The Sun.
London, England, 1842-11-17 00:00:00

JOINT-STOCK BANKS.

' Joint-stock banking having become a subject of
paramount interest at the present moment, the fol-
lowing description of the actual working of the system
in Scotland, taken from the " Bankers' Circular," will
be generally acceptable :
" We shall employ a few words in describing the
present general state of the Scotch banks. On the
late Parliamentary investigation into the affairs of
Banks of Issue; it appeared from their witnesses
that the aggregate amount of their deposits was at
least 30,000,0001. One of the most intelligent of the
class (himself a dekty to London on the occasion),
however, told us that he had no doubt the actual sum
exceeded 35,000,0001. sterling. What do the bankers
do with this large amount ? We often see mysteri-
ous allusions in the London journals about the in-
vestments of the Scotch banks in the public or Go-
vernment securities, and they are no doubt at times
large; but we are of opinion they never form more
than a comparatively insignificant portion of the
amount of the available funds of the Scotch banks—
that is to say, meaning so far as such investments are
the property of the institutions, separated from those
of their customers and business connections. We
have no doubt that we could name about a dozen in-
dividuals in England whose aggregate capital invested
in the public funds would, when taken at the highest,
much exceed the sum invested in the same by all the
banks of Scotland, taken at the highest. Immeasur-
ably the greater portion of the sum under the com-
mand of the banks of Scotland is employed within
the country, on mortgages, loans to public Companies,
merchants, manufacturers, and farmers—the greatest
proportions of the amount being in the latter channels.
" There is nothing more difficult to obtain than ac-
curate statistical information relating to banking af-
fairs; and the Scotch very wisely keep theirs as close
as possible, except when acting in obedience to the
command of Parliament. From the best information
we had access to, we state our belief that the annual
discounts of all the banks of Glasgow amount to a sum
exceeding 50,000,0001. sterling; which, taking the
bills discounted at an average length of three months'
date, would show that those banks always hold an
amount of 12,500,0001. The average length of time
would, however, probably exceed three months date,
for there are cases where bills are occasionally dis-
counted which have 18 months to run, and not a few
at six months' date; therefore we think we should be
perfectly safe in stating the amount of bills always
held by the banks of Glasgow at 15,000,000/. sterling.
The major part of these bills are local, and never travel
out of the bank in which they are discounted, till taken
up, or presented for payment. And, as some sort of
evidence that we do not overstate the annual amount,
we may mention, as a fact, that one of the new banks
of Glasgow discounted within the first year of its
operations 2,500,0001. sterling—a fact which at once
illustrates the amount of what all the larger and older
banks may do, and shows the practice and habit of
the people, and the use they make of bankers. Now,
when we find upon reasonable estimate such a sum as
this in one large town, what must be the entire
' amount lent out to the people by all the banks of
Scotland ?
" Let us observe, too, that so long as enterprise
and industry prosper—and they always would prosper
with occasional, but not dangerously convulsive,
checks, if Scotch bankers were appointed to rule us—
this money is lent out with prudence for the most
beneficial uses. The bills (as a rule) are not dis-
counted to supply funds for distant and hazardous un-
dertakings, on the faith of some great mercantile
name, but on a knowledge of local character, habits,
and pursuits. We may state (again as a rule), that
bills in Scotland are never re-discounted by the banks.
We know that we cannot state it as an absolute un-
varying rule, because we are acquainted with the
fact that two or three of the Scotch banks have occa-
sionally re-discounted with the bill brokers of London.
But we affirm our conviction, that if the sums so re-
discounted since the first bank was opened in Scotland
to the present day could be seen in figures, the entire
amountwould be much less than the sum so re-discounted
by the Northern and Central and Bank of Manchester
in one year. In fact, the great proportion of the
paper discounted being local, it could not be used out
of the country, if there were a disposition to do so,
which there is not. It is astonishing to find so ex-
tensive a system in operation kept almost entirely dis-
tinct and apart from the money-market of London.
4 Even the most opulent and powerful of the Scotch
banks never (as a rule) resort to it to buy bills when
they are most burdened with money. We believe
there are not more than three or four of those insti-
tutions having any regular correspondence with the
London bill-brokers ; and we could name bankers
who command a fund in capital and deposits of from
3,000,0001. to 6,000,0001. sterling, that never opened
an account with those new and influential agencies
for the disposal of money capital. They are wise to
keep their concerns as much as possible free from the
hot and cold fits and feverish convulsions of the London
money-market ;—wise, at all events, for the interest
and welfare of the community which has made them
rich and powerful. had much to do
" We say again that John Knox
with making Scotch banking, and by consequence,
creation of the former), what they are ;
great, measure the
Scotch agriculture (which is in a
for it is owing
to that spirit of resistance to foreign interference,
and the desire of fostering and aggrandizing (per-
haps too exclusively) everything Scotch, that the ex-
traordinary phenomenon of the prosperity of Scotland
is to be attributed. We are firmly
of opinion that
Scotland is suffering much less at this trying juncture
than England ; and that because the
banks protect
and identify themselves more with the people than
the English banks. And they have done this so fez
with less danger, for we were told by one of the best
informed bankers of the country, that during this
protracted period of embarrassment and suffering
the losses sustained by all the banks of Scotland
would in the aggregate amount to a small proportion
of the loss which we have suffered by the six banks of
Manchester."

The merit which is here claimed for the Scotch
banks of acting with more steadiness and ability than
those in England (though the latter, by the way, pro-
fess to be formed entirely on the Scotch system),
must certainly be conceded to them. Whether there
is not, under the surface,
exercised by these banks to secure the payment of the ,
advances by them in preference to creditors of every
other class, which inflicts suffering on the community
at l6.ge, not much inferior to that produced by the
failures under the system as practised in England,
'
has been doubted by many Persons • but this is a ques-
tion upon which the materials for deciding are quite
removed from the view of the public of this country.
Experience has proved it to be wholly unsuited to
England ; and the cause probably is that the wide ex-
tensionseencurity of the Scotch mode of
business.
or f them e
great
tvts their acting in concert,
In regard to the reforms constantly called for on
all sides in the English system of joint-stock bank-
ing, numerous suggestions are almost daily offered,
but chiefly on the means of securing Shareholders
from the consequences of the neglect, or the igno-
rance,of Boards of Directors. That
the
ireetthe dishonesty
orsareusually
elected,
and Boards formed,
before
the concurrence of Shareholders is invited, is or
admitted to be in many eases a necessary evil ; but
a general complaint is, that once organised, scarcely
any change, unless by death or voluntary resigna-
tion,Shareholders venture to
allowed
to take place, as few
oppose the re-election of
those
served, and come recom-
mended by the Board ; and
already
hence it is suggested as a
is
whafterwards
have
beneficial alteration in this respect, that at each
annual meeting one Director at least should abso-
lutelyneweßoard,- who, being aware that
member be elected in his
certainly a very useful
place.check
or retire, i
the
This
rest awn a
would
th form
od u
of
their acts must be subjected to the scrutiny
of individuals
nahloe hadfr, neither
participated in, nor
become
them, would be led to exer-
cise much more vigilance and
ewo
care than when act-
ing under the impression that the knowledge of their
transactions was never to travel out of their own cir-
cle. Though the practice of re-election, indepen-
dently of the will of the Shareholders, possesses a
stothiastn offtthe
the less valuable, and
Bank of England,
sanctionthe
suggestion ne
referredrable as
it is to be hoped that some of the higher class of banks
will set the example of adopting it.
Another recommendation is the introduction, in all
venerable
deeds of settlement, of what already exists in many
of them—a clause empowering or making it impera-
tive on the Shareholders to elect two or three of their
number, not being Directors, to audit the accounts
and report on them to the next general meeting. This
is also a judicious suggestion; as is a third, that it
should be imperative at all times for the clerks in
Joint-stock Banks to furnish lists of the Shareholders
for any of the customers who might ask for them.
Since the system has taken too deep root to be easily
eradicated, the effort should be to obtain through the
Legislature such reforms as may tend to make it work
more safely and efficiently.— nn,„

Yesterday morningo'clock,at eight --
Mr. George Liquorice, a respectable boot and shoe-
maker, residing at
ze committed suicide by
r. It appears from the
No. 91, lioxton Old-town, was
the family of
plunged into the utmost distress by the discovery of
cthuettinun
statement of the deceased's son, that the deceased not
coming down stairs to breakfast at his usual hour, he
g fho
irat u
throatn at e
a havingra
proceeded up stairs, and on entering the bed-room of
his father he was horror-struck at finding him lying
on the floor weltering in his blood, from an incision
in his throat made with a razor. Surgical assistance
was procured, but life had been some time extinct.
No cause is assigned for the rash act. The deceased
retired to bed on Sunday night at his usual hour,
having, according to his custom, read a chapter from
out of the Bible to his wife and family. The de-
ceased has left a widow and large family to deplore
the melancholy event.

