Star.
London, England, 1816-09-04 00:00:00

C;h7RAL POSTOPPICZ

WORTHING, SEPTEMBER
MR. Enrron—Perhapt there is no deparrmenf
better conducted in genet tl, than 'the Post (Ace,
under the attspiccs of that valuable servant of the
public, Mr. Freeliag.. II iwever, there is a want Of
arrangement, the inconvenience of which I.llave* hit
seriously ssithiii the last month ; and this intrusion ots
your valaallt Paper is ventured, in the hope of en.-
ga;!ing. prover attention to it. The remedy, I should
hope, is easy. Darking is in the direct road from •
London to this `;ace, and in one of the direct roads
to Brighton; yet from neither of these much fre-
quentA situations, can a 1 tier be sent on a Saturday
to arrive It Do: king toouer than the Tuesday
ing, as it }Toes to London and travels back Again. A
letter troth Hastings, Erlbnurne, or I3attle, s+igres
the same tale. This too is said be the quickest
way of conveyance. Surel), with such additions as
bye-posts, cross-posts, twopenny-posts (which excluth
the:privilege at franking finnelinw) and all tha (Aber
'facilities, nru-e expdai,sle might be contrived. Wnat
is si - person to do who has occasion to communicate
speedily with any of-the places short of London, in
these direct roads Coaches go three et four times
daily : it he begirds the' tendiktg. a letter by them, he
'risks
.the penalty no loudly threaiencd by kr. Free.
ling, in his advertisements moist's& The evil should
be cured, and in hopes this may lead •to general,
improvement in every similar Cara. I am, Sir, your
very, humble servant,. ' Clya.

SPORTING INTELLIGE2CCE. •
'EXETER RACES.
TUESDAY. AIJOUbt 27.

Sir Chris•npbrr, by Sir Daval, 4-yrs-old (name 3 by Mr. Par.
ker), walked aver for the Sweepstakes of sga. each. Thirteen
Suleseribers.

d•Gol.l Cup, value 100ge. and 344. in specie. Thirteen Sub•
•cril.ert, at 104 each. The heat of tLree hews.

Mr. FeHowes' br. c. Upright Judge, 4 yrs•old, 61b. 3 1 1
Mr. Buck's br. e. Garus, 4.yrs-old, 41b. - 3 2
Mr. Ellies br. e. Maniy, 3-yrs-old, a feathyr - 1 3 3
Garut wars the 14110illtite at high odds. Every heat was st run*
contested: the first was wo.i in fine styleirty Manly, beating
Gars by half a length : the second was as equally hard run be-
tween the lamer and Uprght Judge: in the third, the whole
three nude play, and C3tllc tra close together—hard Eigging an
the way from the distance rest.

WEDS &MAY.
A Plate of X5O. given Ly tie Nleu.bers for the County of Devon.
Mr, Railelyre's Sir Clii.;itiTher, inst. 411). I
Mr. Farquhareon's lir. cJit Garus, Vet. ells. 2 2
A Mate DI E'.o. given tiy the hleinher for the City of Exeter,.
hfr. itailclyffe's Sir Cho r.tupii.r, tst. 81b. 1 I
Sir W. koberts grey horse Wellesley. Sit. 101 b. - 2 2
Mr. Faluhareott% hay mare. by 1.;:gle, estr.hlb.. . 3 de
Ile sport (-xcepttlig the rutiriLig tar the Gol l Cup) was very
indillerent, and excite./ but little interest iu the minds of the
opwctaturs.

It is perhaps not generally known that a heavy
penalty attaches by Act of Parliament to all persona
at any time shooting or hunting in stanriing corn.
Thursday-night, about eleven o'clock, three ruf..
Fans, armed with s;stmls, broke into the house of
Vat. INmAx, an rodustrious farrier, et Stlaester,
Berks ; oae of C.em went up stairs and entered tl-e
bed-room, stood guard osir r the wife, no other Perron
being in the house, andordered her to go to prayers,
as he should instantly put her to death.—The othr:r
two proceeded to plunder, at. which they continued
till one in the morning, when they all three absconded,
carrying off every thing of value that %VAS moveable,
to the amount of near seira, being all the poor man
, was worth.

