The Sun.
London, England, 1844-09-18 00:00:00

STATE OF THE PRISONS.

Mr. Sheriff MUSGROVE took the opportunity, at the
close of his shrievalty, to call the attention of the
Court to the state of the City prisons. He congra-
tulated the Court upon the fact that in the Borough
Compter there were no prisoners at all; that in
Whitecross-street prison there were but 134 prisoners,
although the last report contained a list of 340; and
that in the goal of Newgate there was not a single
prisoner who was under the sentence of transporta-
tion.—(Hear, hear.) For much of the improvement
which had thus taken place, the Court were indebted
to Sir James Graham

Alderman Hummmur gave notice that he should,

at the next Court, move that it be referred to the
General Purposes Committee, to consider and report
whether any, and what measures, should be taken to
dispose of the Borough Compter, or to diminish the
expenses thereof. That prison had, by the new Act,
become wholly useless, for it had been used for un-
fortunate debtors who were confined for sums not re-
cognised by that law as amounts for which the person
was liable to be seized. The expense of keeping up
the establishment reached 1,0001. a year, and it would
have been much better to pay the debts of the few
persons who were generally inclosed within its walls
than to expend it in keeping up an establishment of
the kind.

Alderman FAREBROTISER said, the subject was one
of a serious nature, and required much consideration.

THE LATE WILLS' FORGERIES.
Sir PETER LAURIE brought up the report of the
Committee to which it was referred, to allow John
and Daniel Eprrester, the able City officers, a sum of
money as a a,cknowledgipen,t•of their extraordinary
exertions inAlis .late ,deteqion and apprehension of
the will forgent..i. Tlio4report recommended that the
Court shouli,v4F,,Vie:iiiin or, 1001. to each of those
officers.
Aldermanil'AiEuitoniEu said he perfectly agreed
with the Cosimittee in. thee. high opinion they had ex-
pressed of the merits and exertions of those clever
officers, but he preferred to the proposed plan that of
voting to them the money in terms of a general nature
referring to_the services which they were constantly
rendering to The public.—(Hear, hear.) To reward
them for their exertimo, relative to the individual
cases of the will forgers, would be to reflect upon the
Governmenty, as if the two persons who had been
principally instrumental in bringing such criminals to
justice, had not been properly considered in the pay-
ment of the expenses of the prosecution.—(Hear,
hear.) In order to make the vote unanimous, he
hoped a change to the effect he suggested would be
adopted.
Sir PETER LAURIE agreed in the propriety of the
suggestion, and the terms of the recommendation
having been altered, the sum of 1001. was unanimously
voted to each of the officers.