Nov. 10.

GENERAL DISTRESS.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

SIR,—I have for some years been a daily reader of
your raper, and deeply lament that your liberal sen-
timents are not general with men of all parties. But
the time has now arrived when politicians must cease
to strive for victory, and direct their energies and at-
tention to the good of their country, without reference
to Whig or Tory Liberal or Conservatives. In
fact, the present distress of the country, must force
itself upon the attention of all men, and it is our duty
to view the state of our affairs calmly and dispas-
sionately.
The knowledge of a disease is half the cure ; and
the question we have to resolve is—How can we
diminish the general distress ? There is but one answer.
We must find profitable employment for our la-
bourers of all descriptions, whether agricultural, com-
mercial, or manufacturing. You most justly observe
The quantity and value of manufacturing and com-
mercial products must be increased before there can
be anything more to give to the farmers." This is a
truism which should be impressed upon the considera-
tion of all statesmen. No improvement in agricul-
ture, no draining, nor increase of produce, can be of
any service to the farmers or landlords, unless they
can increase the number of profitable consumers, of
men who can earn wages by their industry. Trans-
porting the "turn. outs," or sending them to prison,
and their wives and families to the workhouse, will
not diminish, but rather increase our distress. They
are all unprofitable consumers of food, inasmuch as
they live in idleness, and must be supported by an ad-
dition to our taxes and poor-rate.
There is a melancholy and mistaken opinion, too
prevalent with farmers and landlords, that they are
sometimes sacrificed to the manufacturers. Now if
they will only reflect upon the subject, they must be
aware that this cannot be the case, and that the more
the manufacturers flourish, so much the better for the
agriculturist, as it necessarily increases the value of
the land, and all its produce.
No trade can be injured or depressed without the
injury being felt in a greater or less degree by all
classes, and it is for the benefit of society at large that
all should be prosperous.
Irreparable injury has been done to the farmers by
our Corn-laws, which have driven our capital and
skill, our men and machinery, to seek more profitable
employment in other countries, to the primary injury
of our own manufacturers, and the consequent distress
of our farmers and landlords, who only reap a tem-
porary benefit, from our unwise and unjust policy.
The mischief that has been done is past remedy,
and freeing trade more and more, without any refer-
ence to commercial treaties, can alone arrest our
downward progress, a truth which is now admitted
by reflecting men of all parties.
We have much to dread from our notoriously cor-
rupt Commons, for Montesquieu has foretold that
" the English Constitution will perish when the Legis-
lative power shall have become more corrupt than the
Executive." But let us hope that this may not be
the case, and that the union of good men of all par-
ties may arrest our downfal, and save us from still
further misery and misfortune.
Your most obedient servant,
A KENTISH LANDLORD.

SHIP WRECKS.

THE LOSS_ OF_ THE WATERLOO, AND

ABERCROMBIE ROBINSON.

(From the South African Commercial Advertiser,
September 7.)

CAPE TOWN, AUG. 31.—0 n the forenoon of Sun-
day last two large vessels, the Abercrombie Robinson
and the Waterloo, went on shore on the south-eastern
beach at the bottom of Table Bay.
Both vessels were engaged as transports by the
British Government. The Abercrombie Robinson
had on board, besides her crew and several passengers,
501 soldiers, with their officers. She was a large
ship, of nearly 1,500 tons burden. After grounding
near the shore she stood upright, and no lives have
been lost. She will probably, or rather certainly, be
a total wreck.

The Waterloo, a ship of 414 tons, bound to Van
Diemen's Land, had on board, besides her crew, 219
male convicts, Dr. Helsell, in charge, Lieut. Hext,
Ensign Leigh, 30 men of her Majesty's 99th Regi-
ment, 5 women, and 13 children. She took the ground
between 11 and 12 o'clock in the forenoon, and in 15
or 20 minutes became a mass of rubbish. And now
ensued a most piteous massacre. In about two hours
and a half, amidst the crumbling heaps of their perfi-
dious prison—of men, women, and children, 194 were
crushed, disabled, and drowned.

There was no preparation for saving life made on
board or on shore. No life-buoys, no coils of ropes
lashed to casks, nor any apparatus for establishing a
communication with the shore from the ship. On the
shore there was no life-boat, no apparatus for throw-
ing ropes over stranded vessels, nor any thing, in short,
to show that the Government or people here had ever
before heard of such a thing as a shipwreck. We
stood amongst thousands on the beach within 150
yards of the dissolving fabric, looking on the agonised
faces of our fellow-creatures, as they sank in dozens,
battered, and bruised, and suffocated—useless as chil-
dren, or idiots, or wild Caffres.

Thia ship, it appears, was built 27 years ago at
Bristol. No longer fit to carry logs, she is patched,
up like other whited sepulchres, stuffed with a living
cargo by a contractor, and dispatched to the ends of
the earth—a voyage of more than 20,000 miles. No
doubt, a " survey of professional men " will " find "
that there was no fault any where ; that the Waterloo
was a sound ship, thoroughly repaired, and perfectly
seaworthy ; that she had on board all the equipments
requisite for such a voyage and such a consignment ;
that the officers of the ship did all that human strength,
directed by skill and animated by humanity, could
do and that the accident must be ascribed entirely to
a hurricane, a mountainous sea, and a remarkably
hard beach.

Now, as to the hurricane and the mountainous sea,
it is enough to observe, that there were 20 other ves-
sels at anchor in the Bay besides the Waterloo and the
Abercrombie Robinson, and none of them parted from
their anchors, or dragged them to any perceptible ex-
tent. The wind was blowing a gale, but by no means
a violent one, and it was partly off shore. The sea
was not running unusually high. Without ropes in
their hands, or any precaution, men walked into the
water up to their shoulders to drag out the bodies of
-the dead and dying, without the slightest risk. This
could not have been done had the surf been such as a
gale causes on an open beach." These are facts to
which thousands can bear witness.

In the midst of unhesitating condemnation on some
points, and charges of guilt on others, we have to
mention that two unofficial spectators, Mr. Molteno
and Mr. Still, procured the assistance of a common
boat belonging to a Malay, which reached the Water-
loo after she was falling to pieces, and brought off two
men, and on a second trip fastened a rope to the
wreck. After this a larger boat belonging to Messrs.
Sinclair was brought from the Abercrombie Robin-
son, and moving backwards and forwards along the
rope, saved a good many lives. This shows what
might have been done by a life-boat used in time.
SEPT. 3.—ln speaking of the wreck of the Water-
loo transport, in Wednesday's paper, it was mentioned,
that she was built for the timber trade. This, we
have been told, is not ascertained, and is probably in-
correct. We have nothing else to correct in the state-
ment now before the public.
The Committee of the commercial body have insti-
tuted an inquiry into the circumstances attending this
horrible event, as well as to the loss of the Abercrom-
bie Robinson on the same occasion. The attention of
the Government and of the Admiral has also• been
fixed on these two accidents ; the public and the
parties concerned may, therefore, expect that all the
facts will be properly ascertained and made known.
The loss of life by the ruin of the Waterloo is, we
learn, altogether 190, including 15 soldiers, 14 sailors,
and 18 women and children.

