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Hurricaxx at Ruobt.—On Thursday last the neighbourhood of Rugby was visited by the most tre-
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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•• Amaiwniwar . tfUMtittwerd * , . ( Aad—Aouiamj ehue * >• h » fpea— «»« V With « U who war with Thouf tt ! * k . peopWbj « dhy waitaft . . W » f « .- »"« . REVEL ATIONS OF RUSSIA . ¦ D . TO .
Perhaps the most inter esting portion of the . first volume of this work , is the account of the Conspiracy of the Russian Nobles , which resulted in an abortive attemp t at revolution on the occasion of the accession of Nicholas . This most interesfiHg and tragic episode we pass by for the present , with the recom mendation to the "Committee forPoland ' iRegen eration , " to obtain the consent of the author to re
jmblisb tfce history of the conspiracy in one ofthei series of tracts ; that permission we anticipate the committee will hare but little trouble in obtaining . Y oronrselves , we purpose at some future time to unveil ( from tn ' * ana" other sources ) the facts of this most fatal conspiracy , for the information of our ^ ader ? , and also in justice to the heroic patriots whose blood criesirom the ground for vengance , and tbe overthrow of that accursed system of despotism , jr&fcb bravely but unsuccessfully they attempted to
destroy . The three firat chapters of tht second volume are ununlf occupied with descriptions of the soil , climate , produce , and resources of Europsan and isstic Russia , and of the multitude of nations and tribes which constitute the population of the Muscovite empire , their physical appearance , moral and intellectual qualities , dress , habitations , manners , customs , religion , < fcc , &c . It will be obvious that { 0 & person desirous of knowing what Russia really Ji , these three chapters will be of great importance . Oar business is , however , with the political portions of these " Revelations / ' we mast , therefore , forego the pleasure of quoting the many picturesque , yet apparently faithful pictures of Russia and Russian life occupying this portion of the work : we except ^ ome two or three extracts .
"Thepopulation of the Russian empire eiceedi « , 000 0 * 3 , of which more than 58 , 000 , 000 are in Europe , less than 5 , 000 , 000 in Asia , and 61 , 000 in her American possessions . This population consists of nations and tribes derived from the Slavonic , the Lithuanian , the Finnish , the Tartar , the Mongul , ihe German , the Jewish , the Manchou , the Armenian , and the Hindoo stock . " A great-number of -the tribe 3 , composing this heterogeneous population : Sr e of the lowest order of barbarians . Is the course of these chapters , we find an account of the old barbaric capital of the Russians , Moscow ; -from this account we extract the following notice of - { hefer-famed citadel , in itself a fortified city , which , Saflt upon a rock , towers over Moscow : —
THK EKEKLUT . Within its high , rock-baseii ani turretted ramparts , . ¦ jitre are , to begin with , three cathedrals ; tbe cathe - dral of tie Assumption , in which the Tsars are crowned ; -tfcj cathedral of the Archangel Michael , in which they were Ions buried ; and the beautiM little cathedral of fb » Tirein , said to he on the model of St . Sophia of Constantinople , of which the gilded roofing looks as if it iii been dipped in the sunset . This cathedral vrai fanltby Ivau the Terrible , to commemorate the conquest of Kazan , the great Tartar city . The architect gave his -employer so much satisfaction that to preTent him from ere ; destroying its uniqueness by building another , Iran pat out his eyes .
There aie besides ten or twelve other churches in tbe Kremlin , to satisfy tbe piety of the tsar 3 , for they were all picas men until the days of Peter , and held the stirrap for the patriarch to mount his mule . It was here that Ivan the Fourth perpetrated his sangmaary orgies ; here he murdered his first-born ; her « he violated his daughter-in-law , almost in his dying hour . Around these old Tartaric-looking ramparts were formerly great hooki , whence often hung suspended by the " ribs , like the joints of meat in our hntcfcer ' s shops , the enemies of the tsars . Here Peter the -Great , more humane than any who hail reigned before him , impaled the lover of his repudiated wife , garniihwj tbe scaffold with the heads of four great dignitaries , sad fifty inferior members ef the church . Here , too , Peter confined his first born , whom he also murdered .
If the churches are to he considered as places of prayer , and the main object of prayer b » to ask pardon Of Heaven for sins , then the masters of the Kremlin were right to bav # manv clrarehes . There ara in the Kremlin various palaces as well as ihnrches ; also the famous vaulted hall , of which the * rcbes radiate from the common centre of a pondaou * pii-ar . tlie spot on which the tsars pave their banquet ! —ianqnets in which the Wood flowed sometimes as plentifully as the wine . In the Palace of the Armory are many crowns ; the imaginary crown of Siberia ; the crotnii ofthe conquered sovereigns of Kazan and A » - inehsn , who never wore anjthing but a fur cap orturfen * and the treacherously usurped diadems of Poland ma of Georgia ; also the keyi of "Wars * * , and the Mftfcejirmed cars of the Strelitzes , which they drove ftrioniW to clear the road amongst the mote of
Motcow . The author knows not whether the famous jewel . "Men Catherine bought by a title and a grant of slave * rsn the man who had stolen and concealed it for manj swaths in a sore of his leg . adorns one of these superaussrarv crewns , or embelliihts the one worn by the
empjror . Here . too . amongst old thrones and g ilded trumpery , sad th » old boots and shoes of Russian sovereigns , which coarfier-lite servility has preserved as relies , is thr proudest trophy of the great and cruel Peter—the armchair on which the Swedish conquerer ef so many cornhits was carried wounded to fight the fatal battle of Poltava . In a notice of a once famous city , Veliki-Novogorod "three centuries ago a much more important city than Moscow , we haTe the following awount of the hnrri -We acfa of Ivan the Crael , a worfcby progenitor of the murderous miscreant , Nicholas : — "TBUT . T . THOCSAHD MCIDZBB COMMITTED BT OHE SriSIAM EXPEBOB '
Ivan the Terrible , a little later , accusing the city ef eorrespandin ? with the Pole 3 , put to death in excrueiat . iag tortures thirty thousand of the citizens , whose unhurieS and putrefying bodies gave rise to an extenninatini pestilence . Since then this celebrated city has dwindled down to afesut fifteen hundred houses , which SJraggJe along each side of the Tolkof river , connected lj a bridge ; and , were tt uot for the carrying trade between St . Petersburg ana Moscow , its seventy churches mijht be in ruins , and the great city a mere village . Verv interesting is the review of the conquests
Ende in former times by the wild hordes of Tartars and Monguls , now to a great extent under the rule of Russia . These hordes still exist , perhaps as numerous and as capable of working ruin and d . strue-¦ tion , at least as regards Asia , now , as in tbe day 3 of Zinris Khan and Timour the Tartar . Such adversaries ss Zingi 3 or Timour conquered , they might conquer again , le d as those ohiefa led them—for the oaterials still exist to work out similar conquests . We request the attention of our readers to the following extract : — 3 C 3 KSSS OF THE ECS 3 IA 3 T . DESPOTISM CMS MDIA A > D CBISA . The policy of those who have subdued , and keep se-Pirited , tue ' siongul and Tartar tribes , may unite them , Ja 3 iu Maehiavt-lian spirit may easily inspire these nutisas , and push them forward in an enterprise of which &Me who plan it expect to reap the benefit , and which thi ; have the intelligence to direct , and the means to tiki advantage of . If the Russian government had not such a powerful auxiliary in the Cossac , it could naturally never dream of exciting tribes , stiH impatient of fcsr dominion , on a career in which succegs would render them at once independent of her rule . Bat the Cossac , without whom indeed she could never have subdued '• QKn , is becoming every day more intimately mixed up with the hordes which lib colonies adjoin ; he will adviacs with them , and ensure their obedience both by his
