The Statesman.
London, England, 1823-06-18 00:00:00

THE BTA'

Bayonne papers tee the 10th have been received this
forenoon, but they bring little else than rumoars. Free
these we learn that the PASTOR is expected with his
division near Ordana, to carry on an active warfare on
the convoys, some of which carry ready money indispen-
like to the French army in Spain; 2nd that, from the
Spanish forces that are assembling. the Asturias and
OaMelo will soon he in the same situation as Catalonia.
There was also a report that 40 of the Members of the
Gotta, who had been gained over hy the Regency, had
been arrested by order of the rest of the assembly, Who
will net listen to any proposal and who, to complete the
number required to vote legally, have ordered atl the
provinces not occupied by the French to nominate ad-
ditional Members. The heavy artillery continues to
arrive at Bayonne, but it advances so slowly that there
does not seem to be any serious intention of pressing
the siege of the several fortresses. Vessels laden with
anpplies for the army continue also to arrive; two of
them laden with grain are reported to be takes by
Spanish privateers.

STOOK EXCHANGE, TWILVI o'CLocE.--Consols opened
this morning at at which price they now are, with little
doing.
The Expresses from Paris this morning have brought the
French Fends as follow :—Six o'clock afternoon, 88 sellers,
were done in the coarse of the day at 98913-138.65. Spa-

nish, 41.
Latter, from Bayonne state that several arrests have taken
plum at !lithos, owing to the lataroeptance of a eforrespon-
dance in that city. A strong cannonading was heard at
Bayonne, on the side of St. Sebastian, supposed to be a
sortie from the garrison.
' Foam m Ft/Nos.—There Is little doing In this market this
morning.
New Spanish, SI —New Prussia, 814—Russia, 8O
Danish, nothing done—Chili 67—Colombia, 864.

