The Statesman.
London, England, 1809-12-21 00:00:00

——- -
competent authority that the (*Milts could take,
in any thing during this voyage to Wild to, any 1
more than to break the bulk of, the cargo ; and
therefore ho into; contend that this policy was
tvoided by the event which had happeued. Upon
'. Istirti Et.i.rpraottounn observed, VI a this i'as a
question of great public importance, and ought to
bilictlereely decided, to set the matter at rest upon
theiaw and, therefnrii, he thought it would be
tOe WWI. wayto turn into a special case for the
eonrt of King's. Beach •to determine, which was
done ac
CQ4rElt. V. GREENWOOD AND ANOTIIER.
The Aorronvitv-Gcmcaar. stated this to be an
aktion against Messrs. areewwood and Co. hop.
fist,irs,• for the rec Livery of a sum of money list
by lie Plaintiff, its CODSNIONICE of the bulk of a
certain , quaimity of hops, which the Plaintiff
bought of tit Defendants, nut being equal to the
sample. The Plaintiff did not complain, per-
Banally, of the Defendants, for they were nut to
Maine in this business, they had bought the hops
of Mr. ‘Vilable, and had sold them to the Plaintiff
as they hail bought and received than of that
planter. But the Plaintiff could nut bring his
action against Mr.Wituble, there being nu privity
contract between them ; and therefore the
Plaintiff was driven to this action against the Ik.
fondants, but they would have their reinedl over
against the planter.
It appeared, however, upon the evidence of a

. .
,rrry triteljsgent gentleman, Mr. Collett, called on
the part uf the Plaintiff, that there was no fraud
whatever in the manner of packing the bt:lk of
these hops, and that they were not, generally speak.
ing, inferior to the sample, but that the sample
was unfairly taken, upint which
Lord IKLlANDuitounn was about to recommend
to the Jury to bud • verdict fur thu Defendants,
he:i, the
ATTOSINEy-GvissAt preferred a nunsuit.—
I'lliatilf nonsuited accordingly.

ILI.LIOT V.

The Arrott.4sT-GtNER 4 L stated this to he an
action to recover the, sum of 1t 001. which the
. _

Plaintiff hat' lost by the detention of the ship
teal, at Ft:. nil, by reason date Deleuilaist,who
was' a r, not having insured the
vessel as directed, generally fui six months, in-
stead of insuring as be had said he did, I r against
vats risk ; the consequence was, that for any loss
which the Plaii—ff mieht sustain by the &len-
-111.1 of the 'hip, The could not recover upon this
policy ; of tho-n with whom the pokey was gr.
nerd, the Plaintiff had recovered, but her, he
conid not, because the poll:). was confined to
sea risk, detention was not a sea risk ; the
(rut!. was, that the Defrivelant hal new in. .r.al
the vessel at all ; he Its and be had
sent up the party here a copy of the policy
which was suppose i to have been effected by
him ; it was not caitasined hers by the party be.'
cause there *as no aespieion that ail was well
rtiOt, since the ilirestion
_which was given to
sure against ri-k, generally, and the party had
stied and recos,zed, upon Willr policies, which;
had been clewed through the uiedisins of the
Defundantil brother (nid he was also euiptur
as this cats), bat ,when ti Is party came to sue
e:von this Iliac'', it wa, discoverei, that the p
lacy purported to be wil) against sea risk : this
levy tia,an inquiry, and the Defendaut was asked
how this happened ? Ile said, that true it was,
the pOlicy was only against sea risk ; lie was
asked to show the pokey ; he then said he had
lost it, and that ho had effected others, himself,
3001. of others, 3001. 2‘.101. and 2001. whom he
named ; upon examining them, some of them ap-
peared to have been issued out of the stamp.ulfiee
after the time they bore date, and therefore it
was impossible that they could toasts been effected
at all ; in short, the Atturney-General contended,
that this • was blunder upon blunder; he knew
nothing of Ibis Defendant out of this cause ; he
dared to say lie was correct enough in his gene-
ral transactions, but in the present case his con-
duct was certainly must irregular; awl that he
must pay this money was • matter beyond all