So great a loss of life has not happened in Table
Bay since the year 1799. On the sth of November
of that year his Majesty's ship Sceptre, Captain Ed-
wards, was driven on shore, and, like the Waterloo,
immediately went to pieces, being an accursed old
hulk on her way home to be broken up. A few
hours after she struck not a vestige of her was to be
seen, but the fragments of the wreck scattered on the
strand, in myriads of pieces, not a single plank remain-
ing whole, nor two attached together. Captain Ed-
wards, his son, 10 other officers, and near 300 seamen
and marines perished.
On the same day several other vessels went on
shore, amongst the rest a Danish man of war of 64
guns. But their crews were all saved, as in the case
of the Abercrombie Robinson on the present occasion.
Taking advantage of the excitement caused by this
melancholy event, funds have been raised, and mea-
sures are taken for constructing life-boats, and for
having a rocket apparatus always in readiness in this
bay, for rendering assistance to vessels in distress, or
for saving life.
Of the Waterloo it is impossible to speak with mo-
deration. Deadly blame rests somewhere, and justice
will, we hare no doubt, find out the parties who de-
serve it.
And now it would be proper to ask a few questions
respecting the precautions taken on board of all trans-
ports into which involuntary passengers, such as sol-
diers and convicts, are thrust by Government :-
1. Is it a rule to take the lowest tender, without
respect to the class of the vessel ?
2. Or does Government, as it ought, limit tenders
to the first-class vessels ?
3. Who are the surveyors ? How are they paid ?
Do they receive money m any shape, and how much,
from the owners of the ships they survey for this
service ?
4. Is it true that they are " hard-worked men, with
small salaries, and large families," and that a friendly
help of 15 or 20 guineas is sometimes added to the
regular charge by the benevolent shipowner ?
5. When 400, 500, or 700 souls are put on board a
transport, is care taken to have at the same time the

means of making signals in dark and foggy weather,
in case of danger • or is all left to the chance of some-
body seeing the flash of small arms, when the report
of the same cannot be heard?

6. Is extra apparatus carefully placed on board for
saving life in case of wreck, such as life-buoys, in-
struments for throwing lines, and the other well-
known means of communicating with a lee shore ?
These are some of the questions that will be put,
and that must be answered at home by the authori-
ties, whoever they may be, to whose departments this
branch of the service belongs.

IRELAND.
IMPROVEMENT OF AGRICULTURE.
DUBLIN, Nov. 13.—A considerable portion of the
landlords of Ireland, especially in the province of
Ulster, are engaged with zeal and earnestness in mea-
sures for the improvement of agriculture. No doubt
they have been greatly stimulated by the working
of the tariff, and by the conviction that the best
remedy for the depression which has fallen upon the
agricultural interest is to be found in the energy with
which the owners and occupiers of the soil combine in
promoting improved systems of husbandry.
A very important meeting took place in the Com-
mercial-buildings, Belfast, on Thursday, on the occasion
of the second annual assemblage of the " Belfast So-
ciety for the promotion and improvement of the Growth
of Flax in Ireland." The meeting was very numerous,
and most influential, comprising agriculturists and
manufacturers, landlords and merchants, Liberals and
Tories—all working most, cordially for the common
good.
Among those present were Lord Lurgan, Sir R.
Bateson, Bart., G. Macartney, Esq., Lissanoure
Castle; J. M'Neile, Esq., J.P. ; D. R. Ross, Esq.,
M.P. ; Colonel Blacker, Armagh ; Rev. Fletcher
Blakely, Rev. John Porter, Rev. Ross Jebb, Charles
P. Leslie, Esq., Glasslough ; J. T. Tennent, Esq.,
John Handcock, Esq., H. J. Porter, Esq., Tendra-
gee ; William S. Crawford, Esq., M.P., Crawfords-
burn ; John S. Crawford, Esq., Robert M‘Kibben,
Esq., James Campbell, Esq., John Charley, Esq.,
Daniel Lindsay, Esq., Dromore ; Frederick William
Hayes, Esq., Seapatrick, Banbridge ; and C. B. Grim-
shaw, Esq.
Lord LURGAN shaving been moved to the Chair,
said—This Society, Gentlemen, is still in its infancy ;
but when we read the list of landed proprietors, mer-
chants, and millowners, who have connected themselves
with this Society, I think the greatest man among
you may feel himself honoured by being enlisted with
such an undertaking--an undertaking so likely to
prove beneficial to the country.—(Hear, hear.) I
believe, Gentlemen, there is not a mad scheme but has
had its supporters ; and it was only a few days since
that I heard of a chairman presiding over a meeting
of an Aerial Steam Company, which expected to be
able to carry persons to the East Indies in four days
and a half.—(Laughter.) Gentlemen, I would much
rather preside over your Society than the one to which
I have just referred, for yours is a truly substantial,
sensible, and practical sort of undertaking.—(Hear,
hear.) The time is past for arguing the principles
of this Society; however, Gentlemen, with your
permission, I will say a few words as to those princi-
ples. Eighty thousand tons of flax are annually im-
ported into Great Britain, and five or six millions of
money are annually expended in purchasing flax in
other countries. Now, Gentleman, Ido not conceive
that we are in a condition to fling away such an amount
of money ; but the question is—what is to be done ?
What are we to do, to obtain this profitable market
for ourselves ?—(Hear, hear.) Our soil is quite as
good as the soil of any other country. Indeed, Mons.
Demann, the Society's agriculturist from Belgium,
has taken the bull by the horns on this question, for
he has asserted that the worst land in Ireland (moun-
tainous districts excepted) will have as good a crop of
flax as any other country in the world ; and as for our
climate, it is as favourable for the growth of flax as
any other.—(Hear, hear.) We have, then, soil and
climate in our favour, but, from indolence and other
causes this source of wealth is lost to the country,
and this source of employment is lost to the popula-
tion.—(Hear, hear.) This, Gentleman, is but an im-
perfect outline of the motives of the founders of this
Society, for its utility cannot be questioned by any
one.—(Hear, hear.) Our Secretary will now read
the Report of the Society's operations, and inform you
of the progress it has made since the last meeting.
Mr. SKINNER, who read the Report, stated that he
had received letters, apologising for non-attendance,
from the Marquis of Donegall, Marquis of Down-
shire, Lord Viscount Templeton, J. W. Maxwell,
Esq., Finnebrogue ; Lord Newry and Mourne, Sir
Thomas Staples, Bart., Lord Gwford, Lord Erne,
and many other distinguished individuals.
Sir ROBERT BATESON rose to move the first reso-
lution :—" That the Report then read be adopted by
the meeting." He said—My Lord and Gentlemen,
this resolution is put into my hands to propose to the
meeting. I take a deep interest in the success and
welfare of this Society, and I fully concur with what
has fallen from Lord Lurgan on the subject. This is
a Society where men of all creeds and parties may
meet to promote a common object—the good of the
nation generally. I am of opinion that landlords
should encourage such a Society as this. lam of
opinion that the country might be greatly benefited
by the culture of flax; for if we were able, in this
part of the island, to produce flax of good quality
from our poor soil and ungenial climate, what was to
be expected from the better soil of the south of Ire-
land ? And I am sure, that if we should be able to
introduce with success the cultivation of flax in the
south, there was no one in Ulster who would be
jealous of that success. It occurred to me, on visit-
ing the Netherlands, and witnessing the splendid crops
of flax which there met my eye, that that was a plant
which would admirably suit the soil and climate of the
south of Ireland. Ido not consider the soil and cli-
mate of Ulster good enough for the crop. lam glad
to have an opportunity of coming before you to-day,
and of observing the interest which is taken in your
proceedings ; and what I have seen and heard in-
spires me with a hope that the Society will go on and
prosper. It is the duty of proprietors of the soil, as
well as of large establishments, to take up the sub-
ject. You all know what could be done by machi-
nery—that in fact it was just now providing goods
too fast for the demand, for one man could at present
perform fully as much labour as ten could formerly
do. It was the duty, then, of landlords to see what
could be done for the improvement of the soil, and the
providing of labour for the unemployed population.
Sir R. Bateson concluded by moving the adoption of
the report.
Mr. SKINNER here exhibited a well-grown sample
of hemp, from the neighbourhood of Caledon, which
was inspected by several gentlemen. The crop from
which this was selected had a splendid appearance
when on foot.

