The Sun.
London, England, 1821-05-02 00:00:00

THE THEATRE:

KING'S TIIEATRE.—La Clemenza di Pito la 4
night introduced two'new Singers at-this Theatre;
'Wadable ALBERT; who appeared as Vitellia, And
Signor CURIONI as Tito. ALBERT'S voice is 1.
treble; agreeable in tone but not p6werful. She
is evidently a good musician. -She sings with
ease, and graceful effect: her figure is large;
but her manner renders, it pleasing. - CURIONI'S
voice is a tenor, not powerful; but' .well cultivatL
ed, and his style is 'simple and impi*ssii-e. The
Theatre was crowded.

. ,
.
----
CovENT-GAnntN.The Operatic-drama; en.;:
titled. The Slave, , vas represented-.last night at
this Theatte.-Miss ITAiLLANC•E•took-the part of
.Zelinda, originally performed by' Miss-STEPIIENS.
Miss H A LLANDE possesses a voice .strong and of
great compass: She sung admirably, and she
improves in deportment. 11,14CftE.in0 Grimbid
is one of his best efforts. Both were much ap=
plauded.

THE LONDON JOURNALS.

[DAILY EXTRACTS FROM THE MORNING PAPERS.]

[MORNING CHRONICLE.]
The report is still prevalent at Paris that
Russia 'means to march a large army into. Spain,
though the steadiness of the French Funds would
hardly- seem to warrant the belief in- a secret
treaty for the passage of this army through France.
Letters from Petersburgh confidently announce
most extensive military preparations, though it is
conjectured by many that their destination is
Turkey, and not Spain. • The fall of the rate of
exchange is appealed to as an evidence of the
apprehensions entertained on this subject. Our
readers will see from the Lisbon Papers, that the
Cortes are profiting by the lesson afforded them
by, the Neapolitan Revolution, and adopting
measures for displacing all those Magistrates who
are inimical to the new order of things, and
thwart the Government in the steps they are
taking for the public good. It is well observed
by one of our contemporaries, " that in all great
changes, such -as that :.n Portugal, decisive, ener..
getic measures, followed out with determination,
are th'e best for al! parties."

[BRITISH PRESS.]
The character and conduct of the revolution in
Spain proved irresistibly that it could not have
been the work of a few persons; for during the
time that the Army of Andalusia lay in the Isla
de Leon, besieging or besieged, a sufficient op-
portunity was afforded to the King of Spain to
appeal to the sense of his people at large, but not
a town or province declared for his service. The
success of the revolution was for several. weeks
extremely doubtful, and if it rested exclusively
upon the army in the Isla, Spain had not now
enjoyed the fair hopes Of future prosperity which
her Constitution presents to hgr; but the army
in every part of the country proclaimed the Con-
stitution, the capital announced its adherence to
the system proposed, and every city in the king-
dom followed the example.' If ever a revolution
were the work of the majority of the nation, the
Spanish revolution may be pronounced to be
such, and in accordance with this feeling foreign
Governments did not hesitate long to recognize
the change in the political condition of Spain ;
and Lord Liverpool expressing in Parliament
the sense of the British Cabinet, admitted that
the revolution was accomplished with the general
concurrence of the People of Spain, at the mo-
ment that his Lordship attempted to distinguish
between the case of Spain and that of Naples.

[MORNING PosT.]
The accounts which continue to reach us re-
lative to the Greek Insurrection are still of a
vague and unsatisfactory description. The state-
ment of Prince Ypsilantihaving passed the