question.
It then appeared, by the evidence of gar.
nerd Smith, the ikicudant's brother, who lives at
York, WO miles from Leith, where the Defen-
dant, a policy-broker, lives, that tho instruc-
tions he received and transmitted to his brother,
were to insure this ship against risk, generally,
aril not against sea risk only. That when the
copy of the policy was sent to Won by his brother,
by sent it tilt to the party iu town, with this ob.
Dery ition Y %till observe this 10001. is not
warranted free of war risk." It then appeared,
Chet nobody ever saw the original policy, nor did
it isdpear, is evidence, that there ever was any

suit.
Mr. PA as: said, that the truth wa4, this Defan.
dant s house had been broken open, and the ori.
064 "pniicits atoloa, and eyssi
.paper
.itt his
estuntiuvitouse taken away. Awl the Defendant
had issued out others, to satisfy the parties, and

had, for that purpose; paid for- fresh statups out
-of his ow■ pocket ; and that was tho reason why
they were of a stamp subsequent to flick date.
Lord Et.t.cesoauuott said, this would never.
. .

do ; the Defendant had no right to take the dif.
feront policies in this manner, bet should have
pursued his instructions.
Mr. PARK said, the Defendant was unable to
accomplish the insurance aU under one policy,
and he did that which was very common ; he got
it dune by a number of policits some at Leith,
and some at 111111.
Lord Et.s.reagnoucto said, he should thee. have
represented !tatters according to the verity of the
farts, ism .ad of sending up a fake representation
of thiogs, by statinxibat the policy, was for 10001.
Mils Lordship doubted whether it was competent
to hies to receive evideoce that the Defendant had
anne one thing. when he admitted thai'lus instruc.
As wore to du another
Coerteen, the Plaintiff's ettOrney, then
the instrortions sent to the Defendant to
iossoraitco were as stated by the Attor.
metal, that a copy of a pislicy"was scut to
14 of tpor suistraocc, for IOW.; hut that
riled§ copies -were bent t• him from the De-

)61 .

r

fendant, in the manner opened by the Attorney-
General ; and that they were stamped ate time
'subsequent to their dates. This was in the year
1800.
Mr. PA RR snbmitted, that here was an acqui-
escence of the party fur near four years, and that
it ought to bar the claim now.
Lord ELLEN uottentat held, that an acquiescence
obtainettlsy means of a
.false representation of
facts, was' the same thing as if there were nu ac.
quiescence at all.
Mr. Courtetn said, he eits'er understood, fro•
the Defendant, that tho policy was lust, until he
remonstrated with him on the irregularity of
the stamps. And when he saw the Defendant in
town, he never suggested that he had lust the
policy, or been put to the expence of a bauble
stamp.
Lord Et.t.csaottotion thought it became ;teem
sary, perhapl„ .tu call on the Legislature to pro.
I hibit l►olicy_brdkers from underwriting policies
on their o:cn account, that was, becoming their
own auderwriters.—The public safety appeared
to require something of this sort.
Mr. Courtoen farther proved, that the Do..
Pendant wrote up to him for the premium, agree-
able to his former note, saying, that until the
premium was paid, no action could be brought ;
and he would deliver up the policy to any person
he should direct.
,
vaunt i.i.t.cultettOUGit-.-14 This is very bad.—
There is something more than damages at stake
here."

Mr. PAR[ observed, that as his Lordship had
decided that the acyttiercence of four years, in
this me, ou the part uf the Plaintiff, was in answer
to the faction, he submitted at once to it •Tetidiet.
But he endeavoured, at some length,' 1/0 proical
his client's character, against whicksinge prejsitOet
might, perhaps, be entertained on sthele pets.., •
Lord ELLEOIIOIIOUGH said, that if there we*
any evidence of the first poliry being lost, or any
other evidence to support the character of the Da_'
Pendant, he would sit to hear it patiently ; for
the only issue now to be trial was, an issue upon
character; the other question upon the verdict
was gone by lung ago. It was said, that the De—
fendant's house had been robbed, and his papers
stolen. Let evidence he given of that fact, and,
although it could nut affect the verdict, he would
sit to hear it. It was very painful to make obser.
tatioas upon the characters of parties, when they
were suitors in a Court of Justice ; but if the
facts which were proved its a Court of Justice
Called for such observations, they must be made,
however inconvenient they might be to any
parties. Here was nothing in a plain strait_
forward way in the conduct of this Defendant.
Way he had not told the truth, the Defendant
best knew. " There is," said iris Lordship,
66 some r.ason or other which does nut occur to
me fur there being such a multiplicity of false-
aoods on Its part of the Defendant iu this case.
As to the stamps, if he reolla /art the policy,
he h.:II nothing to de but to m•ke, and transmit
ts, tue Stamp Office, an affidavit of the fact, and
he would have been allowed the stamps, which
would hast: been less ezpencc to kin, than pay.,
ing for new woes." Verdict for the Plaintiff—
Damages, 10001.