D. R. Ross, Esq., M.P., said he had much plea-
sure in rising to second the resolution proposed with
so much spirit and cogent reasoning by Sir Robert
Bateson. Nothing but the interest awakened in his
mind last year could have drawn him from home this
week, when every day and every hour was to him of
more than ordinary value. He felt the greatest inte-
rest in agricultural affairs, and it might, therefore, be
well imagined how great was the pleasure which he
derived from this day's proceedings ; for if there ever
was a time when it was incumbent on those who lived
by agriculture to give it their best attention, this was
the time, and the particular time. Prices of farm pro-
duce, as pointed out by the Report, had this season been
greatly depressed, and it was with some d!ffieulty the
farmer could pay his rent—that, in fact, agricultural
distress prevailed. He agreed, to a certain extent,
with the statement of the Committee ; but he
trusted, that in some little time this distress would pass
away ; yet it was incumbent on them to boldly meet
the difficulties of the time, and triumph over them,
for it was the duty of the agriculturist to use all the
means within his reach to remedy his position.—
(Hear, hear.) There was one thing he observed
d to-
pleased—he had heard ay with which he was much
conflicting interests reconciled—he had found the
merchant, the manufacturer, and the agriculturist
uniting for a common purpose, and acknowledging
that the interest of the one was identical with the
interest of the other—(Hear, hear.) They were so
in a more extended point of view than that which
came before them that day.—(Hear, hear.) When
Britain was engaged in a lengthened war, agriculture
and manufactures were stimulated to an unprece-
dented extent ; but at present they were goaded on
by another sort of agency—by sharp necessity—
(Dear, hear)—but instead of folding their arms, and
allowing despair to weigh heavy on their minds, they
should press forward to overcome any obstacles in
their path to improvemeut.—(Hear, hear.) They
were entering upon a new era in agriculture, and if
they did not take advantage of those improvements
which from time to time came before them, they
only were to blame.—(Hear, hear.) Let them
consider that the flax-spinning trade in Belfast
had been raised to such an eminence as that which it
now occupied, and what would be the state of things
if, from any cause, war were to break out between
us and those nations from whom we had heretofore
drawn our supply of the raw material ? Sir Robert
Bateson had stated that 80,000 tons of flax had been
imported from the Continent in one year. 'Phis vast
quantity was brought from the Baltic, from Holland
from Belgium, and from France ; and if any occur-
rence were to arise by which their ports would be
closed against us, and the supply stopped, the trade of
Belfast would be placed in a most disastrous co d'-
tion. He knew that this view of the question might
be turned against himself, in connection with another
subject to which he would not farther allude than to
say that in the one case Itra,s one branch of manu-
factures which was benefited, -nwthheereco,
minmethrcee
of other,.e
they would have rip'and to t
world. He thanked them for the attention with which
he had been heard, and concluded, amid applause, by
seconding the resolution, which
was put, and
passed
unanimously.
• WU. S. CRAwroaD En p roe to wove the

second resolution. He felt happy in advocating .the,.' (-;
claims of such a Society, because he (Mr. Crawford) 2 4
was well assured that its objects were truly praise- b'• -
worthy ; and the Society proposed to encourage . '
small farmers.—(Hear, hear.) He acted i
consistency with his (Mr. Crawford'sp 1
avowoii.
ciples in supporting such a resolution, for he always
was an advocate for the interests of the small farmer.
He supported the Society also, because the cultivation
of flax gave employment to many persons, and he was
on that account anxious that it should be encouraged.
The Rev. FLETCHER BLAKELY rose to second the
resolution.

The immediate business of the meeting having thus
been gone through, it was moved and agreed to, that
it is desirable that the Royal Agricultural Society
should hold their annual cattle show in Belfast next
year. Committees were also appointed to collect sub-
scriptions in the different counties in Ulster, in order
to raise a sum (1,5001. was named) to defray the ex-
penses of the show. Lord Downshire has opened $
list, headed by his own name for 501., and Lord Hills-
borough and Lord Erne have each subscribed 251.
JOAN APNEILE, Esq., said that the Royal Agricul-
tural Society for Ireland were prepared to expend
7001. in premiums, in Belfast and its neighbourhood,
if they were deserved.

CORONERS' INQUESTS.
FATAL ACCIDENT AT WATERLOO BRlDGE.—Yes-
terday Mr. Carter, the Coroner for Surrey, held an
inquest at the Hero of Waterloo, Waterloo-road, on
the body of Donald 11‘Donald, aged 22 years.
James Templeman stated that deceased, with a
party of young men, were returning on Sunday
afternoon from a rowing match, upon which deceased
had betted. They had been drinking a good deal,
and the deceased was in a high state of excitement,'
partly arising from being a winner on the match, and
partly from the liquor taken after. When they
reached the toll-bar on the Surrey side of the bridge,
deceased attempted to leap the gate, but was stopped
by the gatekeeper. On his friends paying, however,
he leapt over, and challenged one of the party to run
a race ; they did so for about twenty yards, when de-
ceased leapt upon the parapet, daring the other to do
the like. He ran on the parapet for about forty
yards, when he fell over, striking his head against
the abutment of the bridge, into about a foot of
water, the tide being out at the time. Witness thinks
the wind, which was pretty high, blew him over.
J. Caulfield confirmed the preceding evidence,
adding that the Thames-police boat was t.venty-five
minutes bringing him ashore, and that deceased was
thrown in the bottom like a dead dog.
Mr. CARTER said the conduct of the police was to
be reprobated, and, no medical man being examined,
the Jury returned a verdict of " Accidental Death."
The deceased was the only support of a widowed
mother.

Mr. Higgs held an inquest the same evening at
four o'clock, in the " Black Bull," Little Chapel-
street, Westminster, on the body of Henry Frederick
Dumbarton, aged 38 years.
It appeared from the evidence of several witnesses
that deceased was a very healthy and remarkably sober
man. That on Sunday morning last he rose at half-
past six, and took a walk till half-past eight, when he
came in to breakfast. While sitting down he suddenly
turned pale and fell upon the floor ; his wife sum-
moned some of his neighbours who ran for medical
assistance, which, however came not, and the man
died about nine o'clock. It was elicited by the Jury,
that Mr. Campbell, the parish doctor, Mr. Paynter,
and Mr. Davis, had been successively called upon, and
they each excused themselves on the plea that they
could not leave their shops, one of them recommending
that the police should be called to carry the dying
man to the hospital.
Mr. HIGos said there was no law to compel medical
attendance, but, fortunately instances of utter heart-
lessness like the present were seldom exhibited.

The Jury, after expressing. a hope that such con-
duct would be exposed, returned a verdict " Died by
the Visitation of God."

SINGULAR. DEATu.—Yesterday afternoon, an in-
quest was held at the Hero of Waterloo, Wa-
terloo-road, before William Carter, Esq., the Co-
roner for Surrey, on view of the body of Sarah
Fuller, a maiden lady, aged 65 years. The deceased
resides in Stamford-street ; and, on Saturday week
last, as she was taking up a trussed turkey to look at,
slightly pricked the back of the third finger on her
right hand, near to the knuckle joint, with the point
of an iron skewer, which was rusted. Towards the
evening the wound became extremely painful, her
hand and arm swelling greatly, and she complained of
feeling excessively ill, and was seized with violent
retching and sickness. On the following morning
she was visited by her usual medical attendant, who
found her confined to her bed, labouring under fever,
and great debility and exhaustion ; her hand and arm
were much swollen, and the latter in a high state of
inflammation. She was treated with the view of
stopping the progress of the affection, but, on the
Wednesday following, she expired from the effects of
the irritation of the stem and exhaustion, consequent
upon mortification.) Verdict—" Accidental death."