Mososa.:—.Sunday se'nnight an inquest was held
by Tacisrat SAMPSON, Esq. on the body of a man who
had been discovered in a bog of ClounsUragh, where
it appeared to have been concealed ter a consider.
Able time. The scull was dreadfully shattered, and
the Jury fottud a. verdict of Willa-Murder against
some perms, or persons. unknown.
Colts EXCIIANOE, Sere. i.—The 'weather contiau•
ing upfavudrahle for the hat veSt,increised the demand
ter Wheat this morniag, and sAes were readily
.effected at an advance tit full 2s. per.quarter, 'Ada
every appearance of higher prices if vie have not an
intmediate and favoitrable *change to ripen the corn.—
Oats and Beans were in brisk demand, ana are Is. per
qearter dearer. Mari -y aho met ready sale, and is
Is. per quarter higher. lu l'eas auti other articles
there is Ito alteration.

At Brentwood, Essex, rster,Liy morning,. there
was ice an inch in tkickness.

BARTIMIPAIEW FAIR cOmme nceci vecterrla yovith all
the usual uproar and confusion. INfo sooner had the
LORD MAYOR departed, than the frolic of the season
began, and a variety of jokes were playel off, to the
infinite delight of a numerous assemblage of men,
women, and children of all descripti“ns. • The vele. .
dim sounds of every kiln: of music were in requisition.
from an octave fide to the dustman': IA and watchman':
rattle, assisted at intervals by the roaring of the wild
beasts. The shew-folks ate very atitneions. Among
the most conspicuous is Mr. Ricitaanwtr, whom,
booth occupies, as usual, two 'routs, one lacing
Giltspur•street, the other the main avenue of the fair.
: This temporary erection is I:kgantly Fitted up, and
his bill of tare appears to give general sa:is!action.—.
ft consisted of The Mail aid tic 411Jvaie, with the pan-
tomime of Harlequin m the Dec: ; or, Tte Nagici.,:n of
the Rod : and concludzd with a scan? of Napoleon
Bonaparte in the island of St. Helena ; and a
change of petformance to take. place each day. His
company is composed of the first•rate excellence, both
tragic anti comic, whose abilities, Specimens of which
they presented to the assembled multitude on the out-
side, excited the most enthusiastic applause. The
exhibition of wild beasts at Messrs. GILHAXI and
&rams's, was very attractive. In this collection are
a tame lion and lioness, into wht;..e dca the keeper
enters and caresses them, afterwards he puts his head
into the mouth of the former, with the greatest Cum
and composure. There are a number of sleight
hand tolks and tumblers, whose exertious create mu. h
laughter; many of their costumes were very gr.)tesctir
The oyster and sausage stalls were very p lentil ul, and
many a dainty dish was served up in the back
lour. The gingerbread stalls were numerous. The
swings and round-abouts are not so numerous as last
year, yet we tear many accidents may occur from
them. An instance took place yesterday s—as or s
of these vehicles was in motion, a young two it,.
'cautiously ventured too dear, add Was struck by Abe
Itotk at the- end of ca.. iron which taetesss
body of the carriage, which tore part of ; tlle flesh
Irons his cheek in a shocking manner. He 'Vjas.,
taken to St. iiirthoWaisw's* shocking
.2122.04 i 4
stale of iniettitillity.


.

POLICE OFTHE METROPOLIS.

MINUTES OF EVIDENCE TAKEN BEFORE THE COM-
. MU !ME OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. ON THE.
IR OF THE POLICE OF THE METROPOLIS.
11e 14011.1tiliNAT OUT BIN N tT ill the Chair.

