The Sun.
London, England, 1834-11-05 00:00:00

MATTHIAS THE PROPHET%

( From the
joAuslbanind
y(wArdueralic,anw)hßovsene ingprjopoeruninaja.le
This
is
Robert Mathies, was arrested in this city on Monday
afternoon, upon the authority of an advertisement
issued by Mr. Benjamin H. Folger, of the city of New
York. The expressed charge against him was that he
left New York having in hi' possession a large amount
of Mr. Folger's property ; but he has been guilty, it
is asserted, of many other mal-practices, some of them
of the blackest character, and worthy of the most
severe punishment. Mathies commenced his career
of fanaticism some two or three years since in this city,
tsa
ihtnofiurret
first
ydt
ti)afterwards
hwhi went
evteo r doctrines,
eeew u
butrYedo
when he proclaimed himself " The Prophet of the
s
rtwith let
hfwherealviot
tuler hesatsuccess
God of the Jews," and asserted divine power. He
a few others of less consequence, of three of the most
wealthy and respected merchants of Pearl-street,
Messrs. Pierson, Mills, and Folger. These gentlemen
received his doctrines in the fullest confidence, and
believed him to be all he declared himself. Their
treasures were thrown open to the impostor, and he
lavished them upon himself most profusely. He pur-
chased the most costly wardrobe. His robes of office
were richly trimmed with gold and silver. He wore a
sword of the finest workmanship, and his gold watch
and establishment equalled the lustre of the most costly.
The bondage of these gentlemen was complete ; and
the fact that three intelligent citizens of New York
were thus deluded will form one of the darkest pages
in the whole chapter of modern fanaticism ; but the
chain with which they were bound is broken. Death
liberated Mr. Pierson. He died in West Chester
county, at his country seat near Sing Sing, and the
event was clothed in mystery. A short time previous
to his death, and while in health, as we understand,
Mathies prevailed upon Mr. Pierson to assign to him
his whole estate. He was shortly after taken sick,
and, although his friends who were with him insisted
upon calling medical aid, they were deterred by
Mathies, who told that "he had power of life and
death, and Mr. Pierson would not die I" But he did
die, and a subsequent examination of his body by
three able physicians resulted in the conviction that he
had been poisoned, and certificates to this effect were
drawn up and signed by these physicians, and are now
in New York, Who poisoned Mr. Pierson is to be
determined by a proper tribunal. Mr. MAN, ....tier
the strange delusion, became a lunatic. His friends
removed him to the country, and from the society of
Mathies, titlit his reason soon returned. He is now
convinced of his error, and has abandoned the delu-
sion. The mysterious death of Mr. Pierson, and the
accompanying circumstances, shook the confidence of
Mr. Folger and his family, and they resolved to aban-
don Mathies and his principles. After his return to
New York, they announced their determination to the
" Prophet," who then declared that if they did, "sick.
ness, and perhaps death, would follow." This threat
was not sufficient to overthrow their resolution, and a
day was fixed upon when Mathies should leave the
house. Upon the morning of that day Mathies par-
took of but very little breakfast, and scarcely tasted the
coffee, saying as an excuse, that he was not well. Im-
mediately after breakfast Mr. Folger, his wife, and
children were taken violently sick. Mr. Folger did
not suspect the cause of the sickness until after the
villain had left the city, when upon examination he
learned that the black woman who had done the cook-
ing for the family had also abstained from the use of
any coffee upon that morning ; and, from other circum-
stances, he became confirmed that the woman was
bribed by Mathies to poison the family. From some
cause the effort was not successful. To "rine of the
family did it prove fatal, although all;;; them have not
yet recovered from its effects. This, transaction induced
Mr. Folger to procure his arrest, for which purpose he
despatched the notice before mentioned. Mathies did
not expect thus suddenly to be stopped in his career,
Mr. Folger gave him
and expressed a good deal of surprise when arrested,
the articles were
}-10 hail in his possession two large trunks, which he
acknowledged contained articles that did belong to
lnlagrs in gold, a gold
sword of great value,
dollars
agoooing to measure the
whenawsMun nrdt.dcahr-C:ro Iwpor,
dresses,
bahr
about
Nswot,
seu'whewtsilaycsbhooohrluedkl
about 500
lsWlsoaaaAroi
ssdn:
orth
bounds of his paradise, " the gates thereof and. the
walls thereof." He was taken to New York,

Within the memory of man the waters of the Seine
have never been so low at this min!! of the year as they aro
at present. Between M61.11-n and Corbeil there are places at
which there it not a depth of more than from five to seven
inches, so that the river is impassable for the larger barges..♦
Galignani's Messenger.

LONDON,
WEDNESDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 5, 1834.

One .third only of the people of Great Britain being
engaged in agriculture, and the increase of the whole
population being at the rate of about fifteen per cent.
in ten years, there is no other country in the world
where so much encouragement is receivable by agricul-
ture from the increasing demand of an increasing po-
pulation for food. Not content, however, with the
operation of a natural cause, which progressively raises
the price of corn, and increases the production of it, our
landed interest have prevailed upon the Legislature to at-
tempt to raise its price in their behalf still more by artificial
means. The consequences of this attempt, after bring-
ing distress upon the country at large, are tiow recoil-
ing upon the authors of the evil. Perhaps there is not
a landlord in the Southern and Western Counties of
England, whose rents are not in arrear. Many are
without tenants in several of their farms. The Northern
and Eastern Counties, for a time, escaped such conse-
quences, from their superior mode of cultivation. But the
operation of the present corn law is now producing similar
consequences there,linretrare-extenatreginro ZrOriana,
notwithstanding the system of corn rents there intro-
duced, the absence of tithes, and the comparative freedom
from poor rates, the abuses of which have progressively
diminished the daily labour of the working classes in
England. The time having now arrived when re-
ceivers of rent have become the greatest sufferers from
the operation of the present corn law, in the exhaus-
tion of the fruitful powers of the soil, rendering it in-
capable of yielding rent, they may now be expected
on their own account to listen with patience, and thus
learn how it happens that farmers have been deprived
of their capital—how agricultural labourers have been,
and continue to be, thrown out of employment—and
how rents continue to come down. We therefore pro-
pose to dedicate a portion of our columns to the in-
vestigation of this subject. We do not intend to go
further back than the year 1772, because the leading facts
applicable to it since that period do not admit of dis-
pute, most of them appearing, from documents laid
before Parliament ; and because since that period the
country has been under the influence of two opposite
Corn systems, each affected by circumstances of an
opposite tendency. For forty years previous to the
year 1815, the trade in Corn in Great Britain was free ;
since that year it has been restrained. During thirty-
five years of t'ae free period, the exchangeable ;11.1oe of
money continued to fall as it had done for three hun-
dred years befo're, thereby progressively raising the price
of all commodities, and Corn among others. In the year
1811, money began to rise in exchangeable value, and
has continued to rise ever since, thereby progressively