-dimp le and his presence . He is playing now the part of tha tame oxen , jolted alongside the wild animal just tiken from the herd , to be driven onward with it as soon B 5 ihey are securely lashed together , to render thus the strength available , which could not otherwise be governed . That Russia has ' ong turned her attention towards Alia , and especially toward * India , and aspired to the sotiragntj of these regions , her conduct dining the last ¦ Cictory too amply testifies ; justifying in its fullest ex-* 5-t the suspicion excited by the precepts of policy laid « Jiwn by Pctrr tue First , for the guidance of his successors , wherein , after recommending the most proper a-ansto weaken Sweden , aad to subdue Poland , he says , textaaily— One must become thoroughly imbued with 4 * ie conviction that the commerce of India leads to the dominion of the world "—a suspicion which wouWhave he * n singularly strengthened l » v the dose observation of alt his political behests , whith , fulfilled successively , hive left only this one unexecuted , though avowed , and * There is no notice appended besiae toc , » m that as late as three centuries back , these Rnsan tsars had received , since the year 1300 , the »«»?* £ " *" ambassadors on foot , presenting them , according to cu , torn imposed on them , wUa a boui ofmaresmUk . xfons drop of which fell on the horse ' s mane , the tsar was obliged to liek it up with hi « tongue .
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evenbotstadof . asa project , by the organs of government , and many of its most responsible agents . tfeTerthrieM , we have every rea son to belie ve thai of lata years , and especially siacethe Russian government has permittedher subordinates and her press , even ostentatiously , to avow her intention ! in this rsspect that though never eventnally relinquishing the scheme , she ha . become semible that the period wai still far off when it would be practicable , and that aaother , of even more colossal aggrandizement , and which has generally leaped the suspicious eyes of Europe , hat been put ftr . ward in her councils , as more immediately feasible . Of no modern date in its conception , it is said to have been always intended to follow the invasion of India , until the difficulties of the latter undertaking proving , on a closer inspection far greater tuan had been anticipated , it wa « destined , as more easy in its execution , to precede and pave the way to it . We allude to the conquest of China , ment . andmanVoiit « inn . i ™^ ? M . ?™ - 0 fgOTera "
for which , daring more than a century , the Muscovite empire has been silently preparing , making herself thoroughly acquainted with the - exact situation of a country , which , in every other case , had so long succeeded in concealing everything of importance regarding itself , from the most searching glances of western curiosity and penetration . She maintains to this effect a mission in Peking , at the expence of truckling to the bloated arrogance of the Chinese , and by means of her trade upon the frontier of Cfcina Proper , keeps up a communication with the inhabitants of that" portion of the Cuineie Tartary which intervenes between her own frontier and the great wall , and with whom , as well as With the still independent Tartars , according to the account ! of officers long employed npon the herder stations , the Russian agents havo succeeded In exciting such a spirit of dis . content and ambition , that they would be ready , at the beck of the Russian government at any moment , to disown their aUegianca , and turn their « word » against tht
Celestial Empire . But the time had not arrived , aad now , in consequence of the British triumphs in China , may never arrive , in which Bussia will be prepared to throw aside the mask , and cast out of its pagoda the idol which her humble and noiseless footsteps have been allowed insidiously to approach , and which , the servile obeisance of her agents had lulled into security . Her Cossacs are not yet sufficiently numerous , the Tartars of her steppci are not yet trained sufficiently to push them forward in the direction she wishes , without risk of failure ; and
the chain of her establishment in that part of Siberia which she must make the basis of her operations , is not jet sufficiently complete . Although , upon the map , the frontiers of the Russian and Chinese empires blend into one common one , a vast tract of territory lies between the nominal border of each of these states , and the limits of that which they may really be said to occupy , and only a faw years sinee , if invited to take peaceful posses , sionof the Chinese empire , it would have puzzled Russia to have conveyed thither for that purpose even the semblance of an army , so surely would it bare melted away upon the road .
Sine * then , however , Russia has rapidly progressed m this quarter , and probably in less than another five-and . twenty years , the means for the execution of a plan so long matured wonld have been really rife , and if the reee qf war between England and China does not . as it bids fair to do , change eventually the face of the who ' e of that part of Asia , it would have been in her power at any time to open the flood-gates of invasion , and turn upon the Chinese empire the full tide of her Asiatic hordes , by that time broken into such rude obedience as may answer her service , and mingled with the faithful tribes of Cossacs , to whom the use of horse artillery will always give a sure preponderance .
The independent Monguls and Tartars , reduced as their enrpire has been to an insignificant extent by the converging encroachments of the Chinese and Russian frentisM , and the Tartars under the Chinese dominion , to whom tradition points out tbe rich and densely populated lands of China , as from time immemorial the natural prey oftheir people , are all ripe and ready to join in such an enterprire . If their active co-operation were not , as it would be , very valuable , it would have conduced to success , by throwing open the gates of the empire , and by the mere fact of allowing % free and uninterrupted paisaee through their country .
Even now . all the danger that may menace any part of central and southern Asia from Russian ambition , is owing to the natnra of this people . "What native power onnid resist an inroadof&Russo-Tartar tribe of several hundred thousand souls , accompaniedby fifty thousand Cossacs , with a hundred pieces of cannon , and followed by ten thousand infantry on dromedaries and canu-ls 1 Tet some of the author's informants , men whose shrewdness had led them to indulge in no very sanguine anticipations of Ruisian success on tbe wertern side of Asiatic Russia , and who are therefore above the class of mere ambitious enthusiasts , look to the time as rapidly and certainly approaching , when such an inroad as we have supposed will he feasible , not ai one exhausting and isolated effort , but as one of many waves which Russia will pour in succession ever the natural barriers which divide her from Southern Asia .
It is only for this purpose that Russia values her Tartar population , and for no other > hat she can be labouring so hard to introduce , amongst its remotest tribes , some features of the Cossac organization , as with the Kirguise she has partially succeeded in doing . These , at least , are the projects which her own Asiatic gents attribute to their government , andeven when they snppose them to embrace the eventual subjugation of the whole of Asia , there is nothing so cHmerical as wonld at first appear in this bold design , nor even is there aught we can see , considering the means at her disposal , if we except British interference , which is likely effectually to thwart its execution .