.. i

(1. T. RAILIStit esausseee, Ese.exankined).
You are a Magistrate for the County of Middlesex?
—r am.
Have you ever directed your attention to the gene-
ral system of the Police of the Metropolis ?—I have.
State the result ?—There is too little exertion used
in preventing the propagation of crimes, and too
mach exertion ill punishing them when they arrive at
maturity. The children of dishonest parents are
suffered to infest the streets in a state of destitution;
the first instructions these little creatures receive are
in the arts of begging and thieving. I have seen
children seven or eight years of age initiated into the
trade of picking pockets, under the eye of adult%
seemingly their mothers. Wline parents thus dime
their children upon the public, the public ought to
take such children in immediate charge. By separat-
ing them from their bad connexions, and giving them
tome education, tbey_might be made useful members.
of society. The impunity with which small thefts
are committed, is a great encouragement to crime;
the first thefts of children take place at ton tender an
age wit them for legal prosecution ; and when in the
next stage of their education they are introduced to',
Sash houses, there they see thieves and thief-takers
sitting together on terms of good fellowship; all they
tee and hear is calculated to make then) believe they
may rob without fear of punishment, for they do not
reflect that the forbearance of the Officers will conti-
nue no longer than until they commit a se4o crime,
when they will be sacrificed. The system of offering
great rewards on the perpetration of a capital offence,
and no reward or encouragement for the discovery of
minor felonies, is radically bad ; the thief-takers are
thus interested in encouraging rising thieves, until
their crimes arrive at the highest growth. If rewards
upon a small scale were given for the discovery of
thieves in their earliest acts, and for the apprehension
cf reputed thieves, the trade of thieving would in its
first attempts be so exposed to the harassing of in-
formers, as not to be worth following. Impunity is
still farther assured to petty thieves by the general
indisposition to prosecute ; the trouble, loss of time,
and expense, discourage even the public-spiiited
from prosecuting. To lessen the waste of time in
austodiag prosecutions, lists of the causes set down
for trial ought to be fixed up in the hall of the Ses-
sions as soon as the bills are found; they ought to be
taken up in regular order, and be marked off as they
are disposed Of. Crimes against the public peace
ought to be prosecuted at the public expense : this
would secure the ends of justice, and prevent collu-
aion between the prisoner and prosecutor—at any rate
indictments ought to be prepared, subpoenas serval,
and advice given, without expense to prosecutors ;
and their loss of time and expenses ought to be paid.
Impunity is visibly enjoyed by pickpockets to a very
great extent; gangs of this class of robbers impu-
dently look us in the face, rob us, and contintte to
elude punishment. One reason of this is, the facility
with which adepts in the art pass their booty from
one to another, whereby it is difficult to identify the
thief; if lie be detected, it must be while he is in the
act, it is then only a misdemeanour, and is bailable;
the production of two sureties in 4310 each is usually '
deemed sufficient to let the felon loose again on the
public ; he does not appear to his trial, the recogni-
minces are esueated ; but the penalties are not sought
after for two years, when, I have authority to state,
not one in 500 is recovered. Indeed the present sys-
tent of dealing with recognizances is a mere mockery.
A casualjrausgressor may pine in gaol for want of
sureties, but a professed villain is never at a loss for
such assistance to set him free; there are men in
abundance who make it their business to stand bail
for hire ; they know at what tirae the estreat will he
in process, when they shift their quarters, and are
unseat inventor. I was in JIM 1814, surrounded by
a gang of five or six hustlers, in the Strand; one of
these put Itis hand into my breeches pocket, where I
seized it, secured the man, and took him. to Bow-
street; he WAS •committed for trial: I attended two
days at the next Sessions, when I at length heard
that the offender had put in bail, and might not ap-
pear until the succeeding Sessions; he appeared no
more. I find that to this day no process is issued
against his Jew bail; the only penalty indicted was
on myself, in the money I paid for the bill of indict.
anent, &c: and in the time I was confined at the
Sessions, blagistrates ought to be well hasured that
bail admitted in such cases is substantial, that the
penalties Of the bond are large, and that the proeecu-
ter have notice when bail is put in, that he may not
waste his time at the Sessions to no purpose. Persons
under accusation only, ought ta be kept separate
from convicted or reputed thieves, and persons im•
prisoned for assaults ought not to be mixed with con-
victed or accused felons. The objects of imprison
Meat being to deter by its sufferings, and if possible
to work the reformation of the prisoner, I conceive
these objects may be achieved with more certainty
and at much less expense by making the confinement
strictly solitary, refusing access of friends restricting
the diet to coarse bread and to water only, and in
aggravated cases adding to the imprisonment a cer-
tain number of floggings during the term. Subject
to this abstinence and discipline, I think one month's
confinement would be more dreaded, and more
completely subdue daring spirits, than aim in the
common way, and with the customary indulgences ;
contamination would thus be avoided, and the re-
formed culprit be exempted from theTuture con-
tagion aad disgrace of prison icquaietances.—
Discharged sailors have latterly committed many
--e)bbenes ; the interest of these poor fellows has
been sadly neglected; some thousands of them, when
paid off, have received aims which, rightly applied,
would have secured their remaining days from want;
but, as helpless as children in the use of money, they
are immediately script when they reach the shore
which their valour has defended, and left to perish
through distress, or subsist by plunder. If Govern-
ment bad managed a little for these men, the evil to
a great extent might have been averted.
-Receivers of stolen toads are by no means udder
ilffectual check. The subject is by far too compli-
esiseE for my preseatUvidence ; I will, therefore, only
SUggsS4 that it would tb4row considerable
impedi-
Malt at &elm of *V :waiver's drogue, if it were