COURT OF CIIANCEFLY.—Kiev. IS anD V.

• tX•PARTE riftNM.
(The following very intereititag Cave baying been imper-
fectly reportvid in all the Newspapers, we apprebetwl that
a fall and accurate Iteport of what !auk place before the
Lord titmice Slur may not be deemed uninteresting.]

'this was an application on the part of Mr. Fir_
min, to have a Commission of Bankriopt, which
had been taken out against him, superseded, at the
expence of Messrs. Evans and Cu. the petitioning
creditors, Harcourt Master, Evq. one of the As-
signees, anti Mr. Robert Woodgate, of Golden.
square, the Solicitor ender the Conimission, and
to pay all the costs of issuing the said cummiuiun,
and of the pruceediugs under the same, and of that
applicatinit.
The circumstances of the case are u eztraordi.
'ilary as any in the history of bankruptcy transac.
titans. The Petitioner, who it appeared resided at
the Rookery, at Dedham, near Colchester, in
Essex, was au AttuAtey of most extensive prae.
bee, n iti •h brought him a considerable income.
He was posse sett of large property in the funds,
and derives considerable profits from certain land.
ed-estates, which he held in his own right. To
these he added' emoluments to a laige.a.nistint,
arising from his office of steward to several N.
blemett and Gentlemen's estate,. Unfortunately
however, at different seasons of the year, lie was
afflicted with a lowness of spirits, and a melan-
choly of mind, which had so powerful an effect
upon his imagination, as to lead to an appreheu-
lion that he should be unable to liquidate his
debts. and conseqwently that his exti.msive credit
would be ruined. In 1803, under the influence
of his ntataille totaginesire, lie'cutsferred with Mr.
IVoodgate, his old and intimate friend, and who
also had a summer residence at Dedham; Mr.
IVoodgate, upon that uee.tsion, suggested the
expediency of a bankruptcy, but through the
interposition of a Mr. Strutt, a particular friend
of the Petitioner, who well knew the nature of
his malady, and the extent of his property, Mr.
%Vuodgic.: was prevented from carrying into exe-
cution a measurtgso monstrous and absurd. Its
1808, the Petitioner was again attacked with this
indisposition, and Mr. Wuculgate, fur the pur.
pose of relieviiig his mind, drew up a statement
of his ciresestances, from which it appeared that
be was pnssessed of a large stagily', after paying
all his debts, and upwards of 17001. a year, exclu.
live of the profits of his besiness, which were esti-
mated to produce a very considerable annual sum.
He shortly afterwards recovered' from the effects of
his. disorder, and resumed his business with his ac.
custumed activity. lit the beginning of the pre.
sent year, his spirits again became depressed more
severely thee Nisei, and he went up to toun
again t9l' seek the advice. of his (fiend Mr. Wood.
g.ste, vein) strongly resuiDasstilvsl hie) .IV rseern
Moue, and amuse himself with his busbies., and
quiet his delusive alarms "tad apprehensions, and
that all his casts would faililh. On the very

THY, STATESMAN.


