Star.
London, England, 1818-01-06 00:00:00

encounter.-
reason for not giving officers to the
they could not enforce orders on
a vessel, the men not being entered as
tonal. The Ganges was now lying at Blackwell. It
had been originally fitted up for the Lascars, and the
*Mier had generously said he would accommodate,
. the Committee with her, if he were paid the interest
of the purchase money. Jn addition to the informa-
tion he had received from Mr. Croker, Lord Melville
wrote him that morning, -and he had had an into,-
view with his Lordship, who had promised that if a
Committee were appointed by the Meeting, and any,
thing suggested which the Admiralty, consistendy
with public duty, could do, he pledged himself it{
should be done. He had only further to add, that
the expense of the vessel he had alluded to would 1*
only ISt_ guineas a month.
Mr. MATTHEW MARTIN said, the seamen might
be considered as those either belonging formerly to
men of war, to mer t vessels, or to dse East India
Company. 'Now, drlny of those, he believed, who
belonged to the men of war, originally were provid-
ed with pensions, and thereby less objects of public
charity. The second class, he believed, were really
very distressed, and he had in several instances sup-
plied some of them with clothes, which he believed
were afterwards sold, as indeed was often the cafe.
There was one very fine young man whom he ha
given clothes to, but who afterwards seem and sold
them. Perhaps the better and more advisable way'
would be to lend them clothes, on their producing *
note from the Captain of a vessel, though, perhaps;
often false notes might be produced. An inspector
woulitbe of much service near the water side.
Mr. DRINKALL observed, that the foreign seamen
taken up by the late Lord Mayor had been accom-
modated with ships. Very few of the sailors to be ,
seen in the streets were fit for merchantmen, as a
great many of them belonged to the out Torts..—
Economy was, above all things, the best thing to be
attended to.
Mr. MARTEN would be glad of the last speaker's
assistance in the Committee, and to them it was
surely best to leave the adoption of particular plans.,
Mr.DRISKALL considered that Government would
find it their object to attend to the state of the Sea-
men, in the event of what might perhaps be the case.
His great object in what he suggested was, to guard
the Committee against contracting large accounts in
the first instance ; and he must again repeat, that he
firmly believed, were an application made to the
Secretary of State for the Home Department, his
Lordship would immediately issue an order to the
Admiralty to grant the two vessels he had already
alluded to, for the use of the Committee ; these ves-
sels being certainly the property of the public, but
not of the Admiralty.
Mr. DORNYORD obierving Sir James Shaw pre-
sent, one of the Representatives in Parliament of the
City, wished he would explain how it came to 1 ass
that the salutary arrangements adopted by Govern-
faint at the close of the late war, for removing the,
vagrant Seamen front the Metropolis and placing
them in a vessel in the River, had been abandone
Considering the very salutary effects which bad been
thereby produced. Probably lie could .fe*ou?' the
Meetkg with some eiplanation of this ?
Sir-James SHAW said he should, as shortly as paa,
sible, explain' what had taken place about 18 or 24
months ago, under the Mayoralty of the late Lord
Mayor. He felt he was bound to do so, after the
manner in which he had been called on by-the Hon.
Jientlernan who last addressed them. It was well
known, that at the close of the late war, in which
this country had been for so many years engaged,
the streets of this extensive Metropolis were crowded
in a great degree by discharged Seamen. Their. ap-
pearance and numbers attracted the notice of the late
Lord Mayor, who, in consequence, consulted his
Allow Magistrates what they considered it' was pro-
per to do in such a situation. They having consider-
ed what they should do, felt themselves bound to
wait on the Secretary of State for the Home Depart-
ment, and on the Noble Lord at the head of the
Admiralty, by who'd, it was hut justice to say, the
Magistrates of London were received with the utmost
politeness and attention. The Lord Mayor conceived
the most advantageous mode which could be adopt-
esi.both as regarded the seamen themselves, and the
blearing of the streets, was.to station a vessel in the
River, under the jurisdiction of the Magistracy of
=art: and Middlesex, with proper Government
on board, and also a Purser on hoard, for the
express put:pose of taking care of provisiqns ; and that
the Lord Mayor and Magistrates of the City and
County should cause all vagrants to be apprehended
and sent there, where they should he examined, in order
that those found fit, on such examination, for actual
service, might be employed in the first ship that should
be put in commission; that those not fit for service
should be sent to their respective homes; that fo-
rrigi,eirs might be given in charge to their respective
Coneals .nal that men of colour should be sent either
to Africa, or stationed in some of his Majesty's Co-
loffies abroad. Such was what had occurred to the '
late Lord Mayor, and in which his fellow Magis-
trates concurred. The plan was agreed to by Go-
vernment, and the naked clothed from the Govern-
ment stores. A vessel was stationed in the River ;
and so effectual was the remedy, that in a short time
very few vagrants were to be seen in the 'walk sir
private streets or alleys. How the v%l had since
beer removed he could norsay ; ner would he
attempt to say—but he had no difficulty in asserting,
f; con the kind attention then shewn by his Majesty's
legnisters, that it would now succeed, were an ap-
plication made to Government, and that similar good
weiuld follow. Were Magistrates and Parish officers
but-so do their duty, the excellent effects would be
speedily seen, and tke number of vagrants and men-
dicants rapidly decmase.
Mr. Owe/twee said, from the -experience he had
had, the Meeting would see the indispensible neces-
sity they were under of treating seamen with proper
caution. The system of sending them to Bridewell
was totally inadequate, and would never do—and
for .himself he could say, he had there seen %wretched-
ness .t/ho,ited in the strongest and most awful light.
He really thought that there were sufficient recep-