Danube and advanced into Bulgaria, bears a. clia-

racter that must at least be deemed somewhat
questionable. Such an enterprise in sa early a
stage of his campaign seems very improbable;
and if it be accomplished at all, important indeed
must the event be considered, as it would afford
proof, abundant and irrefragable, of the vast,',not
to say complete degradation of Turkish power
and discipline. Trajan, if we recollect rightly,
did pass the immense river in that district ; but
the difference between Roman and. Dacian dis-
cipline was clearly much greater than that be-
tween the Wallachian levies and the Ottoman
troops, however wretched the latter may be
deemed. Certainly the prospects of the Insur-

gents may on the whole be viewed as consider-
ably improved, the more especially as it is satis-
factorily ascertained that they have nothing to
apprehend from any interference on the part of
the Russian cordon about to be ,formed upon thb
frontiers. Nothing, indeed, can be more errone-
ous than the reports which are continued to be
circulated respecting the objects of the present
movements of the Imperial Army. With respect
to that portion of it which is on its march to-
wards Italy, it is asserted that when it shall have

reached a Certain point, it will take.a direction
towards the South of France, and pass through
that country to -Spain, by permission, of course,
of the French Government. We have already,
we believe, furnished a satisfactory clue to the
origin of great part of the reports industriously
circulated relative to the Emperor of Russia.—
Here is one which may answer no less than three
purposes to the inventors of feisehoods in this
respect--first, it contributes to the imputation of
ambition to one of the chief preservers of tran-
quillity in Europe ; secondly, it tends to make
the French Government unpopular.; and thirdly,
it supplies the Spanish Revolutionists with a pre-
text for the severities by which they.are, endea-
vouring to consolidate their tyranny. With so
many, motives for the circulation of this report,
we may be sure that it will. not speedily be suf-
fered to subside.

[NEW TAN Es.]

For our part we-are as ready to,state our views
and wishes in,regard. to ,Spain,, as is rpgard- to,
Gyeece. We believe that the Spanish Monarchy.
required the adoption oEsorne more liberal and on-!
lightenedsystem,than'that which e.xjsted,in 1819;.
but we are luite satisfied.that the change ought not
to have been brought,about in the. manner, or oni
the principlesby which the Revolution was guided.
We are satisfied that what is called the Spanish.
Constitution is a tissue of :absurdities which never.
has been and never can be reduced -to •practice ;
that it is a mad democracy,. utterly incompatible
with civil. liberty, and justly odious to.the great•
body of the people; we belieye that power in that
ill-fated country is at present in the hands of a,
mere mob ; that the kingdom is torn to pieces by!
faction, and is, in fact, in a state of civil war, by'
which it must be wholly desolated,_ unless eitfier.
the 'democratic or the monarchical party becomes;
strong enough to put down
.its opponents, which.
event we think is not reasonably to be antici-
pated, without the interference of some foreign
Power, either' by negociation or.by force. In this
state of things, whatever part: the Continental'
Powers may take, an absolute neutrality is the'
clear policy of England. We can certainly en-
tertain no wish to see Russian armies In the
South of Europe; and as little can we desire to

see a 'mad Democracy triumph in Spain. The
most favourable result that we can anticipate is,
that the Spanish Revolutionists, alarmed by what
'has happened in Naples and,Piedmont, may vo-
luntarily adopt the mediation of some enlightened
Powers, who may be disposed to guarantee such
a Constitution as shall be acceptable to the rest
of the Spanish nation, and consistent with the
tranquillity of Europe.

