The Sun.
London, England, 1805-01-31 00:00:00

SWINDLING.

Yesterday, at Hatton garden Of gee, Thomas Cele
alias Captain Cole, and his mock clerks, Davv;r and
Tech, were re-examined, on charges of swindling.
In addition to the numerous charges that were
substantiated against the Prisoners on the former
examinations, seven were preferred yesterday. It
will he remembered, that counting.houses were
fitted up by the Prisoners and their accomplices in
different parts of the metropolis, and by using tl
names of popular merchants in trade, they have
carried on deceptions, by which the publiC has been
defrauded to an enormous amount. Mr. Lewis
WELLS, a jeweller, at. No. 24, Newgate.etreat, and
No. 16t, Leadenhall-street, had been defrauded of
goods amounting to t3l. by a person who called hies.
self a merchant, of the name of Birch, who was in
company with the Prisoner Cole. They represented
themselves as merchants, in the firm of Carper/wand
Co. Basing.lane ; and being short of cash, Birch
gave a bill, to the amount, of the goods, accepted
by a supposed inerchaT, conceded with the gang.'
In consequence of the complainant having received
an order for a brass plate, and a weighty, gold
of Cole, he repaired
,to the countinghouse in has.
ing.lane, where he observed his customer Cole sit.
ting by the fire. Mr. W. had a suspicion that the
whole was a swindling concern ; and the appearance
of the house Convinced him that his suspicions were
well-grounded. lie requested to see the ledger ;
when Cole expressed a surprise at his impetti.
nonce ; but, to use Mr.W.'s own words, he became
intolerably insolent, fur he examined the files, and
immediately procured an Officer. The occupiers
fled, and lett Mr. W. in full possession. This plan
of swindling has nut been confined to the metropo.
lis--snerchants in Liverpool, Manchester, hir.
minghairs, Bristol, anti must of the trading towns in
England, have been defrauded to a very enormous
amount.: Complaints from persons so residing were
[mod, and the letters produced by their agents in
town ate inntiMerable. The Prisoners were re.
mantled, in order to, give time for persons to attend
who have nut yet preferred their charges against
them,

A journeyman carpenter working at rite military
depot near Horsham, lately offered to pay, 4 iiotl.9C.
keetkr at that place the sum of to. on condition of
being supplied, by the said housekeeper, with as
much plumb-pudding as he (the carpenter) could eat
in the space of seven successive days : the ten*,
having been agreed to, the man was daily served
with a sufficient quantum of this favourite Oki Eng-
lish food, and managed, it the course of the week,
to devour 46Ibs. averdupuis ! The same carpenter,,
it seems, is willing to undertake to rot it cubic foot
of similar soini pudding in a fortnight ! and, what
is more extraordinary than' all, will engage, for a
wager of five guineas, to let pass never other sac.
cessiv4 -days without eating the least particle of aoy-
loud whatever.

1 , jams, M. I). F. R. S. at Path and
Knight of the Royal Order of Sweden, finding the
inhaoitahts of thisCCounty, at this season of the,
year particularly, afilitted with Coughs, Colds, and
fintlid out a method of Con.
centrating that valuable Extratt of Flowers called
Hossv, and bringing int.) a small Compass a very
large portion of its excellent virtues. Sir JOHN
Hi t, L'l. Pakain of klon,y is therefore recommended
as the tnosr safe, innocent, and effettual.Remedy
for Cr,tighs, Colds, and Asthma's. Children, and rho
moit delicate, may take it with the greatest safety.
it is to be had of MeSSII. SHAW and EDWARD.,
N 0„ 66, St. l'astl'y Church.yard, who have ptirchas.
ul of die Hon. Lady litt.L's Executor all tie pro-
perty in Sir jou Fir Lt.'s Medicines, Price 3s. 6.1.
if their histlieS ate nut on the Stamp it is a Counter.
felt,

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1(111//11t.i ro Aizt,itimy ArEsszs.