The Tartar race , who once in history emerged from its pastoral solitude to scatter desolation and death , durin " a long reign of terror , over a great portion of the globe , may therefore be destined again to play an important part in extending the dominion of a government who 3 e demoralizing rule , worse than tbe sword and brand of Timour ' s hordes , blasts and withen all the fairest and most rational fruit of civilization , and carries with it moral death and degradation . We trust and believe that before these designs can be put into execution the sceptre of the Tsars will be shattered . Self-defence , the preservation of civilisation , and the maintenance of dear-bought freedom , will one day force Europe into that " Crusade '' which would before now have been entered upon , if the Governments of Great Britain , France , and Germany , were really what they should be—tbe representative * and guardians of the " People , " and not the mere heads of privileged and usurping " glasses . "
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EARTHQUAKE IN ITALY . A letter from Leghorn , of the 17 th instant , rives the following details of an earthquake on the 14 th : — The first shock was felt about noon , preceded by a laud subterranean rumbling . The motion wbs at first perpendicular , as if produced by a raising of the ground , which was repeated five or six times . At this time the leaning of the houses were so considerable that it was difficult for people to keep on their legs . The furniture was displaced and thrown down ; the bella of the churches rang violently , and the noise occasioned by the cracking ; of beams and walls , caused the inhabitants in the utmost alarm to rush into the streets . During the night several other shocks were felt , the ground ap . pearing to be in a continual state of Convulsion . The atmosphere was clear , but there was an oppressive
heaviness in the air . The palace occupied by the Count de la Rochefoucauld , the Trench Minister at tbe Court of Tuscany , has been considerably damaged . A stone from the ceiling fell on the chair in which Mdme . de la Rochefoucauld had been sitting only a few moments before . The house « f the Consul General . Baron Brenier , ha * also eu&red . all tbe partition walls heing cracked . Ho Frerch residents at Leghorn have suffered either in person or property . The villa inhabited by 11 . Moraau , son of the cashier of the Bank of France , has been much damagea , and M . Moreau was himself obliged to pass the night in a carriage in the garden . The shock was far more disastrous in the country , particularly in the Maremises , a voleanie country . Entire villages have been levelled with the ground in the localities of Tanlia , Lorenzana , Orcian % and Caseiano . At Volterra , a state prison was thrown down , burying many of the prisoners under the ruing . The number of killed throughout the country amounts to 33 , and of the wounded to 140 , many
Of them very seriously . The effects of the earthquake extended as far as Pisa . The roof of the old church of Saint Michel fell in at the 6 rst shock . The congregation had just quitted the building when this accident happened . Near Loreuzana and at Treona a lake was suddenly formed in a p . ' ace where the ground had sunk . All the villas on the hills round Pisa have surfered considerably . The inhabitants of the country are in a state of great consternation , as they have not forgotten the earthquakes ef 1793 and 1 S 1 G . For four days previous to the present shock the ground never ceased trembling at intervals . In the shattered state in which all the houses in Leghorn now are , another smart shock would assuredly cause the entire ruin of the city . A part of the inhabitants have quitted the place ; a great number are bivoucking under ttnts in the public squares , others have taken refuge in boats . The Government has been prompt in sending assistance into the country , in the shape of engineers , medical men , provisions , and
medicaments . ElRTHQBAKE IS SwiTZKRLlSD . —ThrCO Shocks Of an earthquake were felt in the canton of Yaud , in the morning of the 17 th instant . The effects were more violent at the towns of Morges and Yverdon . At the last-named placed , by the second shock which took plac e walls were split , and part of the ramparts towards the salt magazine thrown down . The trees are described as having been agitated as in a tempest , although tbe air was perfectly calm . Bells were set ringing , and men and animals were upset . The whole population rushed into the open air , fearing to be buried in the ruins of their houses . The undulation seemed fa run from east to west .
Fbaxce . —More EiKiHO . uAiiss .--Two shocks of an earthquake were felt on the 17 ih instant at Macon . TLree shocks were felt on the same day ' at Lausaune . The first , in the night , was only felt by u few persons ; the second , at seven in the morning , xrss njuoh more violent , causing furniture to '/ all down , and doors to open . A third shock followed
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almost immediately , and caused great consternation among the inhabitants of Lausanne . It lasted five or six seconds . It was also felt at Orbe , Yverdon , and in other localities . The movement seemed to be from the north-west towards the south-east . ^ ta ost immediately . and causedrreat constematin
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GREECE . RENEWAL OF THE TORTURING SYSTEM . Athens , Aug . 10 . Your readers will , no doubt , recollect the exposure of tbe horrible tortures inflicted last year by government agents , on innocent people in Messenia , the authenticated accounts of which caused justly universal horror throughout Europe . Although not tbe ¦ lightest reparation was made to these unfortunate individuals , still the publication of these atrocities they were subjected to deterred M . Coletti ' s government from following up a system learnt at the Court of AH Pacha of Joannina , by this Christian Minister of a Christian people . It would appear , however , from what has just taken place , thatM . Coletti had not ordered the discontinuance of torture , but that it has merely remained in abeyance for a short time .
A workman named Stellio Soumaki , an Ionian subject , residing at Patras ( the commercial capital of Greece ) on the night of the 19 th of July , had hii residence suddenly entered by tho head of the police , accompanied by gendarmes and two citizens , who seized Soumaki . and a companion , and conducted them to tbe guardhouse without giving any reason for their trrest . After loading them with irons , they were taken before the police , and were then ordered i » avow themselves guilty of having stolen a watch and ome linen . Upon their positively denying that they had committed the theft , they were first of all bastinadoed , then thrown to the ground on their backs , and heavy stones placed on thrir breasts on which their torturers sat . Still unable to wring
from tbeir victioin an avowal of their guilt , these demons then applied other tortures , the horrible Mature of which , even , if the pen could describe them it is better not to narrate . Let the odium of such demoniacal proceedings be fixed where only it should be . on M . Coletti and his myrmidons , and not on the country generally . The public press ftf Athen 3 ha » n » t hesitated toexposehia fresh outrage on humanity , and the Courrter d'Athena concludes its account of the transaction in these words— " It is in the middle of the nineteenth century , in a constitutional state , under a Ministry warmly protected by M . Guirot . that these and nimilar cruelties are enmmittpd . without the law being able to prevent them . Unhappv Greece ! " . . n .
Surelv the Anglo-Tonian ' government will take immediate notice of this outrage , and if it appears that an Ionian subject has been treated at all in the manner described , it is to he hoped such a remonstrance will be made to the Greek government ai wlli prevent a repetition thereof in future , and aisn insure the punishment of the actual perpetrators of the present outrage . The ca ? e would not be altered even if the parties charged with this theft were guilty thereof . They should only have been pro ceeded against in conformity tothe ' law , and if found tuilty , been punished in the manner provided bj law , which assuredly does not recognise torture in any shape .
