The Sun.
London, England, 1827-01-02 00:00:00

CHAMBER OF PEERS, DEC. 16.

The Marquis de Vagos made a very long speech on the state of
the army, in which he spoke at great length against the Marquis
de Chaves, painting his ingratitude to the late King, who had
conferred the greatest honours upon him, in return for which he
now opposes the last will of his benefactor, and rebels against
his son, the lawful heir to the Throne of Portugal, and the
Government which is recognised by all the great European
Powers. If, said he, the Rebels should succeed in esta-
blishing a Government, de facto, in Portugal, a Government
not recognised by all Europe, the Foreign Ambassadors
would leave Lisbon and England as guarantees of the integrity of
the Portuguese Monarchy, and Don Pedro, as King of Por-
tugal, would take possession of our Islands, to preserve them
in obedience to their Sovereign. Lisbon end Oporto would be
blockaded, anarchy would prevail through the whole kingdom,
and the greatest disorder would desolate ❑nhappy Portugal, in the
hands of these assassins of their own country. The plan pro-
posed fo: the recruiting of the army, was formally approved by
19 votes to lb.

(Supplement to the Gazette of Lisbon, of Sunday, the 94th of
December, 1826.)
(OFFICIAL.)—WAR DEPARTMENT.

At the Secretary of State's Office of the War Department, the
Ith December, 1626.

Her Highness the Infanta, or Princess Regent, orders and own-
manda the Army to be informed, that this day entered into this
Port the first troops of the division which his Britannic Majesty
has destined to aid and assist the army of Portugal.
(Signed) THE MARQUIS DE VALENZA.
(A true Copy of the original.)
The Chief of the first Division. PINTO.

The following was posted at Lloyd's this morning :

BuRNOS AIRES, OCT. 24..—The Brasilian squadron continues
to cruize in sight of this city, and allow no vessels, except packets,
to pass. A large privateer boat, manned by Europeans, chiefly
English, sailed from this about a fortnight ago, and she is supposed
to have gone out of the river; a boat of this description is noticed
in a former communication as being lost near Cape St. Antonio.
Oroaro, Dec. 19, 1826.—0ur prospects of security are im-
proved since the Rebels have been defeated in their attempt on the
forces of Arnarante. The brig of war which is off the Bar from
Lisbon (the RtyPard) is also coming in, which will afford pro-
tection to the shipping, money, tae.., if necessary to remove it;
and if England sends troops, we hope they will soon appear, when
all will no doubt be quiet.

This morning the last sentence of the law was carried
into execution upon two unhappy individuals who have
forfeited their lives by their crimes. The efficacy of the
punishment of death in deterring others from the perpe-
tration of similar enormities has been much questioned—
hut it is hardly possible to form any correct judgment on
the point, inasmuch as its operation is silent, and only
called into action at the moment when the mind, pressed
by want, or urged by passion, first conceives the idea of
committing a crime as the readiest means of removing the
one or gratifying the other. Want and passion are the two
grand incentives to crime ; and whilst such powerful stimu-
lants exist, who can say where their operation shall cease,

or how far they are checked by the wholesome terror which
thepunishment of previous criminals is calculated to inspire?
That this terror has some operation, is, we suppose, not
denied ; but no conclusion as to the extent of that opera-
tion can be drawn from the repeated executions that have
followed the perpetration of the same crime. The utmost
that such facts show, is simply that instances are daily oc-
curring, where the incentive to crime was stronger than
the fear of punishment, which can be of no avail, unless
accompanied with a statement of the instances where the
fear of punishment was more powerful than the incentive
to crime. However this question may be determined, the
Criminal Law of this country seems unnecessarily severe.
It visits a great variety of crimes with capital punishment,
and that too, apparently without reference to the nature of
the offence, or the degree of moral guilt attached to it ;
and indeed, with so little judgment and discrimination has it
been annexed, that the Legislature appear to have
been actuated rather by vindictive motives than any real
desire to prevent the perpetration of the crimes against
which their acts are directed. That there is all the dif-
ference in the world between crimes founded upon frauds
and crimes founded upon malice, no one will doubt. The
degree of moral guilt is altogether deeper, much deeper
in the latter, than in the former case, and ought therefore,
as it seems to us, to be followed by a punishment propor-
tionably severe. For although in cases of crimes of suffi-
cient magnitude, we might be induced to admit. that the
offender, if actuated by malice, is not fit to live, still, if he
had been actuated by fraud alone, it would be quite im-
possible to arrive at suckeonelusion.
Murder and forgery, by the law of England, are
both punished by death ; yet, one is the offspring of
malice, and the other of fraud; the one flows from a de-
sire of revenge and an implacable hatred : the other
from fraud and dishonesty alone. How different the mo-
tives ; how different the shade of guilt ; and, therefore,
how different ought the punishment to be ! The fraud,
by this law, is enhanced to a erne, on an eqality with
murder, and thus the deep and atroci6as guilt of murder is
in a degree palliated by being associated with fraud ; for
otherwise no right-feeling man can ever regard the mur-
derer and the forger as equally criminal, or with the same
feelings of horror and disgust ; a point at which he must
arrive ere he can justify the infliction of the same punish-
ment on the perpetrators of these two offences.
It would be endless to multiply the instances
of this confusion of crimes to be found in the crimi-
nal law of England. What has already been said is
sufficient to illustrate the principle, and point out the ab-
solute necessity of measuring the punishment of a crime by
the degree of moral guilt incurred by its perpetration, and
of making a grand and never-failing distinction between
crimes resulting from malice r.,nl crimes built on fraud.
The exertions of the Home Secretary have in some degree
redeemed the character of the English law, and we begin
again, under his auspices, to return to that mild and con-
genial spirit that marked the institutions of our earliest
ancestors, and which still prevails through every branch of
the Common Law. We trust, the Right Honourable
Gentleman will pursue his labours, and consummate that
pious and noble work he has auspiciously begun, and thus
reap the full reward which is due to that man who achieves
this honourable, this arduous undertaking.