for seamen already without providing more,
every parish was bound to take up every
t found in it. If parishes were to do their
and every man to do his, then would we not be
...tuned to draw together. Caution should be arr•
ttzialy taken, but he must own he was not inclined
always' having money given. Parish constables
were bound to do their duty through the day as well
as through the night, for it was well known these'
creatures were suffered to roam about through day,
while through night they were taken up and often
plundered.
Captain PRANELIN said, from his knowledge as a
Captain of an East Indiaman, he was prepared to
speak a few words on the subject. He had seen
these miserable creatures in a situation which must
shock even the stoutest heart, naked and homeless,
friendless and hungry. He had in some instances
given some of them slops, but how was it possible,
nay rational, to think that these men, in that mise-
rable state of nudity, could be employed 1 Who
would engage them? For himself he could say, no
man was, none could be, more disposed than himself
to give them assistance ; and next year he 41044
certainly engage as many of them as he could, ix 4
vessel which he was just now building. Anothet
question was, what was to become of the old men?
It was impossible to think what could be done with
those between 45 and 50, as young men were chießt
wanted, not only in merchant vessels, but by Gni
vernment, whenever any fleet or vessel was fitted Oat
by Government. These were points worthy °fame
notice, and certainly of considerable moineet.
Captain GOADON, Royal Navy, Secretary, drew #
most affecting picture of the miseries he had wit'
nessed among the discharged Seamen in London.—
One evening he went to one of those miserable places
in St. Botolph, Aldgate, where these creatures spent
the night. In four small rooms, 14 feet ley 16, he
found fourscore wretches in a state, to describe
which was truly impossible. He could discern among
them few men, for they were really skeletons,
Seamen's skeletons as he could well perceive. He
questioned them about what exertions they had made
to procure a ship, when one and all expressed with
eagerness their wish to serve, but that from their
naked appearance no one would employ them. Wil-
ling to work, they were alone prevented from doing
so by their miserable appearance. Nothing, he was
confident, couldinve induced them to resort to that
p!aceoihat noxious place, but their being reduced
to the fast shift. He might well call it a noxious
place, for the smell was intolerable, and the air most
baneful. That it could not be otherwise might easily
be seen from what he had stated respecting the size
of the miserable holes they were placed in, as diem
who could pay threepence a night were allowed a
bed, that is, allowed to lie on an old torn mattress
on the floor, without a covering, and those who
could pay only twopence, were allowed to cotnem
but not to lie down, while those who could nor af-
ford that miserable pittance, were debarred from en-
tering. On his return from this miserable place, he
found five in the streets, who had not been fortunate
enough to raise this twopence. They were standing
in the streets in a cold frosty nigh, shivering in the
toll, while their uncovered limbs were exposed to
all the severities of the weather. One of them was
11eMg with his tongue out, in a very. great,fever
Numerous were the instances which. had occurred
these brave defenders of their country, these men alio
were worthy of a better fate, perishing from act*,
starvation. One was three weeks agerfaund dead,eneo
ther carried to St. George's Hospital, where lie died,
while a third yielded up a miserable existence
Greenwich beach. 'When such things were thought
of, when such things were known to be facts, it 15e..1
came every marr to be active and do his duty. Whca
a great many of these men were found young a.el
active, and fit for duty, it became every man to sop
forward and use every exertion to have such cafe
attended to. The cause, in a great measure, of the*
ruin, might be attributed to their being caught whet)
they came on shore, by a set of petty agents, who
laid in wait to entrap them, and their then going to
houses of debauchery, where they were stript of their
all, and left to wretchedness and woe,-