.

-7 .7-
r '

enacted, that no person should purchase weond-hand 1
wearing apparel, lin,en, or piece Bonds, ironmongery,
or metals, for re-sale, withost taking out an annual
licence. Among the'immediate cause of thefts and
nther offences, Lotteries hold an isndoubled place.
But I am tiow come to a subject of universal influence
on the morals of the public ; it is my opinion, that
low public-houses, and gin-shops, are the hat-bed of
nearly all the vices and eriroes which disturb the
metropolis in these, thousands odnsume their time,
money, and constitution, and acquire ipsenobility to
all the moral duties; from these they sally forth to
commit depredations on,the public. It is lamentable,
that public-houses, whieh are indispensible to public
accommodation, shoul*, thus be rendered public
nuisances. The evil,V‘esever, is inseparable from
the law, which gives to certain individuals the power
of setting up or putting down such houses, subject to
no other controul than that of their own will. This
despotic Power WAS given by the Legislature for the
purpose of more effectually repressing disorderly
houses; but in this, as in all similar powers, the abuse
supersedes the use. Whatever the object might be.
the effect of the law is to throw a very great propor-
tion of the public-houses into the hands of brewers'
and gin.sellers, whose interest consists is procuring 1,
the greatest consumption of their liquors, the effect
also is to exclude from the ownership of such houses,
the owners of the surrounding houses to which the
public-houses are appurtenant; the interest of which
owners consists in preventing their public-houses from
becoming a harbour for drunkenness or disorder, and
in promoting industry and sobriety among their te-
nants. It is capable of ful) proof, that some brewers.
procure licences for new houses at pleasure, which the
right owners have in vain applied tor; and that they
are able to preserve licences to old houses of the most
disorderly kind; whence the publicans are taught to
depend, not on geed conduct, but on kood interest,
for the preservation of their licences. These brewers
are men of great wealth and influence, and know how
to apply both; but where the licences are above the
brewers' influence, the procuring of a licence is still
so much a work of intrigue, that an estate owner,
who is aware of licensing practices, will not risk his
property, or commit his independence, in erecting a
public-house, when one is wanted for his tenants. If.
then, the brewer does not stand forward in his own
person, some avaricious intriguer supplies his rooms
and administers to his objects. My conclusion, there-
fore, is. that licensing houses for brewers should be
prohibited by law ; that gin shops should be speedily
abolished altogether; that a preference should be se- I
cured to the estate owner, where a new public-house
becomes necessary ; and that licensing decisions should
be subject to an appeal to the Quarter Sessions. And
I am of opinion that considerable benefit would arise,
were parish officers personally to visit the haunts of
vice, and direct the apprehension of disorderly per-
sons, instead of leaving all to the frequently interested
selection of pike officers, constables, and watchmen.
Do you think that the morals of the lower orders
of people are better or worse than they were formerly ?
—Worse.

