Star.
London, England, 1812-04-07 00:00:00

. . 4
TURF' EX7 2:

I

ON THE TlfltEilf--.AT
• sg.eintt Sr 1. %eh's coin. soly lorcureft.
to t agitnyt- M3lAtt ;L. , by nick
•
tp I sgainit Mr. stab it Ultitb,m,4%
hey, t m i testae Arairie. 1641664 a. Thursday, ca,.
, •
m b; trio!: Ituravoitit CommandManua&
• 4

. Yecterdiry .evading Earl STAltaiorr, itceomptnieci
by soviwid Ladies Of slistiaktion, Inviolate.' the Me'.
chanical Theatre in Catharinestreet, Stanii with
theii.ptelanClK .1%01 tinbleMite, SO eminently slis-
toagahhed throughout &imitator his ninnerons suet
fel inventions and iniprovensetus ideciaanic:, seas
pleated to expresi to thrPitiptierniPtiz. hightst appro.
b nib* of the 'adding, tfat. was nut
intly calculated to alcirci.ardusearene And deiight,
but also to impress the rising generation tyith the;
love for the Arts and Sciences` so useful, and, at. the
same time, so advantageihas to a country like Ge*d
Britain.
Buitilr TO Dr Esfahan yllannitis
Wretriast and 6.aw FsLsv. *Amy mama:ion young
people in humble circumstatices (he a painter', in James.
street, Usson-greve, Mary-la-honere), hiestase.victinis
of. tle: following drea calandi7tia Easter Monday,
The wife, in attemptiete to reasovelannaliaiiiig.tnr-
peniine from the fire, the flinitecauttlielidr.blothes
the hethalid flew to her assistatee.the 'vigil was in-
stantly enveloped in smdke, and they *lens hods to
dreadfully burnt that the woman, after stiff:ring ex-
cruciating torture, died the next day.' The husband,
reserved for lonieer misery, wrre alive on Saturda e. but
without hopes of recovery, being miserably scorched in
his body, with the ends of his fingerelitent off. Whe-
ther he has paid the debt of nature, ntservivai a*retelt-
est spectacle in pain and misery, we knew not. The re- •
mains of his u tie %tete buried on Sunday. in Winkler
Church Yard. Were this nielanchely picture to close
here, it would he sufficient to excite pity and compaa..
sion iti every generous breast, but unfortunately, three
helpless infants (one Of them thus suddenly.beteaved
of the breast of its mother) are left destitute, and for
whom, and their heavily afflicted father. it alive, the
assistance of the humane and charitable is most ear-
nestly implored.—Peter White, Esq. of Willsdert,
will receive behefactioni ; or if any ere left at Mn
Wheble's, No. 18, Warwick-square, Newgate street. •
they will be forwarded.
We observe with pride and pleasure that every
officer, non-commissioned officer, and private, of tit*
Gloucester regiment of Militia, have subscribed ole
day's pay towards the relief of the widows and fa-
milies of the officers and men lost on board his Mai:
jesty'm ships St. George, Hero, Defence, SakLuha,
and Fancy, as it proves that the atmv always feels
for the calamities that may befal the Herres of the
navy. An old naval officer, etelously attached to
the service, andiever anxious to promote its nearest and
dearest interests, earnestly entreats all those whom it
may concern, particularly all commanders of ships.
and vessels in hi, Majesty's service, as alb all Ad.
miral's Secretaries, to forward, to the utmost ci their'
power, the charitable and noble Scincriptinn now
open at Lloyd's, for the relief of the widows and on.
phans, or.other near relatives of chase unfortunate
-persons who •so lately perish6d in the Baltic and cei
the coast of Ireland. 'lucre can be little doub', from
the knowledge, that the Writer of thii article has of
the hearts of his brother officers, that this subsctirtion
will become universal throughout the navy bus as
the unhappy sufferers in question are more pressed
for immediate than /ten:want reli-f, every naval officer
is once more earnestly solicited to accelerate, as much
as possible, the bringing this subicription to a conchs...
sion. In a word, la all Captains, whose ships' eom.
panics Mean to subscribe to thiSexcellent charity, and
have not yet done so—leeall those lose not another
moment in doing this, as, moil a large proportion of
the fleet shall have authorised the Navy Board to pay
their subset iptions, it will not be in the power of the
Committee at Lloyd-s to commence their payments.
Naval commirtiMed officers of every description are re-
quested to observe, that the subscription now open at
Lloyd's is wholly unconnected with the Naval efea
ritable Society, that admirab'.e Charity being of a
11er:daunt nature, and conducted by Officers of the
Navy enly.
Dupuis;, MARcm 31.—Such Intehse frost in this
country, and in this season of the year, is not in the
recollection of the oldest inhabitant, not has there iii
all probability been its equal during the-List century.
On the 25th instant a grand curling match was de-
cided on a beautiful sheet of ice in the parish of Kel-
ton, stewartry of Kirkcudbright.—Such a singular
' circumstance is not unworthy a place iq the table of
chronology.
A yoting%*oman of the name of Wilkie, trim had
been with a few of her companions looking at some
marriage people returning from the church of Forfar;
was, upon her going home, challenged by her lather
for being so long out, when, after some altercation,
her father, in a fit of passion, tdnk. up A pair of
kitchen tongs and threw them it the-girl, Whereby
her skull was fractured, which caused her almost
instant death.