PARLIAMENTARY CO lIIMMENTARY.
The charges against the Irish Chief Baron O'Grady.
'were brought forward by Mr. S. Rice, last evening. It
ttilll be remembered that this is a case in which the Mi.
sisters steadily-refused to interfere ; though the cbs rges
arise out of the report of a Parliamentary Commission;
and are certainly of a nature sufficiently grave to call for
the attention of any Government anxious for the reputa-
tion of its officers. Mr. S. Rice has frequently pressed
the Ministry to originate the enquiry; but they have
pot him off with the pretence, that such a bushiest
would be much better in the hands.of an individual.
He has therefore persevered; but if we bare any skill
in judging of parliamentary prognostics, it is not for
the purpose of leaving the matter to be better managed.
that the Ministers have left it in his bands; but fur the
purpose of the more effectually screening an abuse,
which cannot be permitted to be too closely investigated.
The charges, specifically, are fonr.-Ist., that Chief
Baron O'Grady, being entitled to fees on the issuing of
decrees in cases set down for trial in the Irish Exche.
quer, and finding that many cases set down for trial
were arranged by compromise, or otherwise, and never
came oo for trial, took it into his imagination that he
was defrauded of those fees; and hit upon a very happy
expedient to save them, This was by demanding the fee
is the issue, when the case was entered; and by this
entrivance, the Chief Bsroa not only saved his fee in
those cases in which no decree issued ; but ha (Ambled it
in all cases which went through the process of the
Court. In the second instance, the Chief Baron found
there two species of writs issuable from his Court,the one
of which paid a fee, and the other did not. This the Chief
Baron thought a sort of practical Bull; to take any step in
law,without any expence, being contrary to all other customs
to the memory of mortal man. He, therefore, to make the
practice consistent, and with a prudent regard to the emolu-
ments of his place, ordered the fees to be collected upon
both writs. The third point related to the reformation of
the fees upon bills of coats, as taken by his predecessor.—
By imitating his own example relative to the decretal fees,
and taking the fee at an earlier siege of the business, he ma•
bilged to get fees upon bills of costs, when no such things
were arrived at in the process of the suit ; " so that," says
Mt. Rice, " the fee was wholly imaginary ;" but, this is a
little Irishism. The fee was not imaginary, but substantial.
It was the bill bf costs that was imaginary—the Irish Chief
Baron thus exemplifying the fallacy of that dot I axiom,
" Mild fit ex nihilo"—(out of nothing you can have nothing)
—by absolutely making a nullity produce a fee I The
fourth charge was a natural partiality in the Irish Chief
Baron for English, instead of Irish currency. A peony in
the shilling is twenty-pence in the pound ; and Chief Baron
O'Grady, perceiving that in two branches of the Irish Ex-
chequer business, the fees were paid in Irish currency : and
that to a third branch, the officer was to the habit of taking
English currency when he could get it, and only accounting
In Irish currency to the Chief Baron ; the latter very wisely
ordered that all the fees should be collected, and
accounted for to him in English currency;—thus
praiskiag the officer for his knavery, and producing
a harmonic consistency in the practice of the Court.
Such were the charges. The defence was made by one
Colonel O'Grady, a relation we may guess ; and a more
singular defence we never heard, except that offered for
SirAhraham Bradley King, in the stationery department.
There it was said that, certainly, the money bad got by
some means or other into Sir Abraham's pocket, like
the twa silver candlesticks which dropped by accident
into the Jew's pocket, at the auction—but that Sir Abra-
ham knew nothing at all about the matter.—(No more
than the Jew about the candlesticks, we dare be sworn )
Col. O'Grady seemed to think it was a great misfortune
that Chief Baron O'Grady should have bad to succeed
Lord Avonmore, who, as be said, " devoted the most
" anxious attention to the public interest, but paid very
" little regard to his own private concerns." Of course
the " fees were disarrayed." The officers, by some
strange fatality, instead of doing as other officers do,
sad doubling the fees on account of the negligence of
the Masters; and the new Chief Baron, on coming into
office, "had been bompelled to put both himself and his
"dicers, in possession of their legal rights." This was
Daly to be done, by looking after the fees ; and, if, in
doing this, any additional charge was made, the Chief
Justice was totally unaware of it. " This is the de•
fence; and if Chief Baron O'Grady had no other secu-
rity, it certainly would not shield him from an investi-
gation, at least. But be has friends on all sides. Mr.
'C. Hutchinson demands for him the fullest opportunity
of defence, and demands, in his favour, an account of the
fees taken in England. by the Courts of Law. This
!lint, alone, would set half the Ministry &gable
the enquiry; and the Solicitor General taking the
British Courts as the standard of purity, seem-
ed to think he had made out a sufficient case for any
abuse with regard to fees in Ireland, by saying that the
Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in England took a
fee for the taxation of costs, when the duty was perform.
ed by the Prothonotary. A long, tiresome, and unmean-
ing conversation ensued as to the best mode of procee.:' og,
whether by impeachment, or address, when we were tho-
roughly satisfied, from the remarks of Mr. Canning an .1
Mr. Peel, that neither mode will be adopted, and that Mr.
Spring Rice is only endeavouring to " drown the lob
stet. The debate, however, is to be rammed on Thnrsda

