Extraordinary Police.
The Times, 1824-09-29T00:00:00

[NWe copv the fullOwiolg article frem the Dundee .4drt;et .r we, cannot tell v.hat i tneans. but we ourpose that the alarr of outr O_ retntorarv is so,;ewhat exuggerated. e scarcelv think that dr. P'ee is anxiou, for the r-putation of a Fouche or a Savary.1 M -X -;(ii ithe altention of our readers to the fol1ow-iog copy of thc pfif al itructions under which the Postmrsters of.Scotland are at this tirnc t.1ct,rrging sbeir sacred aod imnpor,Tant dutize to the p.!itbic. it will bc eenr tromr another plart of' tfis duv's psper, how we hare Leco umadLe :icquainted with the t:r1tence of s.ach- ar order; ar;a it t, rigtelt to rdil. that. before ventuline to make cnv comnient toPqn it. wve have teht i' oxr durv to ascertain that all provineia post- n..sers arr atintg under a similar Command. Copy P. (. Insiructiois. No. lr'.-To all Postmasters. " *ener.l 'ost-office. Edinburgh. May, 1824. '' rId inrtruoctian stas rer'ewrtl in 1812, that aU Postmasters *1ijouldl trietrit to ine, tAr the intiornilcion of his Majesty's Post_ *nas.rer-Gfr,cral, an inmediate account ot'all renmarkable occr.rrences wttithin their dktricty. thtat the sarne may be communicated, if neces- a:rr', to hti MIa.Letv's p irripal Secretaries of State. This has not bren invadiablv attettled to; and I am commanded by his Lordship tn -ii. that ltencelorward it w'ill be particularly expected of' evert deiuti. t het comnmand, (iiried) " AUG. GODBY, Sec." It ic then. clearh lto be understoud that vv are now lilring and are zovemred riuder a sysq 'vgten f police and espionnage similar to that of the oilier destitic Oovernments of Europe. The Secretary of Staic fotr the Home lDepartment is the Sivarr o1 Great Britain ; aztd everv posunacter is. or is vtpected to be. a televraphihg spy upon the conimutiiv in wrhich hie resides. It has been hitherto understood, that tite sentiments and opittions ot' our countrymen were safelyv pui correctly communicated to the Kiing and his Government throughi public and constit:tional channels. This merit at least is claimeed by the advo.ites fbr the presenst inckery of represenmatioti of tie people in Pirliainent-:hat it serves as the channcl far making knowit the sentinienvt ot every class of the people. The Peer- aze has its right of free access to the ear of the C(hief Ma- gistrnte. Notwithstanding the Six Acts, the neople and the corporations still have their public mnectings. There is tcutcely an interesting event Gr a new opinion that Poes not, by means of the Inical and public press, circulate in the course of three days front one cnd of the kingdom to the other. Yet it would reena thilt all these sources of inform:&ttion are insuffiient for enaliag Mir. Peel to tlischarge his duties as the King's Secretary of State for the Horne Department. But if he must liavel his agent of olice in every poet town anti village, we will venture to sxa, that the peron least of all fitted tor this si6us and disgusting office is the man into whose hands are confided the private and confidential comrmunications of everv individual in t'e kingdom. It appears that Dfr. Peel is dis- satisfied with the scantiness of the private gossip that has been of late transmitted bv his spies,; and, in tIfav last, a fresh circuilr was transmuitted, to reprove their moattention to thits part of their duties. Tihis proves that it is not the mere formal revival of an old and obsolete order, which might have been thought necessary before the extensive circutlatiox of news-papers. Whatever be the objects which Mr. Peel may hereafter, in his place in the House of Commons, state that he has solely in view, it is obvious that these Government spies may become the instrmtnents of gross mnisivore- sentation and the agents of the vilest of purposes. And is it throtugh hands sullied, as this order would instruct us, Fy the lowest species of political agency, that the private and confidential cominunies- tions of the public must pars ? Weisi will melt-curiomity will pry -and the very office of a spy justifies the least favourble suS- picions. EXTRAORDIWA.RIF PU1LICE.