[MORNING HERALD.]
In Portugal itself there appears to be some
alarm. The people in the provinces have, in
some instances, denounced the local Magistrates
as ill-affected ; and it seems the feeling of the
Cortes that it would be expedient to give more
strength to the Executive Power. But the inde-
pendence of Portugal will stand or fall with that
of Spain. That the latter country will soon be
the theatre of another war of invasion and civil
fury, seems to be believed in Paris and in Lon-
don. The Sovereigns at Lay back are suspected
of having concluded a secret article, obliging
them to restore the ancient order in Spain.
There appears some reluctance among well-in-
formed and well-judging persons to believe this
—and the suggestions that render it improbable
are numerous. Would the Three Powers, as
they are called, venture upon a measure of such
abstract and European importance, without con-
sulting France and England ?—Would these
countries connive at it if communicated to
them ? We cannot believe either aifirmative.-
The present has been described as a hypocritical.
age. In truth, every age has its characteristic
vice ; and cant is ,better than fanatical rage or
profligate impiety. But in the hypocrisy of these
times there is more, effrontery than decorum. An
enlightened sense of religion, and a rational love
of freedom, may prefer the tranquillity of a to-
lerant, though erroneous faith, and a mild, abso-
lute Government in a foreign nation, to the
chances and changes of revolution. But should
this extend to the Turkish dominion over the
Greeks, for example ? Yet do persons who affect
a zeal for the propagation of the Bible, openly de-
fend this most odious, most debasing, and falsest
of.religions,—which spends all its force in quench-
ing intellect, and reducing man to a tyrant or a
slave,—and in both, to a brute. The abuses of
liberty are so' frequent,—anarchy, ambition, and
even mere quackery, so frequently assume the
name,—that there have really been but few con-
tests for real political freedom. But there is a
freedom still more precious than that of politics—
it is the freedom of the mind. Few Governments,
which tolerate the cultivation of pure literature
and speculative science, should be abandoned for
the hazard of unloosing the passions in a revolu-
tion. But a Government that shuts out light
from the mind—that would keep the human race
stationary—worse than the very brutes, which
have the instin ctl of nature without the furies of
prejudice—such a Government is a nuisance.—
And such was that of Spain, with, the restoration
of which she is now menaced. Yet do we -hear
affected friends of‘ ;Protestant liberty of cOn-
science, and intellect, exulting at its probable
restoration.

[THE TIMES.]
Lord John Russell's motion for giving the
Elective Franchise to large towns is •fixed for
the 9th and not, the 16th of May. We suppose
there is little doubt how this question will be
disposed of in the house, and as little how it
would be disposed of out of it. Allowing, how-
ever, the pre-eminent wisdom of Parliament, it
seems a strange kind of logic to say " we are bet-
ter and wiser, and our body will be more beneficial-
ly constituted, the fewer they are who elect and
constitute us. At present we are sent, by so many
people to represent the whole ; but if a greater
number were to be allowed to assume the consti-
tuent function, we should be less pure, ofa more
corrupt body would be substituted in our place."
I f this reasoning were true, we should be glad to
know in what powers, natural or acquired, those
who now send members to Parliament by prescrip-
tive abuse, are superior to those who would send
them under a more equal extension of the elective
franchise ?—in what it is that one or two men,
remarkable for no one virtue or talent, excel a
community of their compeers ? But if the.
quality of the constituent body' is •not im
proved ; why, it may be asked, increase the
quantity ? The answer is obvious—that an un-
due influence 'may be exercised upon a small
quantity of any kind, which will lose its effect
upon a larger one. However, as the optimists
say that every thing which is, is best, let those
who have no vote at present acquiesce in the
greater competence of those who have votes, to
choose or appoint members both for themselves
and others.

In consequence of the depressed state of Agri-
culture, the Dowager Duchess of BUCCLEUGII
has, with her accustomed feeling on all occasions
for her tenants, ordered her stewards immedi,
ately to reduce her rents, on her estates at Dun-
church and the neighbourhood, with the promise
of a further reduction, should the present times
continue.—(Leicester Journal.) _ _

The Nottingham Journal states that by the ex-
ertions of the late Overseers of St. Mary's pa-
rish, in that borough, a saving of nearly nine thou-
sand pounds has been effected in the expeudi-
ture of the parish during the last year. • The to-
tal amount of payment for the year 1819-20, is
given at 29,742/. 9s. 9d. and for the year 1820-21,
at 20,8701. 11s. 11d.
FIRE—An alarming fire broke out on Sunday night at
Cranmore Villa, Herts, the seat of C. R. Musgrove, Esq. in
the-absence of the family. It was occasioned by the boiling
Over of some combustible materials, preparing for the repair or
the house the next morning. The flames spread rapidly—in
less than an hour it was a ruinous pile within the walls, and
not a vestige of furniture was saved. A poor boy, of the name
of Holdsworth, who assisted in the stables, and who slept over
the kitchen, broke his thigh in escaping from the window; and
a maid servant who was in bed at the top of the house, was se-
riously burnt in making her escape. The loss, with the stabling
consumed,lamounts to 30001._

CHILD MuRDIN.--Yesterday morning a female
child was found crammed into a tunnel in Gore-
lane, Knightsbridge : its head had been crushed,
the bones broken, and the body bruised. Infor-
mation has been given to the Coroner, who has
appointed an inquest to be held thereon. This is
the fitfh child that has been found dead under
suspicious circumstances in the same lane within
the last three or four months.

