The National Register. — 1815-09-17 (London, England)

THE NATIONAI! REGISTER.  ►ter the prison by the door which the turnkeys had 1 ft open, according to their usual practice, does seem to have been without object or excuse, and to have been w.inton attack upon the lives of defenceless, and, at the same time, unothending individuals." In answer to this paragraph, we shall on'.`y reply—had the commissioners examined 4/ the American evidence, and attached the same credit to it which, it appears, they have done to all the English evidence, similar expressions would have been made use of against Shortland's conduct throughout the whole of their report. It appears to us, after an attentive examination of his report, that the commissioners mean to justify Shorthand in commencing his murderous attack upon the prisoners, and to condemn the soldiers for continuing it. Singular as this idea appears, it is no less strange to us how it can be possible they could reconcile it to their feelings to make up a report containing such a direct contradiction to reason; for, surely. if Shorthand could he justified in using coe►cive measures in the first instance, the military certainly should be acquitted for the subsequent massacre, as the whole was conducted under his immediate command ; and if he had a right to kill one on the same ground, he might have extended it to a thousand. And, on the other hand, if any part of the transaction is to be condemned, Shorthand should be made to answer for the whole ; for what necessity could there be made to attempt identifying any of the soldiers? Surely, the commissioners could not think of bringing them to punishme►►t when they acted by the direct orders of Shorthand and his officers? And if any one could or ought to be made to answer for the outrage, Shortland ought to be the first.  In addition to the contradictions contained in the commissioners' joint report, Mr. King, in his letter to hi. 3 Excellency J. Q. Adams, almost denies the ground on which they have, in part, founded Shortland's justification, hen he says (alluding to having heard several Americans Amear, positive!/, that Shortland did give the order to re, and an officer of the guard thinks if he had he should have heard him) "perhaps the bias of my mind was, that Shortland did give that order; and, wishing the report to go forth under our joint signatures, I forbore to press some of the points which it involves so far as otherwise I might have done."  If, then, any part has been neglected, or passed over, for accommodation, or any other purpose (and one there certainly has, in not paying the same attention to the American as was done to the English evidence) it is to be regretted that Mr. King should so far forget or neglect the sacred duties attached to the appointment of a commissi-ner, to inquire into the cause of the murder of his countrymen, as to pass over any points which might have brought to light the means of punishment for the murdereis, or obtained in some measure an indemnity for the surviving unhappy and maimed sufferers. not 11:e hales of the 'departed victims haunt hiM in his ttlidnight.fluMbers, and pointing to their lascerated bodies, say, these still remain unievengee Will not the unhappy survivors show the'stUnips Of their amputated limbs, If nd say, these wounds rester, and 'still remain unatoned ? NVill not' the widow and 'helpless orphan raise their innocent hands 'to heaven and cry, why was justice denied 'as why was the heart so callous to our iuffer? and Why was the bosom shut to sympathy ? Zia *,.