REMOVAL OF THE INDICTMENTS AGAINST THE
CHARTISTS TO THE COURT OF QUEEN'S BENCH.—We
understand that, on Monday last, all the sixty defen-
dants indicted at the late Special Commission at
Liverpool and who then traversed., to the next As-
sizes, were served with summonses of a merely for-
mal nature, the terms of which, we understand, not
a little puzzled some of them, as they were therein
required " to come before her Majesty on the 15th
November instant, wheresoever her Majesty should
be in England." As her Majesty is now at
Walmer Castle, near Dover, the appearance of
some of the defendants there would no doubt
cause considerable surprise. We know that some
of them seriously contemplated the necessity of
surrendering in person, in London ; while others, we
believe, have instructed a London attorney to put in
an appearance for them. We believe the legal effect
of this is merely to give the parties formal notice that
the indictments against them have been removed, by
the Attorney-General, from Lancashire and Cheshire,
into the Court of Queen's Bench. In this case, there-
fore, in all probability, neither personal surrender nor
appearance by attorney will be requisite ; and the re-
newal of the bail, if necessary at all, will very likely
be taken in the country, under an order of the Court.
—Manchester Guardian.

It was stated a few days ago that four of the regis-
trars of the Court of Bankruptcy were to go into the
country to assist in putting the new bankrupt law into
operation in the district courts. Two of them only,
however, are gone, Mr. Parry and Mr. Campbell. Mr
Parry is commissioned to go to Birmingham, and Mr.
Campbell to Liverpool, and we suppose that he nil
also go to Manchester and Leeds, as occasion may re-
quire. This arrangement of the Chancellor's is likely
to be extremely useful to the public, by establishing a
uniformity of practice throughout the different courts.
The Hon. F. Curzon takes Mr. 'arry's duties in
London.

BRIGHTON, Nov. 15.—Mr. and Mrs. Charles Kean
have entered into a third engagement with the mana-
gers of our theatre, commencing last night. Mr. Kean
played Macbeth and Mrs. Kean Lady Macbeth. This
evening they appear in the Rose of Arragon, to•mor-
row in Richard the Third, on Thursday in Much Ado
About Nothing, and on Friday they take their benefit.
During the whole of their engagements they have
been playing to excellent houses. It is a fact that the
managers reckon upon the engagement of Mr. Kean
as the only means of enabling them to go through the
season. Mr. and Mrs. Kean go from hence to Bir-
mingham, to fulfil an engagement.
FIRE ON HOLBORN-HlLL.—Yesterday morning,
about twenty minutes before one, much alarm was
created in the immediate vicinity .of Holborn, owing
to a fire (which at first threatened to be attended with
a ansustained,
escape-
ment
the most disastrous consequences) breaking out on
throughv Insurancellartln'
the premises in the occupancy ofrenlalleasnsrds.
wholesale tea-dealers, situate at No. 76, 11,106.
hill. The fire was soon subdued, but not before
damage to the amount of nearly 500/. .
will faTllhuepfiorne thme.asWeeasutsoedf
of gas under the shop.
whichCOln pany.
MELANCHOLY OCCURRENCE.— On Tuesday, 26th
ult., an occurrence of a most painful
between Kishorn and Apple cross. man,
nature took place
passing on a visit to his parentsss. A young
from the former to
the latter place, was unable, owing to the fall of snow
that had taken place du •ri the night, to proceed by
the way that crosses over
byeway which leads er the top of the hill. Taking a
from the end of Loch Kishorn
to the farm of Ari h •
g riseach, from whence he thought
he would soon reach his father's, as he was passing he
went to a house at Russel
to warm himself, being com-
pletely benumbed with cold. The hospitable occupants.
of the house
entreated of him to remain a few days till
the road should be passable, but no solicitations could
prevail upon him to wait. The weather, instead of
clearing up, became more and more boisterous, and
the young man, unable to reach shelter, was not heard
of again till the Saturday following, when his body
was found by some shepherds at some distance from
any path.—Caledonian `Mercury.
ROYAL " BICKEE."—Among the various presents
made to her Majesty during her tour in Scotland,
one, and that not the least interesting, which has re-
mained unnoticed until now, was a bicker, or quaich,
presented to her by the Earl of Mansfield during
her short sojourn at Scone Palace. The quaich was
sent to the Earl by Mr. M'Robie, lapidary, George-
street, for presentation to her j M t
aes y, who after ac-
cepting it, and examining it carefully,
admiration of the ingenious manner in N
• ich it was
fashioned. It was made of 500 ieces of fNo'u r differentinfiniteand did
credit to the artist
who put it together, an individual,
we believe, belonging
to the Carse of Gowrie. Her
Majesty
and Prince Albert, we understand, partook of
dock-a n-dhorris out of the bicker, imm.ediatel/ pre-
vious to the Royal carriage leaving the Peace.—
' Perth Courier.

SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS.

FROM THE EVENiNG PAPERS OF YESTERDAY.
GLOBE.—The case of the shirt-makers of the
metropolis, which we alluded to in a short article
yesterday, is we are glad to see, beginning to excite
attention. A meeting was held last night at Stepney,
when it was resolved that a Committee should be ap-
pointed " to collect further information, to make re-
presentations to the persons engaged in the trade,
and if necessary to call a public meeting on the
subject." We frequently hear bitter complaints
against the manufacturers, for the lowness of the
wages they pay to those whom they employ :
and it is true enough that industry gets but
a very inadequate reward—though the mono-
polits and the free traders are at issue as to
which deserves to be considered the cause of the dis-
tress that is the lot of the workman. With reference,
however, to the very numerous class of individuals
who are compelled to work at their needle for a liveli-
hood, there can be but one opinion as to their being
shamefully under-paid; and no political question can
be raised, leaving them to starve while their well-
wishers of opposite parties are disputing about the
different theories or lines of policy for relieving them.
At the meeting to which we have alluded, it was stated
that a shirt which it took a good hand fourteen
hours to make, the workwomen was paid only sixpence
for making, and that there were many thousands em-
ployed, who, by labouring all the day and a portion of
the night, could earn only fourpence-halfpenny. The
saving effected by the public through this odious
system of grinding down must be so insignificant,
even if the public had the benefit of it, that no one
who could afford to purchase a shirt at all would
object to pay one penny more, which is all the addi-
tion that the workwomen ask for making it. The truth,
however, is, that the public saves nothing whatever,
but loses a great deal in inferior workmanship, which
is rendered necessary by the miserable rate of remu-
neration that is paid for it. It is not only as a ques-
tion of humanity and justice that this matter deserves
to be considered, but it may be regarded also
as one affecting, in a great degree, the morals of
a large proportion of the community. We have
before us a letter from a correspondent, in which
he states an instance of " a female of respectable
family and great personal attractions," having been
finally lured from the path of virtue, after having
for a long time undergone the greatest privation and
misery in an attempt to earn a scanty subsistence by
needle-work. This is a case, unfortunately, of every-
day occurrence, and there is no doubt that many fall
into a career of vice through the grinding system
that is put into practice towards needle-workers, for
the benefit neither of the public nor the vendor, but
of an intermediate class, who traffic on the necessities
of their fellow-creatures, regardless of the misery or
crime that the victims of oppression are plunged into.
STANDARD.—The Morning Chronicle of this
day commences a long and vehement solicitation to
contribute to the "League Fund" rather oddly, by
the following proposition :—" Whether agitation shall
exist in the country, in consequence of the Corn-laws,
is not a question. Those Jaws make agitation."
Now, if the laws by themselves make the agitation,
what need is there for a League, or a League fund ?
Why, indeed, does our Contemporary bestow
daily so many columns of its eloquent writing
in blowing up a fire already in a blaze with-
out its assistance ? We may add a retrospec-
tive question. If the laws make the agitation,
where was the necessity for employing Messrs. Sidney
Smith, Acland, Thompson, and Company, to deliver
2,000 agitation lectures, and to compose 5,000,000 of
agitation tracts ?—to what purpose was expended the
100,0001. said to have been already expended ? Men
do not usually take so much trouble and squander so
much money in doing what they find done to
their hands. If the proposition quoted be true, the
subscribers to the League have not been fairly
dealt with; and alas ! that we must say it, all the
fame which Messrs. Sidney Smith, Acland, Thomp-
son, and Company, have acquired by the supposed
success of their displays, and all their wages too,
must be assigned to the description of goods and
money obtained under false pretences. This proposi-
tion, it must be admitted, exhibits the League in a
somewhat awkward light. That respectable body
says nearly in terms, "We have collected 100,0001.,
of 85,0001. of which it is not convenient to render
any account whatever. We have collected this
sum of 100,0001. generally from very poor people,
and in a time of admitted public distress, in order
to agitate against the Corn-laws, and we want
50,000/. more for the prosecution of the same
abject." The Morning Chronicle turns sharply round
upon its friends, and says, while affecting to recom-
mend their scheme, in this blunt remark, whether
true or false, " Your efforts are not wanted. Your
demand for more money is unreasonable, and imper-
tinent. The laws against which you propose to agi-
tate by the help of other people's money, them-
selves 44
make agitation." Our Contemporary proceeds
to explain the process, beginning of course with those
among the parties nearest to its heart—the capitalists ;
that is, being translated into English, the great rich men.
These objects of a just and natural compassion, poor
fellow, are, it seems, in a state of suffering that dis-
orders the mind :—" Capitalists, alarmed at the ab-
sorption of their profits, reeling under the still
in-
creasing;
pressure, and seeing no prospect of a wiser
policy being so promptly realised as to avert their
ruin, would assuredly not remain tranquil as the
surface of some inland lake on a summer's
evening, but even without concert give those
signs of agitation which precede the shifting
of commercial prosperity from one region to another."
This poetical passage comprises both the essential
requisites of the genuine tragedy—pity and terror.
Who must not be melted at the contemplation of rea-
son reeling, and ultimately sinking under an un-
wieldy ascites of stagnant cash? or who can look
without alarm at the rebellion of the bags ?—the
meek hosts of Mark-lane allied with the eager batta-
lions of the Stock Exchange and the heavy ordnance
of the mill country. Mason had some such horrid
movement in his head when he penned the war of
money-lenders and aristocrats in his " Heroic
Epistle."

