Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1828-05-06

as well of as we shall be now. ] he very exist
ence Of such an army gives decided character
TO our condition; and nothing will II do us to
make our lot worse, unless II were TO come ana
take from US a little more OF our money-Pro>
vidcd, always, that that were possible. we
therefore, are in no more danger from you,
than from any other man IN the same post
You have 70 deal with tina: which soldiers ian
neither uphold nor pull down; you have "a sys-
tenn Of borrowing and Of paying interest TO ear>
~, you have half = crown to pay, and only "a
bout siXpence to pay with; upon your shout
dcrs has alighted, at last, the task OF facing
such a body of creditors as we're never before
seen OIL earth, There can Be no doubt in The
mind of any man Of sense, that the evils, when
have so long been collec ting together, must IL
naly produce some great CONFUSION. Ana,
observe, soldiers cannot prevent this. Suppose
Mr.. Huskisson's apprehended barter had ac>
tually come, two years ago; could an army
have done any thing to prevent general plum
der! oh no! The presen, evils are OF that sort
which set ba,tallions at defiance. (ieneraiiy
speaking, all the ancient notions CT liberty and
law are completely gone. BY slow degrees we
have been brought TO see barracks ana depots,
and foreign troops in England, without any
shame, and without the smallest emotion OF a
! painful nature. Forty years ago, the very lara
ola COMMANDMENT Chief, in England, would
have made men start with alright: now, such a
parsonage seems to be looked upon as not on
~ allowable but absolutely necessary. Il The
father Of any present aged Peer had been to'd,
that the time would come, when his estate
would be pledged as deeply to the military ana
naval half pay, (pa:lly given to toreigners,) as
10 tho relief ofthe poor, wha, would he have
said? IT he had been told, that one single war
would, in this shape alone; (besides the nations
al debt, have dipped his estate forever 10 me
amount of al leas, a sixth part OF us rental, ne
would have despised the prophet. Yet this IS
now the case, and that, too, without drawing
forth an audible murmur. People have long
given up all hope of seeing any relle' produced,
except by the excess OF evil. there IS a.
mongst the middle class Of the people,, a tho.
rough conviction, that no exertion oil theirs WIFI
Tend 10 better their lot, while, amonsSlthe nara
laborlng classes there is an universal careless.
ness about every thing but the mere means "t
sustaining their lives: and there slhc spec'a-
Gle exhibited by a people formerly the mos
Jealous in the world, as 10 their W hDe:ties
and the honor Of their country. Such a people
Is in 10 fear OF military encroachmrnts; ou', a
| The same time all the armies IN the world Cam
not retard tae moment when the hnal conse'
quences of the system shall burst forth. 40
rnumcrate all the evils, to lay before you a full
description Of the state Of the county, would
demand a large volume: aud yet | must call
YOUR attention 10 the horrible increase Of crime.
| This has been acknowledged in formal state
ments MADE by Magistrates assembled IN
| Quarter Session. The Warwickshire Justices
have resolved TO petition Parliament 10 take
means against this crying evil; they state that
.~.-:A-audiup the careful classification al
prisoners in our goals, and the means OF educa-
ton being generally diffused, that CRIME has in
creased, and is increasing in a most alarming
degree. This is the grand criterion. That
state of things, which beholds the least quanli-
~ of crime, is the best state; and, if this be
true, how horrible is progress in the road TO
evil! Another hidcous feature in this increase
of crime is, that it increases most rapidly a.
mong the youth, and even amongst the very
children. In several of the counties, theft is
beginning t. rival pauperism, in point Of paro-
chial expense! There are already a fund >hold-
err Deb, a dcad>welght DEBT, a poof-rate
Debt; and to these there now seems 10 be a
boSt 10 BIZ added a theft Debt; for This thieving
imposes a heavy burden upon thu land already,
while every one must see, that it is impossible
that il should not increase at an accelerated
pace. This is one Of the great matters which
it is your duty to attend to.-lti is perfectly no.
~,orious that, during these sixteen years, there
has been a continual Boosting about the elm
proyement," in The criIrina! iaw:i II IS slsr no.
,orious tina, millions have 5"ea expended on
penileDtiaries. asylums, aud ali sorts OF reCSp.
lacIes for the reformation Of juvenile offenders.
The boast rings necessarily in our ears of the
progress of education amongs, the labouring
classes; Sir Francis Burdett cries up the
"march of mind" Mr. Brcugham tells us that
"thc schoo'mas,er is abroad" Mir. Peel boasts
OF he "vast improvement IF tire age" and,
while all these have been going on, crime has
incrt a,cd in almost a four fold degree in The
space # only six cen years; till, at last, it has
found its way amongst even the children of d
few wears from heir mothers breast, and W.
may, wi'hqu, much exagaeration say, hat we
have a rising generation Of thieves, having, in
ali probability, more Juvenile thieves han there
are THE cs of all ages 10 Spain, Portugal,
France, The Ne herIands, S~irzrrland and HoI-
land! And, this 100, in "a country that formerly
justly boas ed of is honesty, and that cannot
,,nS<ihIy b a A npleran N 4. chance -, ore., nc 4