Star.
London, England, 1826-01-31 00:00:00

FROM Till SHETFIIILD INDEPENDIINT.

An extraordinary sensation has been created, by the
apprehension of no less a number than sixteen persons,
suSketed as the perpetrators of the most atrocious
crimes. It may be remembered that several burglaries
and murders have of late years been committed in our
vicinity, which, under all the exertions of the 'Magis-
tracy, have hitherto eluded detection. Upon. the first
apprehension of the individuals, and the report of the
nature of the evidence which had led to the discovery of
their crimes, a general feeling prevailed, that the most
important results to public justice would take place.
The murderers of the unfortunate Wastnage, the but-
glars who have several times broken open the house of
Mrs. Walker, at Wastnage, and the long past assassina-,
Lion of a man in Wentworth Park, weir talked of as
atrocities likely to be proved and avenged. These ex-
pectations, however, we are not prepared to pronounce
within probability. We are in possession of most of
the facts which haee been elicited during the five exa-
minati,sns which have taken place at Rotherham and
Sheffield, and so much as we can give the public, with-
out prejudicing the individuals under suspicion, or an-
ticipating, and probably thereby defeating the ends of
justice, eepurpese to publish.
A boy 'about sixteen years of age, apprenticed to a
blaalmith, at Greasbrook, appears to have been soli-
cited by some of his old and known bad connections to
assist aem in robbing his masters house of a newly
killed pig. Under the infiuente of fear, he at first con-
sented, but at la t, actuated, as be asserts, by conscien-
tious feelings, he acquainted the family with the de-
signs of the robbers, and they were defeated. Somt
strong religious feelings were excited on the boy after-
wards, by the merpbers of a certain class of Dissenters,
and he was takenbefore the Rev. R. Lacy, and volun-
tarily gave such depositions as have led to the appre-
hension of sixteen persons, fifteen of whom are now in
cu-tody at Rotherham, and one at our own Town Ball.;
It is extraordinary, that his evidence implieates two of
the nearest of his own relations, and that his account of
his fist initiation in blood, is dated so long since as the
murder in the Earl Fitz s% illiam's park ; the whole cir-
cumstacces • which •he relates ate like a well-learned
romance, rather than the difficult recollection of facts
which octorsed 'a number of years ago. One of our
most'actiie Officiirs •has- bcen busily engaged during,
the Week, in olitainini corroborative evidence, and we
understand an examination, which will probably be
final,. will Jake place at our Town Hall on Monday.

The sbbsciiption for the family of- the late General
For,' amounted, on Thu.sday, to 839.427 francs, or
nearly 34,0001.
The Adelpli Theatt e has succeeded so far beyond
the expectations of the 'present liberal and indefatigable
proptietbri, that 'they have been already enabled to an
ticipate and disbnr4 considerable pecuniary engage-
ments long before they-became due.
DUNDEE, JANUARY 26.—The suspicion that Mr.
Petre, mapufacturer, who has been missing since the
2 t December, had. fallen into the water and been
drowned, has become a sad reality.—Monday forenoon
hi; body was discovered by the, men belonging to a
sand barge, on one of the banks in the middle of the
river; and' conveyed on shore in the passage steam
boss. All the money I e was supposed to have with
him, amounting to 161. odds, was-found in his pockets.
The Police in Mexico continues to he quite miserable.
Ev.ry Newspaper contains a bulletin of the operations
of the Gaardzs of the preceding night, and it seldom
happens that some daring tobbery is not announced.
ThiA,ort the 701 of l'a-st October, we are informed, that
altht•ng. h the new 14%e against totlbri s- w -is proclaimed
oaly t!ds: morning, at five o'cicck in the evening a coach
coming horn A:.iztl was stopred and plundered within
sight of the gnarl-room of ,La riedad; and about the
same lime 4 tsavelh.r, near the same place, h..d hiS
horse taken from him ;" and again, on the Bth of the
sante month, " the house of Don Jose Espinosa, imme-
diately opposite to the Eng.lish Legation, was assaulted
by four men on horseback. The neighbourhood took
alarm immedi.ately, and a number of persons ran
towards the place with arms, upon which the robber;
made their escape."'
At Dulwich College are preserved some of Ben
Jonsdn't Menioratida, which prove that he owed much
of his inspiration to good wine and the convivial hours
he passed at. the Dqvil, a tavern then situated in Fleet-
street, near Temple-bar, on the site where Child's-place
now stands. "Mem. I laid the-filet of my Vulpone,'
and wrote most of it, aftera present of ten dozen of'
palm sack from my very good Lord T— ; that play I
am positive will live to posterity and be acted when I.
and Envy be- friends, with applause."-44 Mem. The
first speech in my Catalina,' spoken by Sylla's Ghost.
wis wilt after I parted with my friend at the Devil
Tavern. I had drank well that night, and had brave
notions. There is one scene in that play which I think
is flat. I resolve to drink no snore water with my
wine"-44 Mem. Upon the 20th of May, the King
(Heaven reward him!) seat me a hundred pounds. At
that time I went often to the Devil, and before I had
spent forty of it wrote my 4-Alcliyinist.'"-44 Mem.
The ''Devil an Ass,' the' Talent. a Tub,' and some other
comedies•whish did. not succeed, written by me. In
the winter honest- Ralph- died,- when-. I and my boys
tes4 setsti. at dm Devil." .

