The Statesman.
London, England, 1818-12-11 00:00:00

II& ST,

, •
wing from crime, it Oncourages'the ItOlfe!tieletitenity.
The Wnrthy Gentleman has vitsultad tree/Arse to an
usual topic, on qualstlinis of this kind, end deprecated
any innovation upon systems whick'have the loneliest
of great antiquity. But, my Lord, why is that inno•
Teflon only In he decried which is on the side of
mercy ? IN not every enactment by which a crime is
first made capital an innovation ? And the Worthy
Gentleman is, I believe. mistaken as to the antiquity
of our present Criminal Code;' in supposing that it
has lifted a fhnoitatid years : 'whereas for a long pe-
riod after that date, I think not more than four or
five crimes were capital by the laws of England.—
The laws annexing death to ao- great a multitude of
offences are, l believe, comparatively of late date.—
If, then, innovation be a groond for objection, sore-
ly we may be allowed to petition that our Criminal
Law may be purged from the injurinus consequences
of these sanguinary innovations. With these views,
my Lord, I shall give my hearty support to the
motion.

Mr. S. Dixott could not go the length which the
Gentlemen on the other side seemed to wish in this ,
motion, lie wished to see all unnecessary severity
abolished, and all capital punishments repealed as
far es that could-be consistent with the safety of so-
ciety ; but he did not think that all the laws were as
severe as they were described on the other side, our
all our capital punishments so unnecessary as they
seemed to think. There was one penal law,
however, which he wished to see abolished. It was
that which enacted such a revolting punishment, if
punishment it could be called, on the dead bodies
of those who committed suicide. He was led to this
in consequence of the remnant of ancient barba-
rism which was exhibited a few days hack, in the in-
terment of the body of a Spanish officer, who had
lately allot himself. Here Mr. Dixon dwett with
much force on the extreme inhumanity of such treat-
ment nf persons depriving themselves of life ; and con-
tended that the continuance of thit practice, for it
was not a Statute law, was a disgrace to the country.
Mr. PATTEN supported the motion ; and after a few
words from another Member, w hose name we did not
learn, the question was put, and carried unanimously.
A Petition, founded upon the Resolution; was also
agreed fe.—Adjourned.

PRICE OF STOCKS TH
Bonk Stock (274
3 per Cent. Hed. 74}
per Cent. Cllllsois
si per Cent. 84 871
tioninh for Arc. :94e
4 per Cent. 954 961

TR'E STATESMJA.

LONDON:

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1818.

The necessity of humanising our Penal Code is
now anise/silly admitted. Numberless and melan-
choly have been the instances of (hi. necessity; and
strange it Is that in a country which, in other re-
spects, justly bouts so much Christian feeling and
benevolence—in this country alone—such scenes
should be exhibited in dreadful and perpetual sue.
cession, by the decrees of the law, as chill every
sense into horror sod cast a gloom over innocent
life, from which the social circle ought to be exempt.
A Meeting of the Common Council was held yester-
day, for the truly commendable purpose of consider-
ing the most effectual means for obtaining a legirla.
live revision of our Penal Code. We give an ample
report of the proceedings, for they ere most in-
teresting.. The subject was debated at great length,
and in some of the speeches delivered on the occasion
very considerable research and ability were displayed.
The necessity of a revision seemed to be universally
admitted, and it was finally and unanimously agreed,
that Petitions to that effect should be presented to
both Houses of Parliament, founded on and embody-
ing the Resolutions, which are published in the first
page of our Paper. The facts which these Resolu-
tions disclose, and those stated in the course of the
discussion, a reof momentous importance to society, a nd
furnish a most appalling, but too faithful picture of
the state of the Criminal Law, and the aggregate of
punishment in this country.

We have no room to-day to notice with appro-
priate remarks, the sudden wheel to the right about
which the Courier has madeon thesubject of the Bank,
and the unmerciful attack which that champion of the
paper system has, in the plenitude of its consistency,
thought proper to make on the body which it was so
lately endeavouring to defend. This is the mark of
a defeated, trading, and unprincipled advocate's policy
—finding his cause a bad one, and likely to inflict
disgrace tpon himself, he throws up his brief, and
tans rbund to abuse and vilify his employers. So
sets the Courier. We have given our opinion with
plainness and consistency on the disengenuous, cruel,
and- unjust conduct of the Bank in ,the mat-
ter of the prosecutions for Forgery, now happily
arrested ; we will now treat our Readers with a little
variety, by showing them the altered view which the
Courier of last night his taken of the subject. Not
that we attach the least importance to the dicta of
the Courier, but to exhibit the force of those unde-
niable truths, even on minds that labour to shut out
the light. The Courier tells the Bank " they must
be sensible that they have exhibited an indifference to
the alarming increase of forgeries which has roused an
indignant feeling throughout the country ;" and that
" it was their duty to create and multiply every check
in their power against the fraudulent imitation of their
notes." This language, from such a quarter, is certainly
not a little amusing as well as astonishing. But if we
wets astonished, at this, we were still more so, when