. . . • -
Mr. MaciocKsi new intbankment, at Tre Ma be,
was greatly injured by the effect of the high wind
and tide of the 15th of February.
Last week, a cow on the Hon. General Goanours
farm of the Mains of Maryculter, calved three calves,
all alive.
Le.ters from clew South Watel.nf ihe.goth of May,
state, that great improvements have taken place in
that colony. The town of Sydney is hid put in re-
gular streets; and divided into distriets, with head-
boroughs, sub-constables, watchmen, etc. &e. Mr.
D'Arcy Wentworth hat been appointed to -tl.e head
of the Police. Five townships have been {aid out en
the Hawkesbury and George Rivers, •to be tailed
Windsor, Richmond, Wilberforce, Pitt, and Castle-
reagh. The roads from Sydney toilatarnatia and
Hawkesbury, whicii were scarcely pairablit, have been
repired, bridges thrown over rt.e trams, :old turn-
pikes establithed. No fears of A scarcity of pro;isions
were to be apprehended, vast tityrritures bt" Cattle
being reared, ana Use storehouse) h.led grAit.
Butt:led' m••rrt was from Is. to is. SJAper awd die
supory equal to the consumption, iei.hout :ash Ince
front the mother country: Word was ro lie the r List
staple commerce. S: trier! Of good • thuratter were
furnished with live stock; from the G YerLitsvnt stores 4
in to”,ideration fa} ing the value, in money qt:
grain, in IS mouth!. The populaLicia of SyJnej is
estimated .rt• 10,1.11,0; of which thew have beim seat
England as 6:avialac
• • oxviusr: 4 •
• - • • rel eorr.:. •• Y. **,. •1f