_
Do you think that drunkenness is considerably in-
creased think that, by the profusion of new gin-
shops drinking has largely increased, and that the low
tippling-houses which have been newly licensed, are
calculated to promote hard drinking ; whether, upon
the whole, there is now more intoxication among the
lower orders than tormerly, I cannot say.
Do you think the existence of the gin-shops, where
a beer licence is merely nominal, one of the great
causes to which is ta be attributed the increase of
inebriety ?—Most cemainly.
Have you ever been present when the licenses were
given by the Magistrates at their Petty Sessions ?-4
have, both in the Tower Hamlets andain Kensington
Division. _ _

Can you state to the Committee any particular sate
or cases in which negligence on the part of the Ma.
gistrates appeared to you ?—I will state one, of which
I have an intimate knowledge. I have considerable
estates in the neighbourhood of Stepney, upon which
I have lately bunt, and caused to be built, nearly 100
houses, besides two large manufactories. Part of my
land lying between the Mile-end road and Stepney
Church, is planned in streets capable of containing
about 500 houses. White-horse-lane, a great tho-
roughfare, passing through these streets, is without
any public-house, although there are more thau 350
new houses in and by the line. At the desire of my
tenants, between three and four years since I ordered
a public-house to be built, midway on this line. While
I was having _it built, I WU applied to by the agents
of Maws. Hanbury, the brewers, and Mr. Stables
and Williams the spirit-dealers.
Who are Messrs. Stables and Williams ?—They
are both near relatives to Sir D. Williams.
Is Mr. Williams his relation ? I understand se.
How long have they set up the spirit trade ?
About five or slx pears since. I was asked to enter
into an engagement with Messrs. Stables and Wil-
liams, for the supply of the house; intimating, that
if I complied, my house would be licensed, but not
otherwise. Conceiving that the wants of the neigh-
bourhood must ensure a licence, I rejected all these
applications. Bat when the licensing day anived, in
1813, the houie was not even noticed. I then shut
up the house for st•year, until the licensing in 1814.
It was agate refused. I shut it up another year, and
applied again in 1815; but my house still remains
unlicensed ; and from further application: that have
been made, I am persuaded that the house will not be
licensed, unless I comply with the conditions of pre-
viously selling it, or letting it much under its value,
to Messrs. Hanbury, or use other exceptionable
means. In illustration of what I have here asserted,
I will name two instances, from among maay that
may be adduced. In 1813, Mr. Humphreys, noir a
publican near Stepney, offered to introduce me to a
Mr. Stables, who had interest to procure a licence,
and would do so if the spirit trade were secured to
him. I declined the offer. Mr. Stables is Clerk to
the Commiuioners of Sewers, a very near relative of
Sit; D. Williams, who, about three years previous to,
this application, under the support of Messrs. Han-
bury, was set up at a dealer in their bottled porter, and
in spirits ; in which trade he. was 'hardy afterwards
joined a Mr. Williams, another relation of Sir Da-
' niers; they have sineemet with extraordinary success,
as I are blamed, among the publicans in SirD.'sdivi-
dont In Anson lut I spoke to Mr. Robson, a leading
Magistrate an the TOM! Hamlets Division, and the
,ctinidgetial, friend of Sir Daniel: exprenOg toy hope
'that *Mariam width had lobsiftd kerma ire and