neat day, however, Mr. Woodgate wrote to Cul.
Harcutirt Master, the Petitioner's brother-in.
law, then residing near Norwich, and urged the
expediency of a contwassion of bankrupt issuing
against the Petitioner, and intimated that it Would
be necessary to employ a friendly lawyer, and of-
fered himself to undertake the business, and in the
postscript of the letter were these words : No
one knows of my writing this, I can manage as to
the act of bankruptcy." A series of letters after.
wards passed between them upon the subject,
wherein they digested the plan of making the Pe.
(Wolter a bankrupt, without apprizing him of
their intentions, and they arranged that Messrs.
Evans and Co. who were the stationers of Mr.
Woodgate, u well as of the Petitioner, should be
the petitioning creditors, and that Colonel Master
should be one of the assignees, and Mr. Seale, of
Colchester, the Petitioner's uncle, another assig-
nee; it being their wish to have him as a sanctioner
to their measures, which, as the Petitioner's relit-
Live, they stated to be extremely desirable, and Mr.
W. undertook to he the solicitor under the cununis.
lion. Accordingly the affair was negociated betweeo
them so successfully, that in the course of a very
short ti a, a docket was actually struck against
Mr. Fir by Mr. Woudgate, acting as the soli_
for for Messrs. Evans and Co. the petitioning cre-
ditors; and the act of bankruptcy relied on was,
that the Petitioner had quitted his house to avoid
his creditors, he having been persuaded to accom-
pany Mr. Scale to his house. The Petitioner was
a man of very considerable property, after pay-
ment of all his debts, at the time the commission
was taken out, and this fact was fully known to
Colonel Master and Mr. Woodgate. Various at-
tempts were made to prevent them from having
rec.iurse to guch an imprudent step, but Mr.
W.oodgate absolutely insisted upon issuing nut a
commission, and t tie-Petitioner thought it his duty,
after it was taken out, and in truth 11411 no other
course left, than to give every assistance to the

assignees, the sooner to bring his all:sirs to a speedy
'adjustments and his misfortunes to an end. Upon
discovery, however, of the secret correspondence
between Mr. IVooutgate and Colonel Master, and
the fe.enent of his mind being dissipat!, Mr. Fir.
niiii conceived that the measures adopted against
him were extremely cruel and harsh, and that he
had been made the dupe by Mr. Woudgate and
Colonel Master, while labouring under the bane.
ful effects of his mental disorder ; and this opinion
wilt strengthened by the commissioners on the
Petitiouer's third examination, who, insisting on
an accentit of the Petitioner's affairs being refl.
dereil, Mr. Woodgate et the moment made out a
statement, by which it appeared that there would
be a surplus of 29,0001. besides a considerabl:
come arising from funded property, sunder his
marriage settlement ; upon this they declared it
to be their opinion, that the taking out of the
commission was the most unaccountable, harsh,
awl nimecessary step they had ever wittiesud ;
under each cireumstanses, the Petitioner felt it ale
incumbent duty on him, in vindication of his else,
racier and reputation, to prefer the present appli-
cation. A itemiser of allidavits were read by the
Learned Counsel, detailing and substaistiatiug the
facts of the ease, and many others tending to
prove the peculiar hardships of the Petitioner's si-
tuation. These Affidavits were answered by Mr.
Woodgate amid Colonel Master, who excused
themselves principally on the ground, that a
Commission had been taken out with the concur.
rence ut the Petitioner and his friends.
Sir Saline'. limmitee, Mr. WETHERELL, Mr.
Mome.tee, and Mr. Peactime, severally appear.
ed in support of the Petition, and commented at
great length upon the transaction. They con.
tended, that this act of bankruptcy was the act
of Mr. Woodgate and Colonel Master, and not
of Mr. Finnin, who, at the time of the commis.
lion issuing, wes unable to judge of the prudence
or imprudence of such a measure. It was con.
jure(' of his Lordship to consider the distressing
situation of Mr. Firmin, who, with a family of
six children, found himself all at once bereft of
his extensive aid lucrative business, and of the
power of disposing of his own estates and pro.
piety to an advantage and profit, more than cum.
petted to clover double the amount of his debts,
and the painful reflection of leaving his children,
inheritor* of the disgrace whieh is almost always
unfortunately attached to bankrupts. They at-
tributes! ties misfortune entirely to the mistaken
friendship, to way the least of it, of Mr. IVood.
gate atel Colonel Master, whose conduct might
be frith treat propriety compared with the fable'
of tee Lhwr and the Gardener of iDiup. The bear
and the-gar& ncr having become sworn friends to
each Haw, time gardener fell asleep ; whilst thus
overpowered, a fly settled on his body, and the
bear made several attempts to drive him away, at
last the fly took post on the gardener's nuse, and
the bear, purely from soothes of friendships,
raised his paw, and drove away the fly, but, iu
so doing, he tore off his friend's fare ; so, by the
inistekee friendship of these south:lnca, the
racter and property of the Petitioner had sus.
tabled an almost irreparable injury. They rid's.
culed the idea of the commission being taken omit
with the concurrence of the Petitioner and his
friends ; no particular friends had been named,
but Mr. Cock, a distant relation of the Petitioner,
and Mr. Scale, who each expressly denied suck
concurrence, The Learned Counsel did nut nosh
i to ascribe improper motives to them, bust it mu
impossible nut is see, that many presented theme.
selves, which might be ascribed to such conduct ;
they pointedly observed upon Mr. Woodgate's
bill of coats, for suing out the commission, which
containctLa charge of 13 guineas and 6J. for at.l
tending at Dedham, 58 nules from town, five '
days, endeavouring to procure nets of bank.
ruptcy, as an evidence that he did not act sodisin.
terestcdly as he would wish it to appear. Under
all these circumstances, it was hoped his Lordship
would supersede a commission which was takes
out in• triolatiou both of public and private
justice.
Mr. II s eT and Mr. Cei.eum were heard on the