ACCIDENTS.

FATAL ACCIDENT.--SOwARD htionrr, tot, Sur-
veyor to the Commissioners appointed undei the Act of
Parliament for the building or Churches, was proCeed-
ing in his gig with his Lady- from his cousin's houseoon
Blackheath, to his own residence at Bal.sam-hill, when
at a short distance from the forma place, the shafts'
broke, and precipitat•cl both out on the ground. Mr.
Mavnav fell on the back of- his lead, zdtl his Lady
received some severe contusions. He was irnmediattely
conveyed to Blackheath, *here his rally, between
hope mod fear, were kept in a painful stare of suspense
till yesterday morning at five o'clock, when the molts'
career of Mr. Mawt.Ey closed. 'ibis Gentleman was.
highly respected in the profession of which he was a
member, and in his situation of Surveyor to the COM.
missioners of Churches, performed the delicate and ar-
duous duties of that office to the full satisfaction of the
Noble, Right Reverend, and Honourable Alemberi of
the Commission, and with the most mild and candid
line of conduct to the architezts whose plans he had
to examine.

young Gentleman of the name of Freemantle was
drowned on Sunday, whilst skating with others in a
dam near the Lnr►er Llington•road, formed by the ca-
nal. Ile got into a hole, fr..m which the others on the
ice were unable to eltricate him.

Saturday se'nnight, Ca pt lin S. Slov EY Wroatncros.
of Chichester, accompanied a luny of Gentlemen on x
shooting excursion to the Palioe Coppice, Goodwood.
He had loaded one of the barrels of his gun, and gave
it to the servant to load the other ; in doing which some
of the shots accidentally passed into the barrel loaded by
the Captain, in which, as indicating that it was loaded,
the ram-rod had been left, and which the shot prevented
being drawn out. In endeavouring to extract it by
force, the servant having hold of the butt•end, and the
Captain the rod, the barrel the servant had loaded acci-
dentally went off, and the charge passed between the
Captain's right arm and side, wounding both in a shock-
ing manner, but providentially not injuring any of the
main arteries. He was taken home ir. the Duke of
RICHMOND'S carriage, and is now considered in a fair
way of recovery. Lord G. LENNOX was so close as to
feel some of the shots strike him in the face.

A serious accident happened at the New London
Docks yesterday morning. From the breaking down
of a temporary bridge, a poor Irish labourer was hurled
down a depth of about SO feet, and was so severely hurt
that he is not expected to live. What is not a little sin-
gular, a cart, with the horse and driver, fell at the same
moment with hardly any damage.