JAMES STEPHEN, Eiq. felt, after what had been
said respecting the Meeting being drawn together
unnecessarily, chat as he was one of those who had
called the Meeting, and was therefore guilty, it was
incumbent on him to defend himself and his friends,
and td say that they were not, and had not been, so
hasty as was alledged, until they had first ascertained
that any remedy elsewhere was lost. Such insuper-
able difficulties lay in the way that there was no hope
of Government doing any thing, or interferins, un-
til probably after a great number of these poor
wretches had perished. His worthy friend, the Ho-
' nourable Baronet, had laid much stress on the happy
effects which would result from the Magistracy doing
their duty. Were that the case, were the interfe-
rence of Magistrates to be so admirably beneficial,
he hoped and trusted the Honourable Baronet would
interfere, and do his duty as a Magistrate, and then
those who had undertaken this cause, would have
the pleasing task of declaring that they required no
aid from charity, and would thereby be relieved
from the arduous duties attending it. Wevetuch
case, he for one rejoiced at this consummation of
their labours, but after th.- statement made by that
'gallant Captain, who had been honourably employed
in his country's service, aad never more admirably
employed than in the cause before them to-day, he
could not accede to the proposition laid down—
Applouses).—What ! was he now in the midst of
this City of London, and in the presence of a num-
ber of most respectable and enlightened Gentlemen,
to be called to prove that mendicity exists, and to be
told that if Magistrates did their duty, it would be
removed? Had not the system of poor rates long
been found inadequate for its removal ? Had not
all of them, in these few days, witnessed men is the
most miserable and helpless condition, without shoes
or stockings, or adequate clothin7s. during the rigour
of a severe frost, and had we not been told by
. in the most piteous manner, that they were actually
perishing for want, and seen that tale confirmed, too
I strpngly confirmed, brtheir haggard looks and pal-
. lid countenances—( Appleuses) ?--If the worthy 1)a-
- ronet has seen this, and have seen it he must, why
[ has he not come forward and called on the Chief

Magistrate of London to do his duty, and also called
on the other Magistrates to do the same? Suck,
mien be the Honourable Baronet'; opinion respect_
ing the effects which would- result from the *est.(

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14,
tales for
far as they could withproFievy.rhas. for certain rea- and that
sots, it was impossible for their Lordships to officer vagrant
any vessel, but that they would lend the Committee duty, an 4
a vessel on security being given for it, though their required
Lordships were afraid that Gentlemen werenot aware tainly to
of the*fficultiell they might have to encounter.— for alwa,
Their Lordships' reason for not giving officers to the were bou
reed was, that they could not enforce orders on as throu,
board of such a vessel, the men not being entered as creature:
it while th

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