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REPORT OFTJJ E SELECT C 0 MMmEE % N AND 0 VER UNION . The selectcommittee anointed to inquire into the administration ot the Poor Laws in the Andover Union , and into the management of the Union Workhouse , and into the conduct of the Poor Law Commissioners and tbeir late Assistant Commissioner , ^ j * !! ' WIth reference to the two investigations held at Andover ; and into all the circumstances under Which the Poor Law Commissioners called upon Mr . Parker to resi gn his assistant Commissionershi p ; and who were 'instructed to inquire into all the circumstances under which Mr . Day was call « d upon to resicn his office ef Assistant Poor Law Commissioner ; and who were empowered to report tho minutes of evidence taken before them , together with their observations and opinions thereupon , to the House ; have considered the matters to them referred , and have agreed to the following resolutions : KEPORT QF ^ ttf erri . n . n nA »»; m ^ .. ^«
RELIKF . Resolved—That it is the opinion of the committee : — 1 . That it appear * to have bean the practice of the An . dover Board of Guardians to consider and determine upon cases as stated in the relieving officer ' s books , with , out previously inquiring whether the applicant or any person on liis behalf be in waiting , ' 2 . That when applicants , having made application to the relieving officer , have been admitted to the board , on its being made known that they are at present , it has ordinarily been only on their objecting to the decision in the caae ; whereas justice and humanity alike require that every applicant for relief should have the opportunity , if in waiting , of making a personal statement before his case be decided upon .
3 . That the Andover Board of Guardians have adopted the practice of leaving it to the relieving officer to communicate their opinion to the applicant ; a practice of which jour committee Btrongly disapprove , it being in their judgment no lessjust to the pauper than expedient , with a view of preventing mistake or fraud , that the decision in each case should be communicated to the applicant , if in attendance , by tbe presiding chairman , in the : respnce of the board . ¦ i . That in the censure on the practice of the Andover guardians , the committee would not be understood as favouring a practice which may often lend to seriouo hardship , of requiring all applicants to attend at the hoard .
5 . That the free admission to the pretence of the board of appliwnts for relief waB the more important in the Andover Union , in which it has been proved that the relieving officerj books have been very imperfectly kept ; columns which should contain important particulars , e . g ., the earnings of the appicant , and tho present cause of seeking relief , being left entirly blank . C That from instancos brought under their notice , the committee believe that the board of guardians have , in several cises of applicatiou for relief to them , lsft lo the relieving officer a large discretionary power as to administering it or witholdin ? it—while they admit that , under special circumstances , this may sometimes be necessary though whether such special circumstances existed in the cases referred to , the defective state of the relieving officers book affords no evidence , ) the committee think it right to record their conviction of the impropriety and inexpediency ! under ordinary cases , of thus delegating to the relieving officer the discretion which the law has vested in the board of guardians ,
7 . That in regard to the non-allowance of partial relief to the aged and partially disabled , a principle which appears to have been generally acted upon iu the Andover Uuion , the committee feel bound to express their apprehension that , if ripdly carried out , it may lend to various individual hardships , without any equivalent amount of public advantage . It is just to add , that tlie board of guardians hare in this respect only followed out the recommendations of the Poor Law Commissioners in their reports and other publications , though no order has been issued by the Poor Law Commissioners to that effect .
8 . That on the application of an able-bodied man for rrlief , on account of sickness in his family , and also in some instances where the applicant had been partially diabled , the Andover Board have required , as a condition upon which such relief is made dependent , that he should perform a certain task of work at the workhouse , the amount of food allowed to him not being supplied until such task is completed ; and although as stated by tome witnesies to have been the case , this practice may hartbeen only adopted as regarded the ablr-bodied applicant , and where he is out of work , and under circumstances , therefore ,- which , were it not for sickness in his family , would render admission to the workhouse the only relief applicable in that union to the case , still your committee think , that the annexing this condition to the relief otherwise deemed nec-. 'ssery , and especially where parties are brought long distances from their homes to execute the task imposed , is ( except under suspicion of fraud or gross imposition , ) an unduly severe mode of administering relief .
WORKHOUSE . Resolved—That it is tbe opinion ot this committee—1 . That on the investigatioa which took place in Sep . tember / 1845 , ( as hereinafter stated , ) before Mr . Parker , mnny charges of gross Immorality and of fraudulent ap . proprintlon of the workhouse stores were brought for ward against Mr . M'Dougal , the then master of tha workhouse , and were deposed to on oath by many witnesses - that that investigation wa 3 brought to a close ( undtr the circumstances particularly detailed in the papers and evidence printed herewith ) by Mr . M'Doupal ' s resignn . tion of his office , no evidence up to that time having been brought forward by him in his defence , against th > greater part of the charge ! bo preferred .
2 . That having reference a » well to the necessarily great extent and vari . ty of the subjects referred to thi m »« more especially to their obvious incompeteney to com . plete that inquiry satisfactorily without the power of ad . ministering an oath , the committee have thought them-. nelvps justified in forbearing to re-open the investigation referred to . 3 . That the committee flt the same time think it right to state , that several of the witnesses examined in proo ) of the charges of gross immorality on such previous investigation have given evidence before them , as well upon points which did not come under inquiry in tl-at investi Ration , as upon some matters which were then deposed to , and that the evidence so given appears to your committee to credit .
i . That this committee is of opinion that Mr , M'Dou . gal ' s conduct while master of the workhouse wai marked by undue severity ; that he was on several occasions , once when even reading prayers to tbe inmates , seen in a Rtate of intoxication ; that he was utterly deficient in many of the qualities which are of essential importance in the difficult position which he filled , viz ., fairness and impartiality , a due sense of truth , a well regulated tem - per , and proper habits of aelf-controul . 5 . That the committoe cannot refrain from directing special attention to the case of Hannah Joyce ; she up fairs to have been presumed by Mr . and Mrs . ll'Dougj ] to have been guilty of child murder , hot only without evidence , but against the verdict of the Coroner ' s Jury and to have been treated by them , in consequence , with great cruelty . Itha 3 been further proved , that on tht
day of the inquest on tbe body of her child , ihe wat threatened by Mrs . M'Dougal with being compelled to leep in the dead house , where that body was then lying ; and having been confined , apart from the other women , in the night time , she was forced by Mr . M'Dougal to carry the body of hor own child up the High-street of Andover to the grave ; moreover , on the occasion of her leaving the workhouse some days afterwards , Mr * . M'Dougal directed some of the inmates to take pans , plates , « tc , nnd mitke as much noisa as they could , on the ground of her presumed guilt . It uIko appears that this latter proceeding took place at a lime when the guardians were assembled in the board room , and that tome of tho guardians , at least , were aware of whnt was going on , but no inquiry appears to have been instituted by the board , nor any censure passed in consequence of the outrage which had been committed .