MONEY MARKET and CITY NEWS.

PROM THE MORNING PAPERS OF YESTERDAY.
TIMES.—The premium on gold at Paris is 11 per
mille, which, at the English Mint price of 31. 17s.
10. A. per ounce for standard gold, gives an ex-
change of 25 43, and the exchange at Paris on Lon-
don at short being 25 60, it follows that gold is
0.68 per cent, dearer in London than in Paris.
By advices from Hamburgh, the price of gold is
4324. per mark, which, at the English -Mint price of
31. 17s. 101 d. per ounce for standard gold, gives an
exchange of 13 81, and the exchange at Hamburgh
on London at short being 13 101, it follows that gold
is 0.68 per cent. dearer in London than in Hamburgh.l
By accounts which have been circulated this morn-
ing in the City, it appears that there was much exag-
geration and misrepresentation in the first description
of the circumstances attending the loss of the trans-
port ship Waterloo, off the Cape of Good Hope. We
refer principally to the statements, that within half an
hour after the Waterloo struck " she parted in two,"
and that within an hour and a half "not a vestige was
to be seen—she had literally gone to pieces." This
is effectually contradicted by a fact very material in
such a case, that the public sale of the wreck took
place on the 2d of September, five days afterr
the gale, and realised the sum of 6301. The
underwriters at Lloyd's, whose judgment in such
matters is not to be impugned, are so far satis-
fied of the seaworthiness of the vessel, that they have
agreed to settle for the loss at once. The relative
position of the Abercrombie Robinson and of
the Waterloo is considered, by those conversant with
the subject, to explain sufficiently why one vessel was
able to weather the storm, and to save nearly all on
board, while the other was totally wrecked with so
dreadful a loss of life. By the letter of Captain
Young, the commander of the Abercrombie Robinson,
it appears that he went ashore at half-past three, A. M.
on the 28th of August, at the top of high water,
while the Waterloo did not go ashore till three-
quarters past ten, A. m., when consequently it must
have been near low water, The Abercrombie went
ashore with her bead on, but the Waterloo went
broadside on, her anchors still holding her, and the
action of the sea tearing her to pieces. The lament- '
able loss of life in the convict ship arose from their
being no life-bdats on the shore to send to her assist-
ance, and the necessity which exists in such vessels of
keeping the convicts under hatches to prevent there
escape till the last moment. Whatever imputations,
therefore, may attach to the mode in which the
performed, they do not apply to
transport service is
the Waterloo.
POST.—Money continues very cheap for commer-
cial purposes, but business is dull and bad, and although
the interest obtained for the discount of hills is so un_
preeedentedlv low, the brokers complain that there is
a greater difficulty in doing this description of busi-
ness than is commonly found to be the cas3 when a
higher rate prersits. At present none but the very
first class paper meets with the smallest favour from
parties known as lenders.
The St. John del Rey Mining; Company have re-
ceived from Brazil, by the Challenger, which arrived
yesterday at Cowes, 150 lbs. of gold,
6,000 t. worth about
The tea market has not., for the moment, exper-
rienced any change. The loss of so large a quan-
tity as that advised as having been put on board the
Reliance would most probably have been felt 'in a
greater or less degree, but there is at present no pub-
lic sale on hand, nor will there be any till next week,
to furnish an accurate index to the impressions of
the trade.

om 's steam-
pany -The General Steam.Nrivigation C
itniribow, that left Londorr.on Sunday,,arrived,
notwithstandimr the boisterous state of the weather,
at Antwerp, at her usual time, on Monday morning.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

COURT OF QUEEN'S BENCH, Nov. 16.
(Sittings in Banco.)
CASE OF CAPTAIN DOUGLAS.

IN THE MATTER OF ARCHIBALD DOUGLAS, A PRISONER

IN THE CUSTODY OF COLONEL KAY.

The prisoner in this case, Captain Archibald Doug-
las, was, this morning, brought up under a writ of
habeas, in military custody, in order to have the cause
of his imprisonment inquired into. Captain Douglas
entered the Court at ten o'clock, and he was accom-
panied by Colonel Kay, an officer of the staff, in
undress uniform, as his guard. He took his seat on
the bench under the box. His attorney, Mr. Nobler,
was in constant communication with him.

The Attorney and Solicitor-Generals, and Mr.
Clarkson appeared in support of the return to the
writ, and Mr. Chambers appeared for Capt. Douglas.
The Judges took their seats on the bench at five
minutes after ten o'clock. _ _ .

The return to the writ stated that the prisoner was
an officer in the 49th regiment, in the service of the
East India Company, and had been committed by
John Hardwick, Esq., one of the Magistrates of the
metropolitan district, to Tothill-fields Bridewell, as a
deserter from the East India Company's service, from
whence, by authority of the Secretary of War, he
had been transferred to the custody of the officer com-
manding the depot of the East India Company's forces
at Chatham, in whose custody he was now brought up.
The return having been read,
Mr. KELLY said he appeared for Captain Douglas,
and moved that he be discharged. He also sub-
mitted to the Court an affidavit from Captain Douglas
not contradictory of but explanatory of the return,
which affidavit he trusted the Court would permit to
be read.

The ATTORNEY-GENERAL submitted that it was
contrary to all rule to admit affidavits, either contra-
dictory to or explanatory of a return to a writ of
habeas. If they were received on one side, they must
be on the other.