The Serpentine River was an object of little interest
on Sunday, if we except the esti aordinary appearance
of sheets of water in its centre, and what are called
straight-forward skaters scrambling down and up,
frequently. amusing the spectators by their falls, and
the awkward appearance of their Sunday costume, on
rising, dripping with wet. In the shade the frost re=
mined, the wind at South-East; it was t!;e rays of an
extremely warm sun which produced this effect on the
ice. The hanks of the river were lined with pedes-
trians four or five deep in the promenade, hu't in the
Carriage drive the. fashionable vehicles were .but thinly,
scattered. The grand mart was the great roadft North
and South. There we' saw the Mormons, the HAn.
antraTs, the Somansurs, the CHOLMONDELEYSt the
HdWA RDS, MOLTNIUX, M ONTA GEES, and CA VEN DISH ES.
new.Patisian bonnet we before alluded to, seemed'
to he all the rare. •
It should be known in this age of embezzlement by
Confidential servants, that, if the 13ank...r's name f the
person. for whom the check is intended is written ncros3
the front of the check, no other intermediate holder of it
can turn it into cash.

Partridge and pheasant shooting terminates this day;
it is generally stated that the number of birds which
survive the season is unusually great.
The different portions of the statue of the great Re-
former, JOHN KNnX, are arrived in Glasgow. The
weight of the entire statue is calculated at between nine
and ren tons. Its height is twelve feet. It is composed
.of nine pieces. The height of the column on which it
is to be fixvd•is fifty-five feet. Thursday two of the
pieces were fixed upon the pedestal. Mr. Forre,t, t're
ingenious artist, superintends the placing of the statute.
'CHARLES LUCIEN BONAPARTE has recently published
in America " the liatui al History of Birds inhabiting
the United States." It fellows up the work of Wu-sox,
who was peculiarly qualified for the tat k from having
lived in the woods for years. The land birds of Ame-
rica, it appears,are divided into 185 species Europe
has 199 species, and Wilson particularly dwells on the
six genera that are peculiar to the Ututed States,
namely—the gra kle, the tanagar, the turkey (illeleagris),
the parrot, the mannatein, and the humming bird. It is
a curious coincidence that Eutope has also six genera
unknown to America—namely, the w agtail, wryneck,
pheasant, lapwing, bee-eater, and toiler.
Eight men from the tevenue cutter Atalanta, now
on the Live' nest station, were dispichLd lately, to
scour the country in the neighbourhood of Beanly, in
quest of smugglers. SAW! day sennight two of them
Nlitc.intyve and Mackinnon) came
.upon a small still-
house, situated in the hill, nearly two miles above the
miln of Aigas, wherea number of country people were
assembled. An affray immediately ensued among the
smugglers and the two men belonging to the cutter, in
which the miller of Aigas fell by a pistol shot. Medical
aid was called as speedily as possible: but he lingered
till next day, when he died. On returning to the cut.
ter, Macintyre, the sailor who had been instrumental
in the death of the smuggler, delivered himself up to
the judicial authorities, and is now in custody to await
the issue of the trial.

By Act 6 Geo. IV. cap. 108, which came into force
nn the sth instant, the right of searching the persons of
individuals suspected of smuggling is fully e,!ablisheJ.
And in case of the suspected being females, a searcher
of that sex, authorised by the Commissioners of, Cus-
toms, is to officiate. Several individuals latterly landed
at Dover from the Continent, have undergone scrutiny.
The celebrated physiologist, M. NIAGENDIE, has
lately announced to the Academy of Sciences at Paris,
that Goitres are becoming much less frequent than
formerly on the Pyrenees, which he has lately visited.
Ile attributes this effect to the increase of opulence and
comfort among the people, to the increased coltivatien
of grain, and to a better mode of building the houses.
Ameng the ways and means for rasing the supplies
for the year 1826, in the State of South Carolina, is the
following :..d4The Phenix Insurance Company of Lome
don to pay. 4,000 dollars for the privilege of doing btt:
siness in the State, and 10 per cent. on the amount of
premiums setitred through the agents of Insurance
Companies."