14

LONDON SASSIUNS. •
• t
Yesterday these Sessions commenced, before the
LORD MA TOII, Recoils:set, &c.
R. nwer was indicted for a misdemeanor, in at-
tempting to bribe $. Davis, 'one of 'the turnkeys of
Newgate, to liberate Mr. Skrne, then lying under a
charge of felony in that jail.
. Samuel Davis stated, that a short time after 'the
commasnent of Skene to Ncwgate, the prisoner, who
is a seetaringnein, came to the witness, at Newgate,
and pressed him tiro with him to a public-house in'
the neighbourhood; the witness, at length, agreed to
go, after he had locked up his prisoners for the
night. The prisoner, after sore conversation, told
him that Skene was a particular friend of his ; that
the witness had it in his pde er to do him great ser-
vice if he would ; and that he should be handsomely
considered for his trouble. Witness, supposing he
meant some indulgence within the prison, asked what.
service as he should be glad to render him any lit-
tle kindness in his power. The prisoner then etplain-
iii,ebat his object was to obtain Skene's release from
the prison, which the witness could effett if he chose;
and which if he would do, he should be compensa-
Etai most liberality : thistle should have a considera-
ble Min of reineas in hand, amply sufficient to make
amends for the less of his employment ; and that a
comfortable pros's% at for himself, wife, and children,
should he made for life. The witness directly and
positively refused to accede, for any consideration, to
such a proposal; and they parted : but the witness,
on his remits • to the prison, communicated what had
passecrto Mr. Hardy, principal clerk to Mr. New-
man, the head gaoler ; who desired, that if the pri-
soner came again to the gaol, he might be brought
whim.
The prisoner called the next day ; and Mr. New-
man being apprised, took him into a private room,
and after remonstrating with him on his attempt,
the prisoner said there was no harm done and re.
Tinned the rustier might drop; but Mr. Newman
said that was impossiblqr '('hat it was his duty to
prosecute the prisoner; but that he did not wish to
do iteineliceively. Mr. Neeinian accordingly pre-
ferred a bill of indictment against him,. which was
fAnnd by the Grand Jury, sit. the last Session.: A
few slays ago the prisoner, who was net on re egni-
settees, calker 'again on Mr. Newman to be advisel
by him-huw to act, as he was kind enough to say he
wished not to prosecute him vindictively. Mr. New-
smen said, he must decline offering him any advice
tee w the subject, but referred him to his own. law
advisers. •
Mg. &LIMY, Counsel for the defendant, contended
that there were no words on the face of the indict-
ment to support the present charge. There must be
a specific criminal act alledged and set forth, in in-
telligible language, on the lace of the indictment.—
Here the crime charged. was the endeavouring, e by
every means in the defendant's power," to seduce,
kc. Now it might sa happen, that ALL the means
in the defendant's power. though exerted by him to
the utmost. might not be sufficient to constitute a
charee at felony, in which case there would not be
on el; face of the indictment such a charge as would
support it. Such bcingthe case,end there being here no
vecific wr'rds which necessarily inferred criminality,
theindictitient, he submitted, must tall to the ground.
The only other argument he could submit, eidier to
the Court or Jury, was in mitigation of. unishment.
The crime imputed to the person whose liberation the
defendant was undoubtedly proved to have endea-
vote ed to procure, was not one of those offences
v. Lich were ranked anieng what are termed mala in u
'--it was not an offence punishable by the law of Gun.
At this moment, among the nations on the Conti-
nent, there were several where it was net regarded as
an offence ranking among the higher class of crimes ;
and even in this country it was nut till the last reign
•that it was male a capital felony. The defendant
therefore might, however erroneously, have supposed
that in promoting the escape of such a man as Mr.
Skene,,he was not guilty of an offence at all to be
compared with the offence pf one who let loose upon
the public a murderer, or a midnight robber.—The
defendant, too, he was informed, was a relation of
the unfortunate gentleman, whose escape he had at-
ti mpted to favour—a gentleman, except in the unfor-
tunate instance which had occasioned his commit-
:pea, of the most unexceptionable character, and !c-
-lime kable only for his benevolence and humanity.—
Such a character could not have failed to be fully ap-
preciated, and his faults to be viewed with a lenient
eye, by the defendant, who has been a sailor, and who
possessed so truly a benevolent heart, that he had
twice thrown himself into the ocean, while the ship
in which he was, was under weigh, and had, on each
occasion. been successful in saving the life of a fellow
. creature with whom he was not tonnected.
The defendant received an excellent character horn
respectable wiusesses.
The Re( °mien, in addressing the Jury, expressed
it as his opinion, that there was nothing in the objec-
tion to the wording of the indictmeut, which suffici-
ently pointed out an offence, and which offence had
been dearly proved in evidence. As to the situation
of Mr. Skene, his rank and prospects in life, and the
powerful ti lends he had—they were all aggravations
'of his guilt, and of the offence of the present defen-
dant, who would have favoured his escape ft om pub-
lit justice. What would have been said of the law
sat this country, the proudest boast of which was, that
it took equal cognizance of the rich and of the poor,
if this powerfuland richly allied man had been mulcted
to escape, *ldle a poor man, for the same offeuee, in-
urred iertain death.
• The:wry found the defendant Guilty.
The RECORDER declared the sentence of the Court
w be, after due consideration ofahe circumstances of
the ease, and to deter others trim the commission of
similar offences, shat the defendant do pay a fine
of .4E50, be imprisoned in the jail of Newgete
. El calendar nwntiss, and do, at the expirAtion of that.
time, find sustties to keep the peace Cur one year.
The defendant addressed the Court, begging that
they. weuld r, ,ye t hiegooducss to ov their sentence,
and to banish him at once to. Botany Bay. Ittiad been
truly said, Wit tro man, however .pure his Principles,.
:. could expett, on his return from confinement for any
. knettli of time in .a common piston, to be. an ohject
of reuse pc. confidence. For h. own part, he was sa- e
tis fire he could not long eltist,.asn4pg -such people as
he had'seen.iin Neweate. As to thefin*, -although
kir was a pour man, and Wrought hard for what little