Brussels Papers of the 30th December; and the Al!ganef's,'
Zeitang of the 26th, have been received this morning, but they
posses, littl. interest. It is said that the Poems intends putting gar-
risons of the new troops into all the fortresses of the Archipelago
for greater security. The King of PRUSSIA goes on favourably.

The CAPITAN PACHA was still in the Dardanelles, and it was
not known whether he would winter there or return to Conitan-
tinople.

Accounts from Candia say, that a fire bruke out in that city in
the night of the 9th of October, which destroyed 45 magazines
and several houses ; among which is the French Consulate. These
accounts give st-gkosennsiciterrtsfiftio state-of the island under the
oppressive Government of LUTFULLAII

lENNA, Dic. 21.—Metalliques, BSi; Bank Shares, 1071.

The melancholy situation of his Royal Highness the
Duke of YORK still engrosses the public attention. There
is one class of persons, however, who are naturally more
affected by it—we mean the army. There is an evident
gloom on their countenances as they seem to anticipate
the loss of their best friend. Even the Duke of WELLING-
TON, with all his splendid military fame, would, at first,
find some difficulty in supplying the place which His Royal
Highness has long occupied in the esteem and warm af-
fection of the British Army.

We understand that Field Marshal the Earl of Harcourt,
G.C.8., now Governor of Portsmouth, is to be Governor of
Plymouth, vice the Duke of Wellington ; eud General Sir Wm.
Keppel, G.C.B. succeeds Lord Harcourt in the Government of
Portsmouth.

THE DUKE OF YORK.

ITALY' PAST TWO O'CLOCK, THIS DAV.

On inquiry at the Duke of IttITAND'S, we learn
that his Royal Highness the Duke of YORK had
passed a quiet night, but was no better, though he has
less pain.

THREE O'CLOCK

We have just heard that His Royal Highness
continues the same. The mortification was
gradually approaching the vital parts. His Royal
Highness, however, still speaks strong, and drank this
morning a glass of milk and nutmeg.

THE FUNDS.

CITY, (Tilts DAY), Taylre o' Cluck.

The British Funds have this morning evinced a very variable
and uneasy state ; Consols closed yesterday afternoon at 81i
and openc-d, at the commencement of business, at 80i- ; they
continued at this price but a few momenta, and were afterwards
done at 80i ; they have since been quoted at Soi, alternately
buyers and sellers. Those who pretend to see further than their
neighbours in the City have discovered several causes for prophecy-
ing an interruption of our amicable relation with the United
States, and that we are not likely to continue for ally length of
time on a peaceable footing with that Government ; they ground
their opinions on the lengthy speech of the President, received per
the Silas Richards, packet ship, arrived at Liverpool, to which
we must refer our readers, observing that the Colonial and
boundary lines seem to be the principal questions of importance.
India Bonds are quoted at the same price as yesterday, beipg 38
40 ; and Exchequer Bills, IS 19 pm. The few transactions that
have taken place in the Foreign Funds hare been done at the follow-
ing prices :—Colombian Bonds at 35 § ; Mexican 6 per Cents.,
ex. dir., at 65i 6 ; Greek, Iti 15, ex. div. ; Spanish, IS ;
and Portuguese, 72 4. In Shares there is nothing particular to
notice, but the sanguine expectation entt .ned by the speculators
that an advance is likely to take place ; Mad certainly prices are, in
some of them, looking well, although not quite ao high as yesterday.
Three per Cent. Consols for account, 801 a ; India Bonds,
38 40 pm ; Exchequer Bills, 18 19 pm.
FOREIGN FUNDS. —Brazilian, 60; Buenos Ayree, 60; Chilian,
37 9 ; Peruvian, 82 4 ; Colombian, 1824, 35 ; Mexican, 5
per Cent., 55 6 ex. div. ; Ditto, 6 per Cent., 651 s 6 ex. div. ;
Danish, 59 3 ; Greek, 14i IS ex. die. ; Russian, Ssi 6 ; Por-
tuguese, 72 4 ; Spanish, 13.

MiNxs.—Anglo Mexican, 25 tti flis. ; United Mexican, 7 6i
; Tlalpuxalma, 50 60 pm. ; Brazilian, 4. 6 pm. ; Bolivar,
2 3 pm. ; Colombian, 16 1S per share ; Potosi, 51 3 per Share.

Two o' Cloth.
The price of Consols has been steady at SO for the last two
hours. India bonds are higher, I:_id are 40 43 premium.
The Foreign Funds remain with little business, rather heavier.
Colombian at 34i 54. Mexican ex. div. 65
FOUR o'CLOCK—CLOSING PRICE.
Consols for Account, 80i f.