6 . That as a further proof of the ill-regulated state of the work house , your committee refer to the fact that commitments took place at the gaol of Audovcr , during for offences againBtthe rules and discipline of the workhouse , a state of tilings which they believe could not have existed had the workhouse been properly managed . That they cannot omit further to state , that it has been proved that , on numerous occasions , individuals were taken from the workhouse to the borough gaol of Andover by the directions of Mr . M'Dougal , and were subsequently discharged therefrom without , on either occasion , being taken before a justice of the peace .
7 . That , without going further in this plitce into details , for which they refer to the evidence and papers printed herewith , the committee feel bound , upon the evidence given before them , to express their conviction of the utter unntness of Mr . M'Sougal and his wife for the situations of master » nd matron , which they respectively held irom December , 3836 , to September , 1846 , and they have therefore learned , with much astonishment , thnt his influence with the board has 1 een fur sri / ater than that which should properly belong to his office , and the confidence reposed in him seem 9 to hwe been unqualified . 8 . That the committee feel called upon further to . express their opinion thnt no such nwgovernnieMt rffrhiworkhouse could have taken place had tlie viBitiuj oomcommittee acted regularly and duly in discharge . o 3 their important duties , as defined i » the workhouse nu «< as laid down by the Poor Law Commissioners , Art . 36 , and carefully recorded the resn 54 oftlioh observatiww and inquires i ' or the weekly infwmntkm of the boiil 3 .
3 . That the committee believe k toboose-of the most important duties of ih * visiting committed to ascertain from inmates whether any ground exists for just w > mplnints ; to infruirt- ii >'« o suan complninis -when preferred , mid 30 to ( lisvhaTgfr this part of thir functions that the inmates may entertain a jnst confidence in the fairness of those \ v , dcr whose charge they are placed ; but your committe e feai that in the Amlovi r workhouse this iniportant duty of the visiting guardians has not been satis , factorr . iy performed , W . That the bad administration of the Andover workno » . se , aud the rigour with which the board of guardians , i » ncrally nctiuR in accordance with tha frequently pub . 1 . Bhed views of the Poor Law Commissioners , have carried out the law , have often been the means of inducing la . bourers to accept reduced wages in order to avoid tin workhouse . 11 . That the system , as pursued by the Andover board ; of granting gratuitios to the master for boys and glrlt
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P aced out to service , without requiring any proper voucher for the accuracy of the master ' s statement , was rery rtpreheniible . W 0 BKH 0 O 8 E DIETABT . Resolved , that it is the opinion of this committee—1 . That in the month of February , 1838 , several forms of dietary were sent by the Poor law Commissioners , of which one , marked No . 3 , was selected by the board of guardians for adoption in the workhouse , and sanctioned by the commissioners , and has been in use from that time till December , 1846 . 2 . That in their second annual report , published in 1807 , the Poor law Commissioners published six forms of dietary as actually in use in workhouses ; but that No , 3 of such forms differs in several respects from No . 3 as sanctioned at Andover , and is in fa-ot a superior dietarv ... . ... . . ,
3 . That your committee have not received any evidence in answer to their inquiries which can enable them towplain satisfactoril y the admitted discrepancy , and Uiat in the absence of any such explanation they must infer that the improvement made in the form No . 3 , between its transmission to the Andover Union , and its publication in the second annual report , was oivmfj to its being judged insufficient by the Poor Law Commissioners , they cannot in any case refrain from expressing their surprise that the improved dietary , as printed in the second-annual report , was never specially communicated to the Andover board .
4 . Thatfronulieevidenee taken before tliecommitt e . and from tbe circumstance that the board of guardians , on the recommendation of and in concurrence with the Poor Law Commissioners , have latel y thought it advisable to adopt a liigner scale , the committee believe that from the formation of the union until last autumn the general dietary of the workhouse was in quantity at least too low , and more particularly that the allowance of bread was insufficient ; and they find that this dietary was often further diminished by the dishonesty of the master . It is right , however , to add , that on the first inquiry held by Mr . Parker , ou the 5 th of August , 1845 , the medical officrrs of the union , Mr . Westlake and Mr . Payne , gave evidence on eath in favour of the sufficiency of the workhouse dietary to maintain the inmates in health ; but it has bem proved before the committee that some of the inmates of the workhouse were iu the habit of eating raw potatoes , and grain , and refuse food which had been thrown to the bogs and fowls .
5 , That it has been proved that during thecontiiiuancu of that dietary , and while Mr . M'Duugalwas master ofthe workhouse , instances occurred in which inmates of the workhouse , employed in bone crushing , ate the marrow r < m » ining in the fresh bones which they were set to break . 6 . That although tbe practice of bone crushing at An-• lover workhouse , was in operation iu the year 1311 , and tbe petition from another union complaining of its injurious effects was presented to Parliament in 1812 , it apuears that no order for the absolute discontinuance and
abolition ofthe practice was issued by the Poor Law Commissioners until November , 184 $ , As , however , the practice of bone crushing in workhouses is discontinued in tha Andover Union-house , and prohibited by a general order of the Poor Law Commissioners , it does not appear necessary to remark further upon this point than to say that by a' very irregular and improper practice , the produce of the labour of thu paupers in bone crushing at the workhouse is stated to have been disposed of among the guardians by the chairman putting up the same at a sort of mock auction in the board-room ,
7 . That it is tbe opinion ofthe committee that this employment—or in fact any labour which can justly be considered of a penal 01 disgusting character—should not be adopted by boards of guardians , as such a course must tend to prevent th- > really destitute poor from entering the union house , and is not consistent with a mild and considerate administration of the law . 8 . That from evidence given before your committee they believe that instances have occurred in which inmates of the workhouse have not received the extra allowance to which they were entitled , aud as regards the sick , inasmuch as it was not the practice of the medical officer of the workhouse to make any such orders for extva allowance in writing :, or to record them in a book , as provided for by the workhouse regulations ; there has been no satisfactory check upon such abuse .
9 . That the committee are of opinion , that if the medical officers ofthe Andover Union had held their appointment ! during good behaviour , instead of beiiig exposed to removal at frequently recurring periodical elections , and had they been in a position of less dependence on the guardians , they would be in a condition to exercise the ttust reposed in them with much greater advantage to the interests of the sick poor , aud the abused which have been exposed before the committee would iiave been earlier and efficiently checked , if not prevented ; and your committee would refer tbe house to the order of the Poor Law Commissioners ofthe 12 thof March , 1342 , Article 20 , in
which , while it permits an annual appointment , the commissioners havs recognised the principle of the appointnent of medical officers " until they may die or resign , or become legally disqualified to hold such office , or be removed therefrom by the Poor Law Commissioners , ' 10 . That no remonstrance appears ever to have bien made to the Poor Luw Commissioners by the chairman , any member , or officer of the board , or by any assistant Poor Law Commissioner , upon the suljeet of this omiaaion , or iu reference to any of the instances of irregularity und iHlsinanugeuieui » hlvli Uate uuun siati'fl in evi dence before the committee .
