The Sun. — 1828-07-15 (London, England)

GENIUS.-Among the prisoners brought before the Sitting Alderman yesterday was one Mr. W. Davison—a short young man, with a long cowslip-coloured visage, and dressed in a suit of sadly superannuated black, who was charged by the Chief Porter and the Warder of the Temple with infesting the same, for the purpose of pestering the professional gentlemen resident therein with certain documents, denominated beggingletters. The Chief Porter and the Warder had repeatedly warned him not to do so, and in order to give weight to their warning, they had on one occasion thrust him forth from the Temple vi et aniiis ; but still be persisted in witting again, lying in wait for, and insinuating his beggingletters into the bands of the Benchers and Barristers as they ascended or descended the stairs of their respective chambers, insomuch that they laid a formal complaint thereof before the Treasurer, and the Treasurer gave orders that the very next time he did su be should be taken into custody and carried before a Magistrate. On Saturs day afternoon last they found bins on a flight of stairs in the Middle Temple, with a bundle of beeging-letters in his hand ; and upon their proceeding to take him into custody, he threatened that he would kill the first man who should presume to lay bands on him. They did lay hands on him, however, and no such awful result followed ; but he no 'sootier found himself in custody than he tore up all the letters which he had with him except one only which they secured, and now produced in proof of the premises. The letter was addressed to "Mr. C. Jones, Esq., Middle Temple," sad ran thus IS with the utmost importance and deep regret I now take the liberty of writing to you these few lines merely I add to explain to you at once with the real nature of my distress of which I have no doubt will baffle all description that ever manifested itself in writing. In describing to you the narrative of my agonizing misfortunes you will find them to be Mr. Jones as follows. It grieves me very much to state to you as a gentleman distinguished for your amazing talents that I have been for this last eight days totally destitute of obtaining the common necessaries of life owing as may be said for want of employment. I am by profession when in' occupation a clerk and I there,fore under the circumstances have taken the liberty of laying my case before you wishing to inform you what will not a man do when driven by necessity or compelled by hunger ! No one can imagine what I have gone thro' I doubt bat myself. So for instance Innger and moreover leading a most miserable life occasionally at times of starvation. Now can anything be more shocking or more worse. In a word it would be almost I fear impossible for any rational man for to describe poverty in its proper channel without his first opening at once the picture scence wretchedness of man's forlorn misery and calamity. Without his so doing poverty I say cannot be properly de.scribed. I don't wonder there heirs.- so many suicides daily committed by men of calamity when starvation and impoverishment is making vast strides through all parts of the United States of America England Ireland Wales and Scotland. Notwithstanding I don't wonder there being so many robberies carried on at all hours of the day when people are famishing for want of nurture food raiment and clothing. Of all the evils now existing in the world poverty absolutely beats them all in short poverty to a man of genius and talent brings him to a state bordering on to hiat of madness) misery ruin despair and finally in the end I add death. I cannot:exactly make it convenient to describe poverty to you now mere accurately than I have, as I have a great deal of anxiety bordering on my mind so much Sir that lam almost harrassed to death. Therefore I hope you will excuse my being quite destitute at this present moment of having in any possession a single halfpenny. I have to inform you Mr. Jones that I am a young man, well versed in all the classical pursuits of ancient and modern literature. It is not my wish for to anyways praise myself, but I have to make known to you that I have written different articles of all kinds for all the literary periodicals, but being now quite destitute of a friend, I am now by them utterly banished and forsaken. By enumerating them over to you Sir perhaps they will be most acceptable. If so there proceeds the following—The " New Mdnthly Magazine," the " Literary Magnet," the " Literary Chronicle," the " Athenaeum," the " Olio," the " Portfolio," the " Mirror," the " Spirit and Manners of the Age," &c. &c. Having given you merely the names of those literary periodicals which I have occasionally at times written for I shall now digress from the subject by turning your serious attention to the latter part of my illfated dejected state of forlorn poverty caused I might safely sty owing to my not having any kind efemplyoutent whatever to do.—The fact is this, Mr. Jones, I have no claim on you whatever, but knowing you to be a gentleman of great literary repute I trust to your goodness. In a word, having given you a correct statement of facts, Mr. Jones, I wish to make you understand that I am at this particular moment quite destitute and without a friend—alas thro' poverty.—l am Sir your most humble and obedt. Seret. W.