Star.
London, England, 1830-04-05 00:00:00

dividuals so closely allied in the bonds of natsre as well
as affection, to our gracious Sovereign.—We are here
told that although the illness of His MAJtSTY was at no
time so alarming as to induce any of his medical atten-
dant/ to make any official communication to tbs different
members of the Royal Family, it was thought proper to
apprise the Duke of WELLatiozow of the circumstance."
We own, we are quite at a loss to imagine whatnecessity
there exiated, or even in what the propriety la's of mak-
ing an official communication to the servant of tie Crown,
when his MAJESTY'S medical attendants wen not in-
duced to make any communication whatever b the im-
mediate relatives of the KING. We cannot conceive
why, when the brothers and sisters of the Monarch were
not apprized of his illness, it should be " thought pro-
per" to communicate the circumstance to the Duke of
Wtr.LaworoN, who is, in this respect at least, like
WOLSET,

I 6 ..----,....._ One emelt
That promises no element in such a business."

A report, purporting to be an amended report, of Mr.
BUXTON'S speech on Mr. PEEL'S motion for consoli-
dating the laws relating to forgery, has been sen to us,
with a request that we would " correct the errors' which
" several of the daily papers had made," in consepience
of " misunderstanding the purport of Mr. Bux-rox's
speech." We have compared our report in theST4ta
of Friday, with the amendment, and we find the purport
of both precisely the same : the only discrepance arises
from the unintentional omission of a short passage, which,
though complimentary to Mr. PEEL, in no way affected,
or even bore upon, the question at issue. From that
passage we select but one sentence :
_" Again, he has given us a vigilant and effective police."

Indeed, Mr. BUXTON ! well—we must argue that
point with you some other time. They may be "as vi-
gilant as a cat to steal cream," in the dirty work of es-
pionage which forms a part of their system : but effective
they are not, unless the insolent abuse of their power—
the violent infringement of the liberty of British sub-
jects—the instigation of quarrels and offences—and the
practice of the most despicable tricks of the worst species
of Old Bailey practitioners, constitute vigilance and an
efficient discharge of their duty. Not many days ago, we
saw, in the middle day, and in the most public thorough-
fare of London, ono of these ruffians, pranked up in the
garb of authority—a young and powerful fellow too—
knock down a poor unoffending woman who was endea-
vouring to obtain a scanty subsistence by selling oranges :
yes, without the slightest provocation was the unmanly
assault committed, and as she rose from the ground, and
endeavoured to gather up the fruit that was scattered
about in her fall, the " vigilant and effective" guardian
of the public peace—who bore the badge of State senri-
tilde buckled on his arm—laughed at the defenceless
object of his brutal and cowardly aggression. We have
not done with Mr. PEEL'S gendarmerie, we can promise
him.

If " the LIBERTY 01P THE PRESS" be, as JUNIUS
asserted, " the Palladium of all our rights," we feel that
we cannot more effectually manifest our zeal for the public
welfare than by guarding that fastness of a people's safety
alike from the daring assaults and encroachments of
arbitrary power,—the enervating interference of selfish
and temporizing allies,—and the insidious approaches of
the moat dangerous of all enemies, the traitors who would
make the semblance of constitutional principle the cloak
of the most mischievous designs. Amongst the latter,
it would be an act of gross injustice to rank Sir JANES
SCARLETT. He at least has had the manhood to avow
his determined purpose of circumscribing the freedom
which the press has so long enjoyed, and which has now
become to the people of England as essential to the pre-
servation of their birthright immunities, as the breath of
Heaven is to the prolongation of animal life. It only
remains for ns, therefore, to watch the movements of the
ATTORNEY-GENERAL, and of those who act with him
and under him. He perhaps might attempt, in deference to
the military predilections of the GREAT CHIEF, to carry
the fortress by a coup de main; but his more cautious
and crafty colleagues would prefer the mine :—We must
be " armed at all points ;" and therefore, we reiterate the
warning that has been given, not " from a-far-off," but
rom the very trenches
THE NEW STANT AcTs.—We call upon the inde-
pendent Members of both Houses of Parliament, upon our
contemporaries of the press, and upon the public at large,
to be on the alert, and to watch most carefully the pro-
gress of the New Stamp Acts, now about to be introduced
by Mr. ATTORNEY-GENERAL ►SCARLET?. If we are
not very much mistaken, they will discovercertaia clauses
snugly interwo►en with these bills that will tend mate-
rially to abridge the great palladium of our liberties, to
extend the inquisitorial powers of Stamp Commissioners,
and, perhaps, some cunningly devised introductions to
increase taxation ; and, under a specious pretence of im-
provement, detect an old Whig trick to lay additional
burthens upon the people. Again, we say, .let them be
narrowly watched ; there is something hatching that
bodes the press and the public no goods—Age.
However commendable Mr. PEEL'S contemplated mea-
sure "for the alteration of else Enactments relating to
Forgery" may be, as the introduction of a system that
ma,' eventually purge our Criminal Code of its Bangui.'
nary and ferocious attributes ; we cannot hesitate to pro-
nounce the measure itself unsound in principle, and
inefficient in the means by which it is proposed to achieve
a salutary reform of the statutes affecting that particular
offence. If the punishment of death, for the crime of
Forgery, be abhorrent to the feelings of a civilized com-
munity,--and if the rigour of the Laws be found, as halt
long been admitted, to defeat the purposes for which
they were enacted ;—how, we. would ask, is that repug-
nance to be overcome—bow is the danger of that d►'

to be obviated, by a partial commutation (in came where
taans
the impulses of humanity bare hitherto rendered the me-
naced vengeance nugatory) of that dreadful edict, Alia
its most penal and ignominious, and consequently its
most odious and repugnant qualities, are yet re •
against the only classes of the offence which have pieced:
its victims out of the pale of mercy, and been visited, in

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