As the three Systems for „Messing which appear:
in The Regimental Compinion, written by Captain.
JANUS, an Author to whom the Public are indebted
-for maity, useful Works on Military Subjects, are
submitted •to the consideration of intelligent Offi.
cers, merely to obtain more accurate information,
it may not be thdught irtelevant to obs'erve, that
one circumstance has been wholly left unnoticed ;
Ave mean the circumstance of double commissions.
We should humbly conceive, that some attentitm
,ought to be paid to one unerring prieciple, namely,
that every individual holding a public situation, anti
forming a part of one collettive body, for tli- be.
:netit of public aervice,. should pay, towards the re.
spetlable maintenance of his establishment accord.
ing to his receipt of public.money. Rational as
the plan digested by Sir John Sinclair must Lingoes.
tionably appear to every reflecting mind, no regard
has been paid to this principle, nor is ii mentioned
in the others. Much jealousy might be obviated
by an additional regulation on this head.: The sa.
orifice must be trifling on the part of the Officer who
enjoys the advantages of two commissions, and 'the
good reaultOg from a contribution of the kind
would be manifest in several :points of view. The
propriety of messing has been universally felt, and
has been every where acknowledged ; but
.there it
not one uniform system by which the Arthy can
be generally governed, nor can a systeM, howeVer
well digested and arranged, be so far enforced
alio- produce a standing regulation. While cam,
.iniasions are suffered to be purchased, Officers will
look with, a jealous eye at every 'proposition that
can effea their little property, however. colleaively
beneficial that proposition
,may appear. The' Field' •
Officers (we are speaking of the Line) that have ex.
pended some thousands tuobtain the different atepS,
would not perhaps approve of a plan whose:govern..
ing principle is to contribute in proportion to their ,
pay ; and it is impossible to form any mess of a re.
spetiable nature, that shall 'be beneficial to the Sub.
al'terns, without some division of alitt'kind. The
only safe way, in our humble opinion,- by whiCh an °
Officer's mess could be rendered permanent anti re.
gular, would be in the reroneal of all obstacles to
private contribution*. Messing might then be.
come as much, a military regulation among them,
and with equal advantages, as it is among the Sol.
diers.' In aid of this suggestion, it will not he
thought invidious to adduce the existiog precedent
at the Horse Guards : A very ample, not to say
luxurious, table is provided every day, at a stated
hour, for the Horse and Foot Guards who do duty
at the Palace, Ike. with a limited privilege of in.
viiing strangers. A similar table is kept,,on prin.
ciples of equal indulgence, for the King's officiating
Chaplains, and another fur Her Majesty's Maids of
Honour. We know that more objeitiona thee one
will be started against the propriety of offering
these messes (for messes they most unquestionably •
are) as unqualified precedents why a provision of
the isme kind should be made for the Officers of
the Artillery, Cavalry,. Foot,.and Marines, in the
British Service. Among other things it will be
said, that the table at the Horse Guards is support.'
ad out of Hi. Majesty's privy purse + ; that it is
for his immediate bodyguard, end. that in this re.
spelt he dour no more • than what every General,
Lieutenartt.General, and Governor of a Place, is
supposed to do with regard to the Officers of their
own Guard. Although this pradice is by no means
general, and is growing daily: into disuse, on ac.
count, we • presume, of the irregular payment of
Staff.allow.anees,., nevertheless there is
ettoog Ileft
of the precedent to furnish a very rational hunt to;
wards the establishment of some specific fund,'to be
regularly issued every six months, for the support
of a regimental mess. An evtablislituent of this sort '
would obviate the manifest necessity of adding
something to the pay of the Subalterns, would make
Officers domestic among themselves, anti be the
means of refunding, in a handsome manner, the en.
croachment which must be made upon the subsist.
ence of every commissioned man in the' Army by
the tax upon what is called, Property. It would,
moreover, bring the article of messing under the
imutediate,cuntroul of Government, and put an end
to the rainy irregular Usages which are so often
the sources of regimental jealousies and disputes.—
If temperance and economy, most especially on ser.
vice, be essentially necessary to the fit exercise of
our mental faculties, how muclidoes-it behove every
good :Government to make such regulations for the
management of its Army as will.seeure those ineati.
treble qualities. It may be thought fastidiousness
in us to make any remarks on the Regimental
!Weasel of the Foot Guards, or of any other Corps ;
particularly after what has already been said re.
spelling their establishment, which can be coital./
tiered in no other light than a solenditi excrescence
on the Regular Army. We should not, however,
do justice to the Public, or be consistent with Our.
selves, were we to omit any observation which
might eventually, be of use to the Army at large.--
We believe we 4it condi: when we state, that no
Officer in the &tot Guards, out of the metropolis,
can pay his daily quota to the bless under 6s. Let
any man calculate the annual amount of such a con.
tribution, and then ask himself,How is the Ensign to
answer other unavoidable expences ? We know, that
it is now become a praitice, not only in thiS Corps,
but also in the Line, to ascertain, aortae degree,
the private property of any individual before he
is recommended to His Majesty for a comtnissionl,
liar what does this prove ? eititer that the pay is
too little, or that the expel-wee: of a British Regi.
'tient are extravagant and injudicious. That the
former is the cast no man will pretend to deny ; and

