Star.
London, England, 1807-12-11 00:00:00

THE HOUSE OP CORRECT 10V,

COLD BATH FIELDi.

Our Readers will remember a flateusent which
appeared about a month fince, of deficiences detec-
ted in a pound weight ufed at the above prifon, and
in loaves of bread found there, by the Grand Jury
of the County. The known public fpirit of Mr. Sheriff
PHILLIPS oceafioned an appeal to that Gentleman
on the part of the Grand Jury ; and in his pretence,
at Guildhall, the pound weight and the loaves were
weighed by the city Randards, which it will be recol.
leaed, were adju fled about a century ago by the great
Sir ISAAC NPWTON. Mr. PHILLIPS very .properly
reported what he had witneffed to the worthy Chair-
man of the carterQ Seffions, and the matter has fince
undergone an invefligation before a Committee of
Magittrates, of which the following is a report. The
Gentlemen ( (the late Grand Jury, whole fairnefs is
arraigned in this Report, will,probably feel it necef-
fary to juflify their difcretion in relating fuch a
weight and loch loaves as the objats of their en-
quiry and animadverfion.

LETTER FROM MR. SHERIFF PHILLIPS TO WILLIAM
MAINWARING, SIQ, CHAIRMAN OF THE CES/ARTER
SESSIONS, &C. &C.
SIR—I confider it a duty which f owe the public, to inform you,
as Chairman of the Quartet St him's, and I believe one of the
Committee fur conducting the bufinefs of the prifon, that I WO
prefent when an appeal was lately made by the Grand Jury of the
County to the Standard Weights, in Guildhall—that I witneired
the eon& ation of the Pour,/ o %Vete: r ured for weighing meat,
and other provianns, in the Hrufe of Corredtion, Cold oath fields.
when it was found to be feces of as ovate too light ; and
that, on weighing tome LOAVEI which were found in the fame
prifon by the Grand Jury, they appeared alto to be conliderably
too light—one or two of them bring from an ounce and a half to
two ounces und•T weight.
I fhould comprontift the feelings which I bear towards the re •
fpedable Magittrates of the County of hliddlefex, if I were to
omit to make this. formal communication.
I have the honour to be, Sir,
Your obedient, humble fe rvant,

Bridge Rreet, Nov. 13. R. PHILLIPS, SherilE
To W. MAINWARINO, F RI. Hanover (gone.
TO MR. SHERIFF PHILLIPS.

&fan lloufe, Cleikenwell Green,
Silo Bth December, do,.
INT leave to acquaint you, that your letter of the iAth Jay of
November fait, addreffed to the Ch..irman of the Q27rter &Mons
for the County of Mill Wes, and tranfmitted by bim to me,
having been laid before the Prifon Committee, and taken into con•
fideratlon by them, they made their Report off I matters
relating to the Houle of Coerce!Rinn, which was laid before the
. Court on the County Day of the lalt Salon ; and I am (heeded
by the Court to tranfmit to you a Qopy of fo much thereof as
Mates to the ful jedt of your letter.
I have the honour to be, Sir,
Your obedient bumble (errant
HENRY CULL- SE( av, Clerk of the Peace.
To Rice. Put tlrs,Efq Sheriff of the County of Middlefex.
MIDDLESEX.
To His Majefty's Juftices of the Peace for the County of Mid-
alleles, in their Central Sefton of the Peace, held in and
for the laid County, in the Month of December, 1807,

The Rtruar of the Committee appointed to enquite into the
Receipt and Expenditure of the butcher's Meat, and other
Articles, provided fur the Prifon. re in the Houfe of Cor-
rec'llon, and alto to infpca the general Concerns of the Pti
Cutters belonging to this County,
'T.
Sir DANIEL WILLIAMS, Knt. in the Chair,

Thomas Bennett, D. D. William Lcwi., fq
George Gafeolgoe, D. D. William Wirt, Efq
Charles Churchill. Efq William Kinnaird, Efq
David Dean, Efq John Nichol', Ffq
Hammond Crelle, Efq Johc Hunteren, tfg
John Warner, Erg William Fortter, Frg
Edmond Cotterell, Efq hlward Roblin' Clerk
Samuel jackfon, Erg Millington Buckley, Cl< rk
Mark Beaufoy, Efq Richard I.endcn, Clerk
The Paid Committee report (inter alia)—
That having received from I,Vit.t.tam Matw.vaa-
too, Efq. the Chair man of the Setfioni, the letter
which had been tranfenitted to him by Ramsay
PHILLIPS, Efq. Sheriff of this County,
Your Committee proceeded to inquire into the al-
. legations therein contained ; and fire, into the eh--
cumftance of the one pound weight, which is noted
in the Sheriff's latter as a pound weight ufed for
weighing meat and other provifions in the Houk of j
Corrali.m. Your Committee examined Mr. Ati.,
the Governor of this prifon, who gave the I Bowing
teftimony, viz. the one pound weight taken from the
4chen of the Houfe of Corretion, by one of the
Grand Jury, 1 have no doubt is the fame weight
which I direCted Jofeph Ballard, the late cook of this
prifon, to take from one Itobett Tweed, a ptifoner
in this prifon (one of the mutineers) in the year tdoz,
and I am confident that firth weight never was or
could have been ufed to weigh plovitions, or any
other article whatever in this in iron, for the pi &nen,
or others, as a pound weight is never ufed to weigh
any article in this prifon.
Your Committee then examined William Bailin
(a prifoner,) the head cook in this prifon, who gave
the following tellimony upon oath, viz.
a I am a prifoner in this prifon, and have been here
Near 17 months. I have been head cook about feven
months, and have, during the whole of that time, con.
flantly weighed out the meat when dreffed to the pti
loners, the allowance to each being fix ounces. The
weights ufed upon the occafion are an half pound
weight and a two ounce weight in the oppolite fcale,
and doting the whole time that I have aeted as cook
in this prifon, I have never at any time whatever
made ufe of a one pound weight ; and that fines I
have ailed as cook, a scale maker has been twice in
this prifon to examine, regulate, and adjult the
weights."
And your raid Committee further report, that they
then proceeded to inquire into the tlatemrnt con-
tained in the Sheriff's letter, refpeCtinq certain loaves
which were deemed too light. Upon the invelliga-
ti.n, it appeared to your Committee that the contra&
with the baker is, that he (hall ftunifh a one pound
loaf of bread for each prat ncr per day. The praftice
has invariably been to weigh the bread upon deli•
very, in the grofs, and to enter the weight in a book
kept for that purpofe, expreffing in different columns
the over weight or under weight of the bread deli-
vered to the prifon each day. The entry in the book
on the 3d of November lag (the day on which the
Grand Jury vifi!ed the prifon ani took the loaves to
Gnildhall, London), is as follows:

I Bread and I No. of 1 Gras I Om,
flour for Loaves weight weight
In. wall received
____