Mr. KELLY apprehended that there was no objec-
tion to receive affidavits in such a case.
Lord D.Ernunx--It is not the usual: course ; per-
hap3 you will tell us why you wish us to receive an
affidavit ? . _

Mr. KELLY said the case differed essentially from
the common order of cases. Captain Douglas was
not committed for trial for any offence—he was com-
mitted under the Mutiny Act. He was committed
to the custody of Colonel Kay, to be kept for a time,
and then to be sent to India. Under these circum-
stances he proposed to put in Captain Douglas's affidavit,
setting forth that the rank he held and the circumstances
under which he had been placed in the custody of
Colonel Kay, in order that the Court might judge if
Colonel Kay was authorised, under the provisions of
the Mutiny Act, in keeping him in custody. The
Learned Gentleman then quoted from " Bacon's
Abridgment" to show that affidavits might be re-
ceived when a person was brought up on a return to
a habeas corpus. He begged to call the attention of
the Court to the 22d section of the Mutiny Act, under
which Captain Douglas was committed, in order to
show how necessary it was to admit the affidavit of
Captain Douglas, in order that many parts of the re-
turn which appeared obscure might be made plain
and understood. The section authorised• the com-
mittal of soldiers, who ought to have been with the
corps to which they belonged, by a Magistrate. The
foundation of this proceeding was, that it must be
shown that he was a soldier, and ought to be with
the corps to which he belonged. If he ought not to
be with the corps to which he belonged, that the
Magistrate had no jurisdiction. He should show
where that corps was, and also that Captain Douglas
ought not to have been with the corps to which he
belonged, and under those circumstances he submitted
that the Magistrates had no jurisdiction, and that the
affidavit must be received.

Lord DENMAN thought that argument went rather
to show that the return was insufficient. The Court
did not think that affidavits could be admitted. It
might be argued that the return was insufficient.
Mr. KELLY asked if the depositions were in Court ?
Lord DENMAN—That depends on your certiorari.

It appeared that the depositions were in Court.
Mr. KELLY then, on the part of Captain Douglas,
moved• that he be discharged. Capt. Douglas had
served the East India Company with credit for more
than twenty years, and he was certainly much asto-
nished at being charged as a deserter. He was a
captain in the 49th regiment of Native Infantry at
'Madras. He was with his regiment in India, and had
obtained leave of absence, and was in consequence at
liberty to dispose of his person as he thought proper
during the time to which that leave extended. Capt.
Douglas was apprehended in London in October,
taken before a Magistrate, committed to Tothill-
fields on an order obtained from the Secretary of War,
in consequence of which he was transferred to the
custody of Col. Kay, to be sent to the East Indies.
Capt. Douglas submitted that he was no deserter,
that he had committed no breach of duty which
gave Colonel Kay a legal ground for detaining him
and it was for their Lordships to decide whether he
was legally detained or not. The first legal instru-
ment which formed the foundation for the detention
of Captain Douglas, was the warrant of Mr. Hard-
wick, in which he was charged with being a deserter
from the Hon. East India Company's 49th Regiment.
He trusted he should show to the Court that no
Magistrate possessed any authority to commit him
under such circumstances. The Secretary at War
then issued his warrant to Colonel Kay to receive
Captain Douglas into his custody, and the return
alleged that Colonel Kay had received him into cus-
tody by virtue of the said warrant. The facts then
were, that Captain Douglas was charged before a Ma-
gistrate with being a deserter. He denied that he
was a 4serter, and he was committed on a warrant,
stating that he had been committed charged on oath
with being a deserter, and the Secretary at War made
the most extraordinary order under which Captain
Douglas was now detained—an order which he never
would have issued if his attention had been called to
the circumstances of the case. He (Mr. Kelly) sub-
mitted that there was no power under the statute
either in the Magistrate to commit Captain Douglas,
in the Secretary at 'War to order him to be sent to
Madras, or in Col. Kay to obey such an order. The Mu-
tiny Act related almost exclusively to the management
of the army of her Majesty, but the 32d section ex-
tended some of its provisions to the East India Com-
pany's forces. By the Act a power was given, not as
regarded the commissioned officers, but as regarded
the common soldiers of the British army, that sol-
diers charged with desertion, on being brought before
a Magistrate, and its being proved that they were
soldiers, and that they ought to be with their corps,
the Magistrate might commit them to civil custody.
He (Mr. Kelly) submitted that the Act related solely
to common soldiers, or non-commissioned officers, and
not to commissioned officers ; and, secondly, that it
was not made to appear that the prisoner was a per'-
son who ought to be with the corps to which he be-
longed. It was not so stated in any of the documents
referred to in the return, because it would have been
untrue, as the prosecutor well knew. He also sub-
mitted that the Act did not apply here at all, be-
causeforme
formed the hne
or regiment eonft
the ewEhlacaht
ICnadpitaaicsioDmopuagnlya,ss belongedsgeind
this country, and that, consequently, the Act did not
apply. 'With regard to the first objection, he submit-
ted that the word soldier, in the Act, commonffi
soldier, and did not apply to a commissioneda o
Lord PENMAN—Mr. Attorney, dyootiyoiumargeliynescoetl:layt
on the 22d section of the Act as your authority solely
detaining Captain Douglas, or do
section is explained by any other section ?
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL. apprehended that the 22d
section, and the 32d section of the Act, were the only
parts which had reference to the case.
Lord DENMAN—Then we certainly are much struck
with the objection that the warrant does not state
that he is a soldier, and that he ought to be with his
regiment. I put it to you, if you do not think it
necessary that under the 22d section such a statement
should be made upon the face of the warrant, in order
to give the Magistrate authority'to commit.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL—The return was formed,
nay Lord, upon those materials alone which were
placed before the advisers of the East India Company.
I wan not before the Magistrate who committed him,
and therefore, I cannot state what passed on that
occasion.
Lord DENMAN—Does it not appear necessary to
you, that in order to give the Magistrate jurisdiction,
that fact should be mentioned.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL—If your Lordship puts
it to me, I am bound to admit that it does appear to
me to be essentially necessary in order to authorise
the Magistrate to commit, and that it ought to have
been stated in the commitment.
Lord DENMAN—That is precisely the answer the
Court expected from you.
The ATTORNEY-GENTaAL—PerhapS I maybe per-
mitted to say that until it was pointed out now by my
Learned Friend in the warrant of commitment, we
were not aware of what objections would be-made to
the return. My Learned Friend did not communicate
to us the objections he intended to take to the legality
of the commitment.
Mr. KELLY—I do most fully give my Learned
' Friend, the Attorney-General, credit for what be has
stated, but the objection was distinctly stated to the
Magistrate at the time of the committal.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL—I was not present at
the committal, and Ido think that my Learned Friend
ought to give
me credit for my statement, after the
manner in whichlhave acted on the present occasion.
, droTpl:eanCdoucliTap
tsauigngeDstoeualdtas was
that the matter had better
ordered to be dis-
charged.
The Attorney-General then le.aned over the bar,
and whispered something to
Captain Douglas.
Mr. KELLY immedhitely rose, and exclaimed with
seine warmth—My Lords, the „Attorney-General has
desired Ciqitain Douglas not- to leave the' Coml. I
apprehend that by your Lordship's order he is dis-

charged, and I ask if your Lordship desires that he
should remain.

The ATTORNEY-GENERAL---I have an application
to make to the Court relating to Captain Douglas,
and I was certainly desirous that he should not leave
the Court until after that application should have been
made.

Mr. KELLY.—I wish to know if it is your Lordships'
orders that Captain Douglas should remain ?
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL--I apply on behalf of
the East India Company, that Captain Douglas be
detained as charged with having extorted large sums
of money, amounting to more than 12,0001., in the
East Indies, and I move that he be detained to take
his trial on that charge in this country.
Mr. KELLY—And, in the mean time, I wish to
know whether Captain Douglas, who it appears is
now detained here, and on whom something almost
amounting to a personal assault has been committed
in the face of the Court.—l wish to know if it is your
Lordships' desire that Captain Douglas should not
leave the Court.