* This proposition, which is cettainly novel, will to many
persons appear visionary in the highest degree. But whilst
she Allowances to Captains of Companies for the charge of
arias, &c. continue to be issued in the way they are, wei shall
not be afraid of • trespassing Upon our favourite prinCipie of
consolidation, by hinting at a similar provision for the main.
teinmer of a incus in every marching regiment on service.
t This supposition is erroneous the expence being chargp
ed in the Army Estimates.
Such melaneholy perversion of every true military
principle has in this instance been prevalent amongst us, that
the most aelive and enterprising young man may be kept out
of some particular regiments on account of nis want of private
property. We can state, from authority, that in one corps of
lntoitry the iiuti;pensible first qualification for a pair oleo.
lours has been isot. per annum.

that tune economy royit be aiiseriett in the' atlert
is equally manifest. But in both instances some
specific 'regulation ought to be Made to eq4.l,lize'r
as much as possible, the mess expenditure. Ir
drunkenness be justly considered RS' Oni of the
greatest crimes of which a Private Soldier' can he
guilty, and if his daily Meals be not only stridif
ascertained, but under constant inspeftion,
should any,,-Officer (let his resources be hsc.
they may) have, the power of exceeding 'hc
bounds of. fpru,lence‘? We know the darted:
tics to :which; a specific regulation on 'this hes°
mist he'liable at the same time it is impossible'
not to feel the -necessity of it. The NY of the
Line is certainly too small to answer the loam•
eel exPetices of the times ; and although 1t som'
,regiments the greatest economy be:observed, lhc.
extravagance of others renilrs the jualion of C",ry:
.peculiarly invidious.. And nothing surely can 111"1:
tat. against good order and cordial co-onersti'
more than the galling eircumsiance of a po;,r
being obliged to contribute as mu.:ll to the refit'
mental mess as any Of the Officers or CaPi"i'th
We feel that it would be unjust "n axpett the 5'
system to • prevail in marching regiments thet
tributes. so mtterially to the conitorts of the °VA"'
tern in Militia• Corps ; and as king as the pntebase
°lcon-missions exists, we cannot see how a remejf
could be applied ; unless it proceeded from a gent'
ral diffusion of Royal Benevolence or National C'n*
tribution. These observations are hazarded with ths
sole view of provoking that sort of disetassionamuni
military Min, the result of which might eventsill
Lead to some specific system, and point cot bY
means a fond might be established; from the gra°
abolition of extravagant emoluments, go as to Pre"
vent any additional burthen upon the public.