the Magistrates in that neighbouthidod Mould not be
the means of preventing the public-house, of which I
was the owner, from being licensed. Mr. Robson
said, that as a friend, he would advise me to engage
the trade to Messrs. Hanbury, for that it was ex•
fleeted the Magistrates wished to serve them. Seeing
that it was in vain to contend against this issue, I
therefore offered to sell the house to Messrs. Han-
bury, for what it cost me out of my pocket, with.
out interest, or to let it to them on a loug lease, at
a rent ytelding me between C 5 and 46 per cent. in-
terest on what the house cost building; with this they
seemed willing to close. I then went to Mr. Robson,
at Whitechapel Office, where he was sitting with
Mr. R. Davies, and told him what I had done, and
that I conceived my offer to be accepted. Upon this,
Mr. Robson expressed his satisfaction, and intimated
there would be no difficulty in licensing the house;
he freely stated, that three of them (whom I under-
stood to be Sir D. Williams, Mr. Merceroe, and blr.
Robson) met previous to the licensing day, when
they predeterniined what houses should be licensed:
and he added, " if necessary our friend here, (Mr.
Rice Davies) will attend." He then proceeded to
eiplain to Mr. Davies the necessity of licensing the'
house—its remoteness from any other public house;
the very great number of new houses around it ; the
large property I had on the spot, and the circum-
stance that I had taken down an 'old public house,
the Marquis of Granby, on the same estate in Mile-
end-road, where public houses were too crowded,
while in Whitehorse-lane, the situation of the new
house, there was not one; so that the public were
greatly benefited by the exchange of place, and ob-
liged to Mr. Beaumont ; and he, Mr. Robson, parti-
cularly desired that the circumstance of my having
pulled the old public house down should be men-
tioned in the Memorial for licensing the new one.—
Mr. Davies concurred in all that was said ; promised
to attend if necessary; and added, it would be a
great shame if, holding so much property on the spot,
I could not get a house licensed. On the following
day I SAW Sir D. Williams, and stated to him the
terms on which I had offered to part with the house
to Messrs. Hanbury; remarking that I should still
lose the interest of my money for three years. Sir
Daniel entered with seeming zeal into the arguments
for licensing the house, and observed that it was no
bad thing to get my principal back. A few days
before the licensing, Messrs. Hanbury declined taking
the house on the terms offered ; that an in-
ferior house would be more to their interest. On the
18th of September, the Justices met, SirD. Williams,
Mr. Rhode, Mr. Story, Mr. Merceron, Mr. Robson,
Mr. Windle, Mr. Flood, and Mr. Mashiter. The
licensing was opposed by Sir D. Williams and Mr.
Robson, in which they were followed by Messrs.
Merceron, Flood, Windle, and Mashiter, who usually
vote with them, as lam informed and believe. Mr.
Rhodes and Mr. Story appealing strongly against
this decision, were shortly answerei
_by Mr. Robson,
that it was A better house than necessary ; and, per-
haps never would be licensed. The connexion here
evinced, between these Magistrates and Messrs. Han-
bury is made no secret of by the agents of the litter.
L had heard it freely avowed by them. At a licen-
sing meeting its 1814, a Mr. Ventom, the broker rot
Messrs. Hanbury, was introduced to me by Mr.
Hubbard, a Lieutenant in the Tower Hamlets, saying
" This is the Gentleman to get your house licensed."
Ventom said, it would be licensed directly, if I gave
Messrs. Hanbury the trade; and in answer to a ques-
tion, added, Mr. Hanbury would not, of course, be
at the expence and trouble of using their influence with
the Justices, unless the trade were made sure to them."