ALLEGED ATTACK UPON TIIE COURT OF ALDERMEN.
Alderman COPELAND, in speaking upon some ques-
tion upon the paper of business, of no public import-
ance, took occasion to state that he had, with a great
deal of surprise and indignation, read, in a speech
attributed, in the Morning Herald newspaper, to the
Commissioner of the City Police, a most virulent and
unfounded attack upon the Court of. Aldermen. Mr.
Harvey had piought proper.to assert, in the Common
Hall, that the „Aldermen had little or no duties to per-
form, and that they were amply repaid by their pre-
sentations to. Christ's Hospital for everything re-
quired of them. Now it happened that the Aldermen
had not only very important duties to perform, but
there were constant demands upon their pockets,
from the various charitable institutions with which
the wards abounded. That a person who, like Mr.
Harvey, was indebted to the Aldermen for his ap-
pointment, should express himself in such a manner—
in a manner totally at variance with truth—was what
he could not very well understand. With regard to
the presentations to which he was entitled as an
Alderman, he must declare that he would much
rather be without them, for there were at least fifty
applications for every one, and he was of course put
to the pain of affronting forty-nine of those who
applied. The Alderman then enumerated the duties
which he and his brethren were obliged to perform,
and stated that he was prevented, by the rapidity
with which the Hall was dissolved on Saturday, from
noticing the unfounded aspersions uttered by Mr.
Harvey on the hustings.
Alderman FAREBROTUER was sorry that Alderman
Copeland had condescended to notice such a tissue of
absurdities. The charge was so totally at variance
with truth, that he was fearful the Livery would turn
round upon the Aldermen, and ask them why they
retained such a person in the service of the Corpora-
tion ? But he rather thought the reporter of the
Morning Herald must have made a mistake in as-
cribing to the Commissioner such language. He
hoped it would be found to be the reporter's mistake,
and that something like an apology would appear in
a paragraph on the subject.
Alderman HUMPHERY said he happened to hear the
speech of the Commissioner, and he confessed that he
was astonished to hear Alderman Copeland take such
notice of it. Mr. Harvey spoke while excited, and he
spoke as Alderman Copeland generally spoke when in
a similar state of excitement. With respect to the
presentation to Christ's Hospital which had given
such pain and disappointment, it was very easy to
avoid anything disagreeable to a man's feelings
arising from the privilege, by tendering every one of
them, as he did, to the inhabitants of the ward, to give
to the greatest claimant. That would be a sure me-
thod of cure, and Mr. Harvey, he was convinced,
would, if he thought he had given any pain to any
member of the Court, retract the observations which
might have given offence.
A MEMBER.—DO you apologise for him ?
Alderman HUMPIIERY said that Mr. Harvey felt
disappointed. He held a situation which yielded no
more than 8001. a year, and he had been anxious to
get another which was worth 2,5001. a year. It was,
however, out of the question that he could obtain such
a place without the aid of the Court of Aldermen, and
he felt annoyed and disappointed at finding no sup-
port in that quarter.
Sir PETER LAURIE said, as for Mr. Harvey, poor
fellow, he feared that his eloquence would have no
effect upon the Livery, and to his unutterable agony
he found that they would not be humbugged, and
that he could not even prevail upon them to grant
him a little empty applause.—(A laugh.) Both he
and his friend Mr. Heppel had dropped down into
their original insignificance, and were likely to re-
main in that condition undisturbed.—(Laughter.)
The Court then adjourned.

IVIVENIIOE, SEPT. 15.—The Innisfail steamer, I
from Newcastle to London, got on the Gun fleet Sand
12th inst., but came off yesterday, after discharging
part of her cargo, and proceeded for the river. A large
iron barque, reported to be bound for Rouen, went on
the Guntieet yesterday ; the crew were throwing the
aargo (coals) overboard.—Essex Herald.
TRAGICAL OCCURRENCE.—On Monday the most
painful excitement prevailed in South Molton-street,
Grosvenor-square, in consequence of the following tragi-
cal occurrence at the house of Mr. Manicorn, baker, No.
34, in the above-named street:—A female, named Mary
Levy, aged 18 years, has fer the last six months been in the
service of Mr. Manicorn. Lately a suspicion had been en-
tertained that she was pregnant, which she firmly denied.
Yesterday morning she was up at seven o'clock, and half
an hour afterwards, having prepared her master's break-
fast in the parlour, she left the room. About eight o'clock
Mr. Manicorn wanting her, he rang the bell, which, she
not responding to, he called her by name, but she made
no answer. Ile then ran up stairs, and on reaching the
second flight was horror struck at beholding her lying
on her stomach on the stairs, which were in a pool of
blood, her head resting on the top one, and by her side
an infant covered with blood. Ho descended into the
street and alarmed the neighbours, several of whom re-
turned into the house with him, followed by Mr. Clark,
surgeon, Marylebone-lane, who pronounced her to be
dead. The infant, a fine full-grown female child, was
also dead, but had evidently been born alive and then
strangled, the strings of its mother's apron being tied
tightly round its neck.
DONEGAL, SEPT. 11.—Arrd. Thomas Close, Ilern, St.
John's, New Brunswick Zephyr, Quebec.