part of Mr. iVuodiate and Colonel Master, the)
dot not appear confident that the cononsosioo
o ookt be to pported, tot relied panticel4dy upon
the Ortendly *wires of *btu cheats.. and aUcred.

..

- -
that Mr. Fermin himself had assented to the
measure.

Mr. itienattos and Mr. Cooza appeared fur
tie petitioning creditors, and saidolut their clients
only *isbed to elplaia to this Court, that they
had thought that a real act of bankruptcy
been committed, and hart petitioned only upon
that presumption, but they had nu nisli to make
themsdlvcs Instruments its the hands of f',•rsons
concerting a bankruptcy in this way, and these.
fore dirt nut at all come forward to sniqpirt the
corninission.

Lonu CHANCELLOR 34.H1, he would not
trouble Sir Ssinu:l Roniilly in reply, Itc took
detailed vies of the matters stated in the petition,
and the affidavits on each vide.

He observed, it was quite evident, from tha
state of this Gentleman's property, th it he had
snuck inure than sufficient to pay his debts, ie.
deed to the amount of many thousand riunds.
It had been said, indeed, on the behalf of Air.
Wow}gate-and Mr. Master, that by making Lim
a bankrupt, they thought they would r. here his
mind from the anxiety under which it laboured,
from a supposition that his credituis were press.
ing him. On this head, the ii ind of Mr. min
see►aed to have been in a state of morbid sensibi.
lily, and if these persons, taking advantage of
this niurbia feeling, fur reasons best known to
themselves, prevailed upon him to commit an act
of bankruptcy, lie was bound to say that the
commission ought to be superseded. Ilia Load.
ship further stated, that Mr. Firtnia was placed
undei• circumstances, in which he might represent
him as entitled to the protection of the best' ad.
vice that could be afforded him, and gave it as
his opinion, that the Petitioner had, after a long
struggle against the persuasions of Mr. Woodgats
and Colonel Master, only yielded at last to intl.
midation, and that while his mind was tinder
the impression of deep melancholy. His Lord.
shit► commented on the strong and peculiar ex.
pressiuns used in the letters which had privately
passed between Mr. %Voodgate and Cul. Master, .
in planning the bankruptcy, and upon the charge
of 131. l3s. 6d contained in Mr. Woollgate's bill
of costs, before alluded to, and concluded wills
remarking, that it was a case where Colonel
Master and Mr. Woodgate had been projecting a
commission of bankruptcy, and that being taken
ont- under seek circumstances, it cJishl nut stand.
His Lordship therefore ordered the commission
to be superseded altogether, at the eipence and
costs of those who bad beets concerned in taking
it out, namely, Cu?. Master and Mr. Woodgatc.
His Lordship further observed, that this commis-
sion was taken out under circumstances that ran.'
dared it a scandalo►ts abase of the Bankrupt Laws.
and av it respected himself and the Great Seal, he
.4hould be bound to do as his predecessors had
done in similar Cases.