11 . That the evidence before your committee leads to the belief that a general system of laxity has prevailed iu regard t& the accounts ofthe union ; that many important books have remained for long periods unchecked ; and that in this respect the board of guardians , and more especially the cierk of the union , have tailed in the due performance of the duties which they respectively owed to the ratepayers and the poor of tho distiict . 1 ' 2 . That your committee cannot omit to mention , as one contributing causo of the irregularitios prevalent in
the union , the circumstance that the clerk has from the commencement been permitted , with the knowledge of ; lie Commissioners , to act by deputy—a state of circumstances which it is obvious that the personal responsibility of the principal afford no security for the due und honest discharge of the duties of the office , aad from "hich , in this case , a serious defalcation in respect to the funds of the union ( subsequently , however , made good by the principal cleik out of his private funds , for the particulars of which your committee refer to paper No . 3 , in the Append : *) appears to have ju 9 t taken place .
UNION BOOKS . Resolved , that it is the opinion ofthe committee—1 . That the proper keeping and inspecting of the various books which the Commissioners have directed to be kept in all unions , in order to give security both to the paupers and the ratepayers for the due administration of the law , appear to have been habitually neglected iu the Andover Union . The abstract of application aud report book , which ought to be prepared for the chairman at e » ery sitting of the board , and filled up by him , and signed by him , as each case is decided upon , the relieving officer ' s boobs , the workhouse admission and discharge books , the provision check books , and the medical officer's books have been produced bufore this committee , and havo all of them afforded the clearest proofs ofthe negligent manner in which the business cf tbe Andover Union has been conducted .
2 . That tbe state of the union books and the abuses in the workhouse prove that tbe assistant commissioner has failed in the efficient performance <> f his duties at Anriovur ; and that , as regards the booki , which needed only a moment ' s glance on any one of his occasional attendances at the board , to show the discreditable in miner in which they were kept , the committee can iind no sufficient excuse for his neglect , and can only account for it by the supposition of an unlimited confidence in the board of guardiaus , which no circumstances whatever cau justify in a controlling officer ,
3 . That , as regards the workhouse abuses , which would require a longer time to detect , aud which have entirely escaped detection by the visiting guardians , the committee feel houn » l to express their opinion that the K reat extent of Mr . Parker ' s district , the large number of unions comprised in it , and the various heavy special calls made upon his Minn by tho Poor Law Commissioners , hav « rendered it almost impossible for him to pay visits to each of the unions under his care , numerous or long enough for effective inspection of the workhouses . 4 . That the committee have received evidence of Mr . Parker ' s zeal and Iaboriousncs 3 , which render it impossible for them to attribute his imperfect supi'riittendence of the Andever union to idleness or intBUtional negket .
5 . That Mr . Parkc-r was not appointed assistant commissioner for the Andover Uhjmi until May , JS 12 . ; that he has had a much larger district to superintend than , had ttithcr of his predecessors . The number oE assistant commissioners , which from 1 SS- to 183- was tl , aud Ciom 183-to 1841 , 17 , have betn reduced to Win 18-11 , and then further reduced to nine in January » 1312 , while the number of uniwis ha ve of course increased ; a-id : the committee nnd ihat the Poor Law Commissioners , speaking of the nuaber 12 in tlieir Auuual B « l » rt i 3 S-U > , S 3 y lhat the number of assistant commissioners ought uoUo be further B « iuced > anil that even then " somuor the disiricts , froHi their area and the number of tueiv uniens , Jmost 'SiVXti the uowera of a single assistant
commission *! . 5 That the committee have been informed of a strong representation mado by Mr . Parker to the Poor Law CoiMmissioiKTS shortly after he joined the district inclnding Andover of the disgraceful state of the accounts aud the workhouses in many of the unions of the dis . ' ricts and of special representations mado by him as to thu accounts made in the West IMrle aHd Wycombe iiuions which seemed to havo received no attention whatever from the l ' oov Liw Commissioners ; ami these are not the only circumstances disclosed in the evidence which have led the committee to the uouuvtion , that the Poor Law Commission have not given that encouragement to their assistant commissioners in the detection and removal of abuses which would have been the beat security for tho zealous services of their subordinate otfieers . MB . PABKEE ' S CASE , Resolved , That it is the opinion of this
committee—1 . That tho committee , in considering the circumstances ofthe inquiries which took place at Andover , feel called upon to express their opinion , that the practice of intrusting public and special investigations of complaints arising under the Poor Law to the assistant commissioner ofthe district in which such complaints hare been made , is an objectionable one , which ought to be discontinued , 9 , That the proposal made by tuo Poor Law Commis-
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sioners to suspend the investigation on the 9 : h of September and to proceed against the master of the work . i « fil ; ?¦ 1 dictm « nt upon one set of charjje * . and by information before J U 8 « iC e 8 U p 0 n another , conditionally SKr SUSpen T by tlle board ot BU « rdian » , and upoa ftemllmgaeM of Mr . Westlake to adopt the suggested modes of ^ prosecuting the charges . wa » jS-rimed and inexpedient , f ., r the following reasons — 1 st . Because at that time a considerable portion of tho case had been gone through , and t . ue . URrt of sunp ^ nd * ing the further progress of tho inquiry , » g proposed , until proceedings by indictment could be taX ™ , would have been to prolomr the uncertaint y and excitement already existing upon the subject . 2 d , Bfwuse it made the mode of proceeding againaC the master , and ^ consequently the time and manner in which he was to be hi ; ard in his defence , dependent upon an act ofthe board of guardians o > er winch lie had nocontrol .
3 d . Because it sought to throw a large proportion of the expenses of prosecuting the inquiry upon Mr . WesU lake , wh » appi !? rs to have done no more than his duty in bringing before the board of guardians and commissioners instances of misconduct in another officer of the union with which be had become acquainted , and into which an inquiry should have bem instituted on public grounds , and at the public expense ; and 4 « h . Because it implied that the fitness of the master for his offine was the only obj-ct of inquiry , whereas there were strong grounds for an investigation into the alleged mismanagem ent of the workhouse , and the abuses stated to have betn practised within it , independently of any oharges which could have been made the subject of indictment or information .
3 . That one unfortunate consequence of having made the mode Of prosecuting the inquiry dependent upon the conditions above referred to was , thnt on their failure the investigation was necessarily renewed in its original shape , and the Commissioners were thus exposed to the charge of vacillation and want ' of firmness in their policy . 4 That the overruling of the adjournment for five daj a allowed by Sir . Parker , was , under tha circumstances of the case , unnecessary , and therefore injudicious , inasmuch as it had the appearance of injustice towards Mr . M'Unufjal , who had claimed that time for preparing his defence . 5 . That the overruling , by tho Commissioners , of tha adjournment , and the previous suspension of the inquiry on the Oth ef September , appear to have proceeded trom a determination on the part of tho Poor Law Commissioners to bring the inquiry , if possible , to a close , snd to f top the public criticism and excitement nhich it produced .