PARLIAMENTARY PAPERS.

REPORT OF THE BREAD COMMITTEE.

The Select Committee appointed to take into
consideration the existing regulations relative to
the making and sale of bread, and to report their
observations thereupon to the House :

Have proceeded, in pursuance of the orders of the House, to
consider the operation of the Act now in force, viz. the 59th
Geo. 111. c. 36, intituled, " An Act to repeal certain Acts now
in force for regulating the making and sale of breid out of the
city of London, and the liberties thereof, and beyond the week-
ly bills of mortality, and ten miles of the Royal Exchange,
where no assize is set, and for establishing other provisions and
regulations relative thereto." And they have further taken
into consideration the Report of a Committee, dated May 22,
1818, to whom the several petitions of country bakers, present-
ed to the House on the 11th Feb., and on the 3d and 10th
March of the same year, were referred, to examine the matters
thereof, and report their observations thereupon to the House ;
and your Committee have to express their entire concurrence in
the said Report; " that under the Statutes referred to in the
above named petitions, the operation of the said Statutes has, in
many instances, been made an instrument of oppression against
the fair tradesmen, who by the pow-er given to informers, of
seizing bread at any time distant from the period of its being
baked, and of keeping it three dais after seizure before he can
be compelled to have it weighed before &Magistrate, are liable
to informations and consequent convictions, from which the ne-
cessary waste of the article from keeping, makes it impossible
for them to protect themselves but by baking • their loaves of
such an excess of weight beyond what the law requires, as must
totally exhaust their reasonable gains, and make their trade n o
longer an object worth the employment of their time and ca=
pitals. From these vexations, aggravated as they have been by
the practice of common inforniers, your Committee feel the
country bakers are entitled to the earliest consideration of the
Legislature to relieve them ; and though they do not consider
that they have either had time, or that the late period of the
Session is likely to give them time, to investigate: all the mi-
nute details of the subject that might be necessary to en..ble
them to recommend any measure of permanent-legislation, they
see no difficulty or inconvenience that can occur to the public,
if the Legislature should think proper to extend to the coun-
try bakers the provisions of the Act of the 55th of the King
upon this point, with some 'alteration only as to the period
within which bread should be liable to be weighed, for a limit-
ed term, which would give time for a more full and detailed
examination of the subject.
But it does appear to your Committee, that the provisions
and regulations proposed by that Committee, and subsequently
adopted by the House, with a view to redress the grievances com-
plained ofinthe aforesaid petitions, and with a view, doubtless,
at ehe same time to retain for the benefit of the - public, those
means of protection against imposition in the manufacture and
sale of bread; which previous Acts of Parliament were intended
to afford, have not been effectual for either of the above named
purposes. It has, in fact, been practically found, that in the
attempt to protect the baker from unjust prosecutions, the pub-
lic has been exposed to material injury. In provincial districts,
reports from the, counties of Norfolk and Dorsetshire especially
Prove, that it has been found extremely difficult, if not im-
possible, to convict the baker or seller of bread deficient in legal
weight.
Ist, Because the complaint must 'be made, the summons
must be served upon the accused, and the bread alleged to be
deficient in weight must be weighed before a Magistrate, within
24 hours of the time at which it was drawn from the oven.

2dly, Because the bread supposed to be deficient in weight
must be proved, when produced before the Magistrate, to be in
the same state as it was when taken from the baker or seller of
the bread; proof of which must be afforded by a disinterested
witness or witnesses on behalf of the complainant.

