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THE BRITISH AMERICAN

its

be within the reach of every British subject. (Cheers.)

In the committee of the Civil List on Mon- day, Lord Althorp very coolly stated his in- tention to actiu contempt of the recommen- dation of the Finance committee with res- pect to diplomatic pensions. Not a voice was raised against the conduct of a minister ledged to economy The pensions for what re called diplomatic services are not a whit etter earned than those of Mrs. Arbuthnot or ‘ lrs. Planta. Nine-tenth of the diplomatic “pointr ents are sheer jobs, void of public tility. Every one who has travelled has ob- erved the ample leisure of our diplomatic , ents. In great capitals there are more of

ham than are necessary; in the capitals of mallstates there is seldom any cecasion for r resident; the post could perform all the duty (communication.

'l‘he Chancellor‘s income, and the Speaker’s r. etiriug pension, have been fixed; partriots nd jobbers, economists and ex-placemen, vy- ngin their eagerness to accede to the grants, rto yet larger provisions. Mr. IIunt said, hat had 50001. a year, instead of 40001. cen asked for the Speaker, he would have as- ented,so anxious was be for the unanimity iu the reward of so civil a gentleman. Lord Al- ,thorp mentioned that the Speaker‘s son, who '5 to have a pension of30001. a year for life after he life of his father, will hold appointments of he value of 80001. a year. We are a people of assing patience!

The Chancellor’s salary is fixed at 140001. a, rear,a sum below the average income of U‘hancellors of late years, but exceeding the 'air remuneration of the office, and ill suited o the distressed condition of the people. With starving population, a more modest state ould not be unbecoming to the highest ap- iointments. The retiring pension M50001. a ‘, year is out ofproportion large ; but we suspect ‘. that Lord Brougham prizes it in prospect more ‘ than the salary in possession.

’ r CopilalPuniahnwnla—A Bill has been recent- ._‘ y introduced into the British Parliament for he abolition ofthe punishment ofdeath, in cer- ain cases. The bill provides, that whereas, by ' 11 act passed in the first year of the present _ eign, it was enacted that if any person should e convicted of forgery, or any other offence

‘ herein described, for which he would have. can previously liable to the punishment of o eath, he should not thenceforward be punisha- . 10 with death for the same, unless he should be ade so punishable by that act: It is enacted, , hat so much of said act as enjoins the infliction .- . fcapital punishment shall be repealed, and ' ransportation for life, or a limited term, sub- tituted forit. Among the offences to which ' he bill isintended to apply, are horsestealing, ' heep stealing. and stealing in a dwelling case to the value of51. as well as forgery. Dn- ing the discussion ofthe bill in the house of ords, it was opposed by the Lord ChiefJus- ice [’I‘enterdon,] on the ground that no effec- 'ial secondary punishment had ever been devi- ed as a substitute for that of death ; and, until ‘ his should be done, he considered any altera- ion of the existing law as highly inexpedient. he same view was taken by Lord Eldon. who observed, that the subject had employed his at- ; tention for more than twenty-five years, and he had not yet been able to make up his mind upon it. The security of property would be endangered by any hasty alteration of the law; ndits severe operation was so well guarded gainst by the mercy of the Crown,that change

not necessary.

Lord Dacre, in reply, observed that secon dary punishments were now known and resor- ted to in innumerable cases. From 1825 to 1832, there were 935 persons convicted of sheep stealing. of whom only 14 were executed. The experience of other countries proved the benefits of mitigated penalties. The Lord Chancellor said that he should be disposed to continue the law as it now stood, if it had the effect to deter from crime ; but it had so long threatened without performing, that it had ceased to produce that effect. In 1831, 162 persons had capitalsentences recorded against them for sheep stealing, and of that number only one was executed ; 125 were sentenced in the same manner for horse stealing, against not one of whom was the sentence carried into effect ; and 100 for stealing in dwelling-houses to the value of 51. of whom not an individual was executed. During that year, only eleven persons were capitally punished, out of 1106 who had been sentenced to death. The public feeling did not go along With the punishment, so that it had no tendency to render property secure. The secondary punishments might not be adequate ; but, as the severer ones were never executed, there was nothing else to rely upon. He deemed it his duty to support the bill. The bill was ordered to be printed—Bo:- Ion Daily Jldvcrliser.