6 . That in conducting the first inquiry , namely , lhat on the subject of bone crushing , Mr . Parker discharged the duty confided to him with ability und promptitude , and that ) iis conduct therein received the approbation of the Poor Law Commissioner ? . 7 . That as respects the second investigution , tl ere is nothing in the ohj-ctions stati / d by thu i ' oor hnvr Cora , missiouers before the committee lo Mr . Pmker's modu of conducting it vrhich affords a justification of their conduct in culling upon him to resign . 8 . That Mr . Parkei'i recommendation of Mr . Price as a temporary master of the workhouse , made in answer to a request addressed to him by the chairman and other uuardiuns , did not deserve the condcmiixtiou bestowed upon it by the Poor Luw Commissioners .
9 . That while they think that Jtr . Parker ' s insertion , in his letttr to Mr Dodson , on the — Oi'tober , of a paragraph implying a pftVction on thu Commissioners , was indifci-cet and inconsistant with his position , still it should bo also burne iu mind , that the difficult and annoying circumstances in which he had been placed might reasonably palliate a tempoiary di « play ofirretatian . 10 . That after the full consideration of the n-holff case , whatever opinion tbe comiu g <; ontrs may have entertained with regard to Mr . Parker ' s mode of uonduotlng the Andover inquiry , or his defective supetimendanceof The Andover Union , tbe time and tlie manner of Mr . Paiker ' s removal trout hin office were such as to give him just cause of complaint , and were not consistent with & discreet exercise of that power of dismissing their . subordinate officers which the law has tntrusttd to the Commissioners . ¦ . ¦ MR . DAY ' S CASE .
1 . That the committee , after considering the state , ment which has been made to them by Mr . Day , and tbe correspondence on the subject of Iim resignation vthicli he has produced , and the explanations with reference to that correspondence which have been given by the Poor Low Commissioners , are of opinion that the Commissioners have altogether i ' ailod to justify their Vitnoval of Mr . Cay from his office of Assistant Commissioner . 2 . That while they readily admit that the nature of the relation between the principal and assistant Poor Law commissioners , the heavy responsibility attaching '
to the former for the general administration of the law , and the fact that they are necessarily committed , to a considerable extent , by the nets and expressions of their subordinate officers , combine to render it essential that they shall posseis and exercise , on tit occiuions , tha power of dismissal vested in them bj the Act of Parliament , the committee think , at the same time , that ~ > uch power should not be exerted without warning or statement of reason to the officer to be dismissed ; without minutes being kept of all letters written and received on tbe subject , and without official record ofthe grounds on which iu each case thu power of dismissal is exercised .
3 . That further , while they nre ready to believe that , the conveying a cull to resign in the form of a private rather than in that of an official letter may in many cases result from a wish to avoid unnecessary annoy » nce or injury to the person about to bo dismissed , the Com . initteearo of opinion that it is , undtr ordinary circumstances , morejust to all parties concerned that sui-h cum . munications should be in official form , bearing with thi m the authority and issued under the responsibility of the board ; and they cannot abstain , in timcfiing upon this part of the subject , from pointing to the inconvenience and irregularity of conveying , as in the two cases now immediately under consideration , communications of essentially a public and official character in letttrs writren by a single commissioner , and in form und language pur . porting to be private .
4 . That the committee believe that in both cases the time of the compulsory resignation has been the means of cruel injustice , Mr . Parker having been called up' -n to resign before the excitement arising out of the Andover inquiry had subsided , anrt Mr . Day at the close of the inquiry into the South Wales disturbances in 1843 ; was calculated the public to ascribe blame to both , which the commissioners acknowledge to be unmerited , aud to divert existing public dissatisfaction from tha Poor Luw Commissioners , by concentrating it on Mr , Parker nnd Mr . Day respectively . 5 . That on a review of the conduct ofthe commis . sioners . with respect to the Andover inquiries , and towards Mr . Parktr und Mr . Day , the committee are of opinion that their conduct has been frregulnr and arbitrary , not in accordance with the statute under whii-h they exercise tlieir functions , snd such as to shake public confidence in their administration of them .
That the committee have incidentally in the first instance , and subsequently , irom a feeling that accused parties ought in fairness to be allowed to answer charges made against them , received much evidence upon the mode of transacting business which has In-eu adopted by the Poor Law Commissioners throughout the existence of the commission , and upon the insufficiency of the preg : nt number of assistant commissioners I ' uratleijUJite i ; i . spoctiou and control , and upon other important points connected with the administration of the Poor Law , to which they think it their duty to direct thesp ^ cial attention Of the House ; but upon which , as those subjects are not included in their order of reference , thej consider themselves precluded from offering any of > in- «> u 3 of tlieir owu .
Untitled Article
THE NEW POOH LAW . TO TIIE EMTOK OF IHB TI 3 JKS . SlB . —Those who have consisted } - opposed the . New Foot Law .. since it was tot proposed to tlie ? consideration of Parliament , are surely now in . % eonditi » n to ask of its most deroSdl friends—sbaU ; bile New Poor I&w remain on the statute book ? Tho New Poor Law was-pro-posea as a cure fur tsjia ulliiK « s 3 and immorality of tlie poor . What i ffeWi it may have had upon the poor it is . not my inu ; V , i" n
to . inquire . VYe know that it haa induced idVairss aadi promoted ; immorality aniosjglhu highly waI'I functionaries appointed to enforce , it . The Cajubimsioners are proved to , have been too idle to assii ' t tW the lcs ; a \ transaction of their Uncial iiutica-ioo i . lio to keep a record of their proceedings ! Awl as to immorality-if cmolty . fraud , deception , Mid Wii 5 , ate immoral , whore shall wo find their esJiiWUou so complete as in the New Poor Law Ce « i © iissioflt ! r * and their nevor-tiiing advocate , tiuj , tote Horn *
Secretary ? The New Poor Law waa also prnjwted to n-due * the people of En » laiul to live on . a coarser sort , otfood . Therein it has been aucc&sful , and it saa therefore be no longer required ; « lias reduced pho poor of England to lire on thft s<cn picking- of decayed bones . Surely it ia high time , then , that this hateful , de moralizing , aud confessedly viwonstitutionni enactment should he totally rep-aled . In the management of the vepeal of the Jfew Poor Lmv , we must bu careful to avoid thu leaitcrsliip of Us sworn friends . Should we trust to tl » om wo sua'l surely be disappointed .