lAN

Mr. Canning,on tilts Friar Mosey Distribotioe Bill.
said persobs applying were in the habit of going round-
about-ways, and seeking through personal favour, what
they find sooner by a direct application. From sows lit-
tle experience in inch matters, we can tell Mr. Canning,
that no stmightl forward way can be found in such enqui-
ries; and that no facility is afforded to the inexperienced
applicant to substantiate hisclaims. One clerk refers yon
to a second, one office sends you to another ; and unless
your are acquainted with every little formality, you can
get no satisfactory information. It is this which drives
applicants to those parties whom they suppose have in-
ffuenoe.—lf a person were stationed at the door of the
office, who was competent to direct the parties to the
places where they should apply, the mischief would be
remedied.
We are glad to perceive that the ship-owners of London
are beginning to remonstrate against the innovations on
the navigation laws. By their statements, it appears
that the building of British ships has declined since
1819 from 104,366 tons, to 62,534. This follows from
the principle of getting ships built where you can get
them built cheapest—but when they are built, they are
not British ships. They may also be manned cheaper,
and with as many hands, but they will not be British
'sailors! A sad" infatuation prevails on this subject,
which we shall be happy to assist the ship-owners in
removing.
•
TH EAT ALS.
HATMARIST:OO lOOTroraltTl4ll9l4, at this com-
pany lagt night; and found the Sumasei Flies not rite
"so gay on gladsome wing?" as we could have wished
them to be. If the prelude were a very excellent one, we
shosld not mind it being played every evening; but we
do not like the Haymarket performances to have any
thing sombre about them... The SAN( for Scandal was
played tolerably well; yetakvaanwrs must remember
that it is only a very exttaordinary.degree of talent that
can induce an audience to be satisfied with pieces so
Loften pl.yed at the winter theatres. Miss CMS/IT/WS
Lady Teazle is very good, but not better than we have
been accustomed to see. She evidently improves, and
this is gratifying, as it throws an air of novelty over her
representations, and encourages hope for the future. Her
serious address to Sir Peter, on the detection behind the
screen was singular impressive. *Mr. Comma's Charles
Surfirce is a fair copy of ELLISTON, with tome negligences
:bout it, which a good figure and gentlemanly demeanour
help to reconcile. Mr. J onnsoresJoseph is only respecta-
ble, in the ordinary acceptation of the term. Tzaafs Sir
Peter is a rich treat • but be must be aware that be does
not reduce his comedy to farce. He has a strong. temp-
tation to extravagance, because whatever be does is very
likely to please. He is like a young rake, who drinks
his three bottles with such spirit and good humour, that
you are inclined to forget one would have been quite
enough for him. The Sir Oliver of Mr. YOVNGSR is an
easy performance; never " overstepping the modesty of
nature." BpIINARD, in the auction scene, reminded
as of an undertaker rather than an auctioneer. If
be ever practises in the latter line, it should be in the
sale of patent coffins, and assortments of grave clothes.
Tarrant: 'a Crabtree, and Warr's Sir Benjamin Back.
bite, were amusing caricatures. WILLIAMS'S Moses, and
Comm's Trip, excited much merriment. The rest of
the characters were very moderately sustained. The
next piece was the Agreeable Surprise, with LISTON
in Lingo,and Miss S. BOOTH as Cowslip. The former
was as eccentric as usual; and kept the audience in a
continual roar. The part of Cowslip is far below the
notice. nor quite adapted to the talents of Miss S. BOOTH
She cannot descend so low in the scale of manners as
the part requires ; but she acquitted herself with much ,
spirit; and if the manager will only give her such
characters as suit her, both he and the audience
will find their account in it. We have two other favours
to ask of the manager—the Ist, is, to let us be able to
reach our bed by twelve o'clock at farthest ;—and 2dly,
to give us nothing but what is worth seeing. We are
not prepared for prosing at the Haymarket. The" soul
of whim,' should inspire this place of humour. We
have heavy. work enough to get through the winter cam-
paign of nine long months, with the other theatres; and
we want a little respite, and amusement without fatigue.
It is the more necessary that exertion should by made, as
we do not perceive that either Mr. Jonas or Mr. C.
Bums are engaged. Mr. PINING would be a better
coadjutor of, than substitute for, the first; and for
the absence of the latter in genteel comedy, we
really know not what can compensate us. It is
is said his rank as manager of a large theatre interferes
with his engagement as performer at a small one. If so,
we have another reason for railing at etiquette, and al-
most wish he were no manager, except he find it more
profitable than theatrical management sometimes proves
to be. There is to-night a new farce at this theatre. We
hope they have not engaged Mr. 411iston's late farce-
writer; who has so miserably failed in filling Liston with
" quips and cranks."