On the part of the baker and seller of bread it has been prov-
ed by the evidence, taken before your Committee, of respectable
bakers in the metropolis, that it is impossible foithe baker,even
under the present law, (enacted especially for his protection) to
guard against vexatious and unjust informations for selling
bread deficient in weight. It appears, that unless the baker
makes all the loaves in a batch, upon an average, so heavy as
to cover the partial deficiency of weight in any of them, (occa-
sioned either by their particular position in the oven, or from
part,of one loaf unavoidably adhering to the other) there
mutt be loaves which, without any fraudulent intention on the
part of the baker, would be deficient in weight, and render him
liable to con action under the existing law. It is obvious, that
were the baker to adopt the only course which could give him
security, namely, that of making the batch of loaves so much
over weight as to cover the partial deficiency in any of them,
his price being fixed upon the minimum of weight among the
loaves of the batch, he must love his profit upon the average of
loaves, or sell at a rate above the prevailing prices, which would
he the mops of losing his customers. it has also been stated
in evidence-, that the present law: relative to the sale of bread
fails in affbrding the bakerprotection against the persecution of
common informers. Individuals of their trade, known to them-
selves, have been induced by threats from that class of persons
to enter into a sort of compromise with them, and to bargain,
that upon payment of a certain sum per month they should be
allowed with impunity (so far as the informer of the district is
concerned) to impose upon the public, by selling their bread
.deficient in weight. Whatever their original disposition these-
fbre might be, after entering into such an agreement it is natu-
ral to conclude that they indemnify themselves to the amount
at the expenc,e of the public.
The nugatory, and consequently mischievous, tendency of
the existing law, holding forth to the public an expectation of
protection which in reality it does not afford, thereby suspend-
ing the caution natural to all men in their own defence, ap-
pears to be a sufficient objection to the existing law so far as con-
cerns the public ; and on the past of the baker, sufficient evi-
dence of tfie inutility of the law has been afforded by the per-
sons extensively engaged in the trade who have been examined
before your. Committee.
It thence became a question, what improvement in the law
could be made ? A deliberate review of the subject has been
taken by your Committee; and confirmed, as they have been
in consequent opinion by letters from individuals of high
resmtability in different parts of the kingdom, they have no
hesitation in recommending that the law relative to the sale of
bread should in future (or for one year at least) impose no re-
striction as to the denomination of loaves or their weight. It
has been perceived, that from the Act of 31 Henry 111., which
went the length of regulating the sale of provisions generally,
the legislative restrictions then imposed have from time to time
gradually abated. Competition has been found, in most cases,
effectually to supply the place of legislative regulation. It is
competition alone which now regulates the price of bread where
no assize is set. And your Committee cannot discover any rea-
son for supposing, that it would fail upon trial equally to se-
cure to the public a fair quantity of this, as of .all other ar-
ticles of subsistence, which are sold by weight generally with-
out restriction. • 1
Your,Committee have been informed, that the practice of sell-
ing bread, free from all restrictions, has prevailed in some dis-
tricts of the kingdom for many years. Communication has
been had with some of those districts • and it is stated, that no
complaint is there heard against the bakers, and that bread has
been, and continues to be, sold in such places, of excellent qua-
lity, and at the lowest possible price.
Your Committee have no intention to recommend an altera-
tion of the law, so far as it relates to the adulteration of bread,
otherwise than by the increase, in some small degree, of ,the
penalties attaching to any person convicted of selling bread
adulterated by the mixture of ingredients not allowed by law.
The retaining part of the existing law also, which enacts,
" that every baker or seller of bread shall keep legal weights
and scales in his shop to weigh bread when required by his cus-
tomers, and that he shall be liable to a penalty in case of his re-
fusal to weigh when so required," appears to your Committee
to be the most expedient ; but when by these means facility has
been afforded to the public to protect itself, it appears con-
clusive that the Legislature can do no more to secure it against
imposition.
•
'l7th April, 1821.