Lord DENMAN—I apprehend that the effect of the
decision to which we have just come to is, that Cap-
tain Douglas is at this moment as much at liberty to
leave this Court as any other person in it.
Captain Douglas then left the Court, accompanied
by his friends.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL hoped, after what had
occurred, that the Court would give permission to his
Learned Friend to state what had passed before the
Magistrate.
Mr. CLARKSON begged to state that the question
had been raised before the Magistrate, and that the
Magistrate had given it as his opinion that Captain
Douglas was a soldier, and that he ought to have been
with his corps. How the statement came to be omitted
from the warrant, he could not explain.
Lord DENMA.N could easily imagine how such a
mistake should arise.

The officer of the Court then called on the next case,
but before the Learned Counsel engaged in it had
commenced his argument,
Mr. KELLY rose and said—My Lord, I have just
been informed that Captain Douglas, as he was leaving
the Court, was arrested under a Sheriff's warrant for
a large sum of money. Under these circumstances,
I apprehend your Lordships will order his immediate
discharge.
Lord DENMAN—We must have proof in the usual
manner.

Captain Douglas, accompanied by Mr. Hobler,
shortly afterwards entered the Court, in order to pre-
pare affidavits setting forth the circumstances of his
arrest.

We understand that as soon as Captain Douglas
emerged from the doors of Westminster-hall, a Sheriff's
officer stationed in Palace-yard arrested hin, and
endeavoured to take kim to the King's Arms Hotel.
Mr. Hobler, who was with him, directed immediate
information to be conveyed to Mr. Kelly of what had
occurred, who in consequence made the above appli-
cation to the Court immediately.

At a later period of the morning.,
Mr. KELLY rose and said—Will it be convenient to
your Lordships to dispose of the question of the arrest
of Captain Douglas now ?
Lord DENMAN—If you please.
Mr. KELLY then stated that he moved an affi-
davit that Captain Douglas be discharged from
custody. Captain Douglas had been arrested,
as he was leaving the Court, by an officer
of the Sheriff of Middlesex, on a precept claim-
ing penalties amounting to 12,8001. This pre-
cept had been issued on the information of her
Majesty's Attorney-General, which he submitted
should be read by the officer of the Court.
The Officer of the Court then read the warrant,
which was for the arrest of Capt. Douglas for the
recovery of penalties incurred by him, amounting to
12,8001., on an information filed by her Majesty's
Attorney-General, under the provisions of the Act
33 Geo. 3, cap. 62, sec, 14, charging the defendant
with a misdemeanour, and claiming the penalties.
Mr KELLY said that the proceedings had been so
unusual in this case, that it was difficult to say
whether the arrest had taken place on a civil or
a criminal process, because if he had been
arrested on a charge of misdemeanour, a ca-
pias would not be issued. It appeared that he had
been arrested for penalties amounting to 12,800/., and
that, therefore, he would have to give bail to that
amount before he could be discharged. This, there-
fore, was merely a civil process.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL--The information is
before the Court.

Mr. KELLY had not had an opportunity of see-
ing it, but it was quite clear that the defendant had
not been arrested upon a warrant issued out of this or
any other Court, but upon a civil warrant issued by
the Sheriff. The defendant having appeared in the
Court to clear his discharge under a writ of habeas,
and having been by the Court discharged from what the
Court had decided to be illegal custody, had on his
way to his home, been arrested by an officer of the
Sheriff of Middlesex, upon the warrant which had
been read. Now he (Mr. Kelly) submitted that
Captain Douglas was entitled to his privilege redeundo,
and that their Lordships would protect him
from any arrest like the present until he should
have reached his home in safety. The East
India Company having thought proper to cause
the defendant, one of their own officers, to be
taken into custody illegally, could not take advantage
of their own wrong to have him arrested under
this warrant. He was entitled to his privilege
redeundo, and he trusted that their Lordships
would take care that he should freely reach
his own residence. This had been decided in 'the
case of the King and Delaval, 1 Blackstone 416,
in which Lord Mansfield had laid it down, that per-
sons discharged by habeas corpus were entitled to the
privilege redeundo. In the present case Captain
Douglas had not had an opportunity of returning
home ; he was desirous of returning home, and he
had been arrested on this process for the recovery of
penalties. He would not then go into the question as to
the legality or illegality ofthis information, but he would
rest his case on the fact, that Captain Douglas having
been discharged by habeas corpus from illegalcustody,
was entitled to his privilege redeundo, and that, there-
fore, he must be discharged.
Mr. Justice COLERIDGE—There is a later case in
the 2d Neville and Marriott, the King v. Blake.
Mr. KELLY was obliged to his Lordship ; that case
decided that persons who had been discharged by
habeas corpus were privileged from arrest, until
they should have an opportunity of returning
home. He, therefore, submitted to the Court
that Captain Douglas must be discharged from
the custody of the Sheriffs' officer, and that their
Lordships would interpose their authority for his pro-
tection until he should have had an opportunity of re-
turning home.

Mr.RocEas and Mr. CHAMBERS followed on the
same side.

The ATTORNEY•GENERAL subillitted that Captain
Douglas was not entitled to his discharge. He had
been arrested not upon a civil, but upon a criminal
process. By the Act 33 George 111., cap. 52, sec.
62, it was enacted that if any officer in the East
India Company's service should be convicted
of demanding and receiving any sum of money as a
gift or present, either for his own use or for the use
of any other person, from any other nation, he shall
be deemed guilty of extortion, and of having com-
mitted a misdemeanour in law, and proceeded
against and punished as such, and that the
offender should also forfeit to the Crown
the whole amount so received, or the value
thereof, in addition to the punishment which the Court
might award to him. So that their Lordships would
that
possibilityiese()rtto ‘lvvaehrriiecs
her.
see that he was arrested on a criminal charge, and
that, therefore, no question of privilege could by
snidema
nu!.
would
el toal o
nrtgehfeeedr creditthatth e ir
cases oif Lord-
ships therdo-f
ships to the case of the King v. Stevens and Agnew,
5 East, 244, to show thatinformation
the which
he had filed, and under which Captain
been arrested, was strictly
atrheie:(ll,weurat.e
regular. Douglas had
case an objection had been taken t thern that
case form
of the proceedings. The case had been
heard before Lord Ellenborough, who had decided
that the proceedings had been strictly l
regu ar. Was
it to be contended, that if Captain Douglas
had
been charged with murder, he would have
been privileged from arrest, because he had been dis-
charged by habeas ? Certainly not. How then
could it be contended that he was privi-
leged from arrest for misdemeanour ? He had
been arrested in a criminal, and not in a civil process,
and therefore the cases which had been quoted were
altogetherinapplicable. He had filed the information
as Attorney-General at the suit of the Crown, appre-
hending from the information which had been laid be-
fore him that the Crown had an interest, not only
in the recovery of the penalties, but also in the pu-
nishment of the offence with which Captain
Douglas was charged. That information he was
willing to admit he had received from the East
India Company, but it was in his official cha-
racter that he had filed this criminal information.
He had done so merely in. the discharge of
his duty, and a most unpleasant duty it
had been to him to have imposed upon
him. He submitted that, having been taken
into custody on a criminal process, Captain Douglas
was not entitled to his discharge.
The Solicitor-General and Mr. Clarkson followed
on the same side.
Mr. Kelly having been heard in reply,
Lord DENMAN said that there was no doubt that
if any person had been discharged by the Court
under a writ of habeas corpus, such person was
privileged for arrest under civil process until his re-
turn to his home. The only question the Court had to
consider in the case was whether Captain Douglas was
in custody under civil or under criminal process, as
there could be no doubt that any person arrested un-
der criminal process was not so privileged. Now
although in this case there was a penalty to be reco-