It 19 said that we are to hR ? e a general election , — if 30 , who SO likely in the next Parliament to move for tho total repeal ofthe New Poor haw as Its most energetic , consistent , disinterested , and . iuHuential opponent ? , 1 know o » none ; and I hope , in the cominz « . eetion there will be a strife among the con stituencies , lor the Bake of the poor , to honour themselves fcy lecuring the lcgislatoriiil services of that good man . I mako no apology for thus oarly string an elec . tkmeering hint , for thus posting the m » n nho , « right , may claim the honor to lead in the triumph of justice and humanity by the dowutal ot tUQ w Poor Law . I am . Sir , your obliged servant , RlCHAUD OiSTLER . .
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meudous Hurricane ever known in this locality . Upwarda of 100 trees , many of them exceeding two yards in circumference , were snapped short in two . whilst others were torn up by the roots , to the extent in one line of country alone of nearly two miles and a half . Mr . Hassell ' had a field of peas swept completely away , till stopped by the hedges . A bov in the employ of Mr . Satchwell . builder , had a rerv narrow escape . He had gone to a private building , when a tree fell upon it , and broke a portion of the roof and the walls , but did not hurt the lad . Mr . Belcher had a small stack of wheat whirled away , being scattered in all directions over the adjoining
fields . A farm house , in the occupation of Mr . William College was dismantled of its roof , and the chimneys were also destroyed , whilst the body of the building was so shaken that the inmates were afraid to remain in the house , although at the time the rain , or rather water , was descending in sheets . Many persons who Bad taken shelter in barns and hovels dared not continue under them , the wind rocking them so that the parties were obliged aeain to expose themselves to the descending torrents , rather than run the risk < f being buried under the ruins * of the buildings . The damage in this neighbourhood is estimated at between £ 200 and £ 300 . After lasting about three hours the hurricane abated , apparently going in a direction for Kettering .
CosmoRATios at RossDHAiwA Mitts . —At ten o ' clock on Wednesday night an alarming fire brokp out in the extensive steam mills of Samuel Casweil , Esq ., at Blackwater , which was discovered by the workmen in the concerns , and who were locked in at the time , the millers having retir . d for the night . The fire originated in one of the upper lofts , from the supposed friction of part of the machinery , and immediately after it was observed those men did all in their power to prevent the flames from spreadins . but in vain , for tbe conflagration rapidly extend ? d along the loft , and f rom one floo- of the concern to the other , until the entire building blazed up , and the clothes the workmen wore were literally burned on their backs before they escaped through the
windows of the lower story . The night was dark , and the brilliancy of the fire could be seen for miles around : the alarm bpll having been run ? , crowds of the peasantry soon collected . Ensign Swinburn , < i the 83 rd , stationed at Blackwater , immediately turned out bis party to render assistance , and was subsequently joined by a detachment of the same corns , under Major Swinburn from thi 3 garrison . The police from Blackwater were also on the spot , with Constable Tever ' a patty from Athlunkard , and four mounted men under John Crips , Esq ., from tins city , the only magistrate present . The West of England Fire Engine , under Mr . John Fogarty , drawn by four horses , drove forward with great speed to the scene , and no time was lost in puttin
its virtue in practical operation ; but though water was plentiful , and the engine at full work , nothin * couW check the devouring element , which set all exertions at defiance . The reflection of the flamss was seen in thi 3 city , and before one hour elapsed the roof and four floors fell in suceeseivoly , sending up a terrible volume of flame into the air , and evory window frame in the concern was consumed . The account-books of the office and a few bags of flour were saved by Ensign Swinburn . This being the scarce seas » n there was not much stock on the premises , to which no drying kiln was attached , as grain was supplied from this city for manufacture . The
St . Michael s parish engine wa- on its way to the fire when Mr . Boyd was informed its services would not be required , as the flames had nearly done their worst . By this melancholy accident the proprietor will sustain much loss , as all the valuable machinery has been nearly destroyed , the great water-wheel alone Laving escaped injury . Mr . Caswel ) was insured lo the amount of £ 9 , 000 with the Royal Farming Company for all the concerns held by him at Blackwater , not £ 1 , 000 of which is applicable to the mill destroyed . Capt , M'Adam , and Mr . Welsh , of Newtown , were at the fire when the alarm waa first given , and rendered all the assistance in their power . —Limerick Chronicle .
" Drvmmihg Out- "—The rare occurrence of drummine a soldier out ofthe service as an incorrigible vagabond and thief , occurred in the 41 st Regiment on Tuesday , with private Fisher , aged 26 vcars , and who has been in the regiment about six years and half . The offence for which he was last tried was for having stolen his comrade's Cabool medal ; which he broke up and sold as old silver . He wasfound guilty , and sentenced to be expelled the regiment , which sentence was carried into execution on lull parade . A hollow square having been formed the Adjutant read the finding of the court , and also gave a repetition of his former misdemeanours ; the
ceremony of divesting his jaoket of facings , lsce , and buttons was then performed , after which the regiment formed into two lines extending to the gate , and with drums and files playing "The Rouge ' s March , " he was expelled the barracks , first receiving his discharge and his pay for the day . lie had been tried by six different courts-martial , and punished for various offences , including de . « ertion , petty thefts , drunkenness , &c , since h « ioined the corps . Aftei being discharged , he drank pottle deep , and wa > taken up by the police in a state of' glorious inebria tioD , ' and passed the night in gaol . He was liberated to-day , but stands a good chance of a free night '? lodging to-night aho . —Wtstmeath Gazette .
Mossier Train . —One of the largest trains ever seen on a railway left the Rugby station on Friday last . It consisted of eighty-four carriages , and \ yhb impelled by three of Stevenson ' s powerfulsix-wheeled engines . Its length extended to nearly half a mile , and the weight of merchandise , exclusive ofthe carriages , was upwards of 240 tons . Extraordinary Crop of Wiieat . —Mr . William Noon , of Great Bardfield , in this county , plumberand glazier , ( we are informed ) has about twelve acres of land , which he has cultivated by spade labour , performed with his own hands : he sowed it this year with winter wheatwhichon Its
cn-, , appearance , was ; aidered by all who saw it so thin a plant , that nianv S ™ l 7 » " » tlle neighbourhood strongly advised tfet ^^' " ^ "t / T tfine rwlvea to take that course , but being subsequently advised to abatain from doing so by one or two tradesmen in Bardfield , who have paid great attention to agriculture under the new and improved system , and who were decidelyof opinion that the plant was one calculated to produce a good and abundant crop , Mr . Noon , fortunately , adopted the recommendation of the latter friends , and having reaped his crop , finds that it har produced eight quarters and two bushels per per and tha wheat iaavery superior sample , —&m Herald .
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Atjgust 29 , 1840 . — - - THE ViVlitWF / ftfo « T ^ p < _ i ± == s = "" ¦ ' ¦?
Hurricaxx At Ruobt.—On Thursday Last The Neighbourhood Of Rugby Was Visited By The Most Tre-
Hurricaxx at Ruobt . —On Thursday last the neighbourhood of Rugby was visited by the most tre-
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Aug. 29, 1846, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1381/page/7/
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