The Statesman.
London, England, 1822-06-10 00:00:00

1

AGRICULTURAL comsurrE E.
-.1P.--

SECOND REPORT.
POST PRINTXII ST 05551 Of TUX HOCSt OP COSIIIONX.
The SILECT Csmistrtaa to whom the (teport of the
'Nth day of June, 1821, together with the several Pe-
titions which base been presented to the House in the
last and present Sessions of Parliament complaining
of the depressed State of Agriculture of the United
• Kingdom. were referred, to inquire into the allege-
tions thereof, and to report their observations there-
upon, from time to time to the House.
Proceed to lay before the House, the evidence which
they have taken, upon the subject of storing foreign
grain in warehouses. under the Kings lock; with re-
gard to which, peat apprehensions are expressed by'
several of the petiticners, who conceive that some
game ities of that grain have been, and that much larger
quantities may lie surreptitiously taken out, and brought
into the supply of the home market, contrary to law.
some particular cases 'mine been stated, in which
fraods of this description were alleged to have been prac-
tised, your Committee applied their immediate attention
to the consideration of them ; and the result of this in-
'vestigatiens leads them to lodise', that generally speak.
ing, the'precautions and checks which are observed sod
applied, under the Act, Ist an; 2,1 of his present Ma-
jecY, c. 87, to the warehousing of foreign grain, are so
effectual, and so regularly enforced, as to remove all
suspicion as to the market having been at ail affected by
a f-audulent supply obtained by any such undue prac-
tices ; hot the instance which happroed at Bridlington,
detailed in the Appendix No. 1, chews that a tosetant
and vigilant superinteodance on the part of the custom..."
house officers, is essentially necessary for the purpose of
securing the public against the clandestine subtraction
of small quantities of verb grain by the proprietors,
froni warehouses not well adapted to the purpose, or not
duly and frequently surveyed.
• It should be judged expedient to restrict tits ware-
housing of foreign grain to some few of the most aloud-
Avralile porta, instead of allowing it, as the law now
stands, to be deposited in any part of Or. tusked king
dom, each irregularities as these would probably be
prevented in future.
The ease of the wheat supposed to have been withdrawn
from the warehouses at Olasgow appeared to rest upon
inch authentic testimony, that it is fit to lay the whole
subject before the house as a proof how necessary it is to
evamine accurately into any transactiose of this 'awe,
and to be cautious in giving credit to them until they
have been fully investigated. So far, therefore, as con-
cerns the present system of warehousing foreign corn,
tour Consittee have nothing further to suggest by way
of precaution: but by the evidence of Mr. Charles Wel-
stead, (collector for the coast business inwards and out-
wards) tud Mr. Thos biorris (one of the Surveyors-
tirueral of the (.sustoms) it appears that there is a possi-
bility of introducing foreign corn into vessels carrying ,
So the trade coastwise, particularly from Ireland, as
it is not the practice to
:ether into or out of the vessel, but to rely upon the
'ileclaration of the of the vessel, sod the ordi-
' Airy evoke% 'vbfth not examined with atten-1
Ilan. The mode in which any such fraud can be cam-,
mitted must be by the British or Irish vessel either touch-
isgalandestinely at some foreign port, and taking in a
quantity of corn to mix with the declared cargo (such
declaration specifying a less quantity than is actually
taken on board) or by meeting some foreign vessel at
sea, and taking in a supply there, without touching et
sty port. Such a process in either C&JO would unques•
tiosably be attended with many difficulties; and from the
Dumber of persons on board who must nee aaaaa ily be ac-
quainted with the fraud, must be extremely liable to de-
tection ; bet as it is represented to be not absolutely im-
practicable, your Committee deem it a sols'ect which de-
serves the *staffers of the most conve Ottretepart-
seat of thqfsptoms, to devise same -more eitithetory
'security igainst it.
The only other object which has engaged-the atten-
tion of your Committee relates to a proposed alteration
in the distillery laws, as calculated to afford a probable
extension of the consumption of barley, in case the sug-
gestions contained in the evidence of Messrs. Dunlop
and upon that head, should be carried into ef-
fect ; but your Committee are well aware that the trade
of the English distillers, as well as that of the brewers,
and the interest of very extensive branches of the reve-
nue, are so directly implicated is this question, that it
cannot be considered with refereoce to the benefit of
agriculture alone.—May 21), 1822.

EITENTS tre AID.—A case fame on in the Court of
Exchequer on Saturday last, Hornblower r. Hill and
Co., when some circumstances were disclosed relative
to the influence which the Extent in Aid System has
bad in producing the present distress in Staffordshire.
M . Hill and Co., Hankers at Steurbridge, obtain-
ed an Extent in Aid against the plaintiff, an Iron-
master in Staffordelaire, for 5,0001. and upwards, and
be was afterwards made a bankrupt, whereby upwards
of 2.000 work people were thrown one of employment.
Many other Iron= sssss in Staffordshire were driven
into the Gazette, to prevent the same proceedings
from the same quarter against them, the consequence
of all which is that many thousands of workmen are
now unemployed. How long shall such things take
place under a law, which we are told by Judges and
Lawyers is the very perfection of reason ? We are as-
tonished that a power of this kind, which eau only be
used for purposes of oppression, and the defrauding of
just creditors, has sot been done sway with long ago.
Is the s • one whit less safe in Scotland where
no such power exists?
Boxese.—Hyblett challenges to fight Bishop
Sharp, front M. to 1001. or any other pugilist of his
weight in Ectland. which is I 1 atone. Tl‘e battle
between Oliver and Abbot, at present, is rather
doubtful ; bet Abbot has promised to make the ma-
Dry good to-ino, row—if so. the fight will he on Wed
n slay. The above battles will be within 20 wiles of
Lo•oion.

RIOT IN THII FLU'? Parsoft.—Friday afternoon, Bar-
Ler, the Sheriff's Officer, and his assistants, proceeded to
the Fleet Prison to levy an execution on the goods of a
man of the name of Edgar, confined there for debt. The
nature of their errand being made known to the prison-
ers, they commenced an attack, and in the affray Barber
lost his hat, and was relieved of the akirts of his coat,
sod his attendants were not treated with lees ceremony;
mad bad it not Seen for the timely interference of the
Warden, they would have been dragged to the pump.
Several of the ring-leaders are identified, and will be
proceeded against.
Marten/as ran, Joss B.—An inquest was held on
Tuesday morning on the body of a buy named Lee.
On one of the late race days, his mother bid him do
something which be refused. This refusal irritated
her to such a degree, that site struck him with a knife
which she had ill her band, and wounded bin, in the
thigh. He was immediately taken to the infirmary,
and his woasd dressed I bus a sturtifioation emitted,
and he died es Saturday. The agony and remorse of
the mother' has since been extreme. She was per-
mitted, antler the care of a police officer, to attend the
funeral of her son, an Tuesday afternoon, and was uitli
difficulty removed from the grave.—A verdict of
MastiLinghter was gifts against he..