Monday the 10th. este !distending the violence
of the Isurricam•, tw•u seatneo belougiog to the
Gibraltar, lying in Cavissad Bay, took the ship';
cutter, with an inte►st to desert; which design it
was thought they had elected ; but on Wednesday ,
the boat wu ((instil stove in, under Plymisatk
L1oe•, and tos Friday last the bodies of the two
misguided men were picked up, shockingly 'awl.
Irtetl, under Mount Batten. The same night
Thomas Fitzgerald, quarter-master of the Repulse,
74, and four seamen, deserted from that ship, and
are supposed to have met with a similar fate to the
above, as they have not since been heard uf.
On Saturday, a boat going from the shore to
some wreck at Lowestuffe, was upset in the at.
tempt to got off; all the men were under it, and,
in all probability, would have perished, had nut
a wave again raised the boat, and enabled thaw
who were beneath it to employ means to assist
themselves, and to receive help from others. One
of the neon would Inevitably have been lost, bad
it not been for a Newfoundland dug, which saw
him at a distance from all humus aid, swam to
him, wised him by the hair, and never left his
hold tilt the malt was safe, though both the dug
and MAO were frequently buried under the waves.
This is the second instance iu which the sanikdog
has preserved the life of a human being.—He
belongs to Mr. R&M) of LOWeStOire.
Monday night, or early on Tuesday morning!,
the City of Canterbury public.house, ,in Prim.
rose.strect, Bishupsgate.street, was entered by
souse thieves, who robbed the bar of Bank notes •
and cash to a considerable amount, and turned the
cocks of the spirit casks, by which MC4III all the
liquor run out.

What a lone train of itt colopires- •
,ctiurge our nor !litrotru tievirel.
As few only have philosophyisulliciont to attaip
to the mastery of their passions, among "the
eon)" will be found, those who require a tweets's
to warn them of the shwas and viCksands of esti
—slid those, who already threatened with ship.
wreck, stand in need of a rilot tuntableitheatio.
weather the storm. For either description ut
pursues, we know of no pittlicatiun at once so
edifying and practically useful as " The Guide tw
Health." Oar Bookseller assures us that already
peacare thousand impressions have been sold qt
the above little. Manual of Physic: if this is
really the fact (awl we have no reason to doubt it).
it is.a fact that supersedes all comment.-71tepiewer.

11IARP LED.
On Satur.lay M.t, nt Si. liatolph, Aldetsgat. Mr. Wic-
ks', of Aldersotetstrmt,tu ilk rWest dasignier of S.. Muir,
Era. of mow-sired, Bishopunie.
On the I lth instant, Mr. Ir. Lorlirick, of the ,Fist-Imirt
Company's Military Service, to Miss daeghicr ut
James Jotter. Erg. of Aidborough /lota,
,Vmsex.

In 1: .

On Tuesday bet, u her Ewx-street, in the Ssp:.
sear of her age,. Mrs. 13:arlow..reltet of the Lite Ftaut i•
Harlow, Esti.of the Crown °dice.
t)ss Sunday last, it Chester-place, Lanit•eth, Larpent,
it widow of H. IL. Larpeat, Esq. used annually la-
mented.
Al Seringipatam, on the 'id July la.!, Beilby Ilodrnn.
Esq. third Judge iii• the Court of Circuit mad Appeal fur tar
Proviares sof Caesura, Malabar, dtc. iyged %elts•
lit Monday snorkit*, is Artilikr)-?lati, Sll.. :riallierY,
aged till. . '

•
1,110 ON Prieded wW Roblimbed SI.. taNpi.l.. "If
.4 IP • r "um w 111.-•••• •": .• - •

lirill11111.1111111.11P1:31111::

wpm iv!
Mr.
• prc.voli
sleet el
soey..l; II
►ire, •l
eAerwo