is the financial statement made to the
Chamber on Monday, by M. Humane. Some of them
exhibit a good deal of anger and " ignorant impatience"