London Traders—There is no other place in the world whereindustry and talent for making mo- ney are more certainly rewarded than in Lon- don. No matter how obscure the business of the London trader, he has with the provision aforesaid, chances without precedent, to be dis- tinguished for opulence. \

There are 40,000 trading firms in' that city. Ofthose the haberdashers though dealing in small wares, carry on a great business. One house alone is known to receive on an average one million and a half sterling a year, or ab0ut 4-00 guineas a day. There are other houses re- ceiving 1001. a day. There was a famous cutler, Mr. Clark, who retailed his small wares to such a purpose, on Exeter Change, as to amass a million of money, and while he paid 70001. a year to government as income tax, he only spent a shilling a day for his own dinner!

Mr. Walker the sugar baker,who died worth 200,0001. a few years since, was originally por- ter to a wax chandler with wages of 161. a year, Alderman Kennet, afterwards Lord Mayor, was in early life a waiter at the Hoop and Bunch ofGrapes tavern, Ilatton Garden. Al- derman Bates and the amiable Alderman Smith. kept public houses, and the latter had been a gentleman’s waiter. Crosby, the spoon maker, was originally a charcoal boy, and died a few years ago worth 60.0001.—There is a paver, now or recently living in London, who is worth 250.0001. The famous Mr. Rothschild, who has been called the “ King of Jews, and Jew of Kings,” was a dealer in Manchester cloths. originally, and now possesses millions, and is the prime mover of all the szt important loans in Europe.

The whole populaton of France. aC'IOl‘lllnz lo the last census is 32,500,034 souls: that of Paris 774,333.

Tue population of Prussia according to the census made up to the close of 1831, is 13,033,960.

One hundred and fiftv-‘F'N houses were burnt at St, Petershurgh on the 20*. or June, by a fire which broke out in the Moscow quarter. The Post Office was among the number.

Charles Ready, son of Colonel Ready, has been appointed Ensign in the “list Light Infan- try.

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A Prospectus of a new Periodical, to be call- ed ~‘ The Liberal and Literary magazine," ap- pears in the Yarmouth Telegraph—it is to be published at Yarmouth, in monthly numbers of 04 Pages, price 17.! 6d. per annum.

Mr. Webb has purchased Noah’s interest in the New York Courier and Enquirer, and turned its battery against his old friend, Presi- dent Jackson.

The United States Militia returns shew a force of1,244,569.

Royal W'illiam.—VVe understand that the Committee of Stockholders have decided that the trips of the steamer Royal William to Ha- lifax, will be suspended for the present. She is lying at Brunet‘s wharfi—Quebec Paper.

The Hon. Daniel Webster, J. White, and Gen. Summer, have purchased William‘s Island, in Boston harbour. for $70,000—and in- tend building a city of summer residences upon it, where the Bostonians may retire and recre- ate.

The Rev. Mr. Alder, Representative of the British Wesleyan Conference, has left King- ston, U. C. on his return to England, via New- York. .

The Halifax Races take place on the 27th and 28th. Some fine exhibitions ofhorse flesh are promised, and sport may be expected.

On the 1st of January last, our army was _ distributed as follows :—in England and Scotland, 5751 Cavalr , 445‘2 Guards, 18559 Infantry, In Ireland, 2696 Caval- ry, 745 Guards, 19428 Infantry, making a total of 51,571 men under arms in the United Kingdom ; in addition to which the military stafl‘ amounts to 2697 ; the volun- teers of England and Scotland to 6207389 ; and the yeomanry of Ireland to 31,492.— At the same date, we had at Gibraltar 4877 Malta, 92366 ; Ionian Islands, 288’); Cape of Good Hope,2725 ,- Coast of Afri- ca 255; Canada 2416: Nova-Scotia 2258; Bermuda 962 ; West Indies, 7574; New South Wales, 2530 ; Mauritius, I445 ; Ceylon, 3457 ; making a total force in our Colonies of30,853 rank and file, while in India, we had 18,304 rank and file.

The Halifax Recorder ofthe 8th Instant, in adverting to the Escheat question in this Colo. ny, remarks as follows “ The colonists are undoubtedly acting well, in agitating this sub- ject; they should do it unweariedly. The in- justice, and corruption, and humbug, and sore evil to colonies, mixed up in those old grants, have been too long quietly borne with. If the home government is withdrawing pecuniary assistance from the Provinces. let it also re- licve them of unnecessary burdens and all will be well. Let it recal the presents made, in millions of acres, to syc0phants, and an host of pimping dependants who never saw the coun- try, butth have power, to keep it lying in - melancholy wastes; and let it apportion these out in an equitable manner, to those who must live on and pay the taxes of, and, if need be. ' fight for the land. Ifthis be not done, and if the old country hold possession ofthe colonies, and enjoy their patronage, without paying any of their expenses, the sport would be all on one side ; and none would despise us more the- roughly, for being satisfied with such play.’ than our sturdy old Mother herself. ll

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