1816.] Steam.Boats 



A work which laid the foiuidation of 

 Sir Joshua Reynold's taste and eminence 

 in his art, "Jesuit's Perspective," is now 

 so rare, and so difficult to be got, as to 

 be quite beyoud the reach of students id 

 general. An edition of it, at a moderate 

 price, is a very great desidei atum in use- 

 ful literature ; — and ihc work is so fa- 

 mous, from the frcqiuiit mention made 

 of it by the above great and amiable 

 man, that the person who will favor tlie 

 arts of liis country so far as to publish 

 it, would be repaid by a rapid and exten- 

 »ivc sale. 



I think it right to mention to you, as 

 you seem anxious for improving the po- 

 lice, that in Scotland the plan for pre- 

 venting the impositions and disputes of 

 hackney-coachmen is simpler titan here ; 

 as, there, every coach has a printed list 

 of fares and regnlations hi one of the 

 pockets, ou pain of forfeiting the fare 

 altogetlier. Porters, chairmen, Scc. are 

 kept iu check by the same means. 



In lifting the causeway stones in some 

 of the old streets of Paris, the carbona- 

 ceous mud adhering to them, in the in- 

 terstices betwixt stone and stone, was 

 found so compact, and of so tine a black, 

 as to be an excellent substitute for black- 

 lead pencils. 



The Elizabeth, a well-known steam- 

 boat on the Clyde, ha,s been lately bought 

 by an enterprising set of young gentle- 

 men, who have carried her round to Li- 

 verpool, for the purpose of plying upon 

 the Mersey. Tlie state of the machi- 

 nery in these boats is still very imper- 

 fect : the subject is worthy the attention 

 of the first engineers in tlie kingdom. 

 These boats on the Clyde have, during 

 the whole of this summer, extended 

 their vojages down the lirtli, callhig at 

 all the towns on the coast, so far as Ayr, 

 at the island of liute, and at Inverary ; 

 which last place is one hundred miles 

 from Glasgow. 'I'he Dumbarton Castle 

 steam-boat has made this voyage every 

 Saturday during the season, regularly 

 returnifigthe following Monday, and of- 

 ten conveying two hundred passengers. 

 The fare is a guinea for the cabin, and 

 half price for the steerage. More mag- 

 nificent scenery than is brought into 

 view through the whole extent of this 

 voyage, (ireat llrifain does not afford. 



It is said that a steam-boat, which car- 

 ries the mail between Petersbuigh and 

 the interior of Russia, and which sails 

 against (he tide at the rate of eight 

 miles an hour, has her paddles so con- 

 structed, that they dip int<( the water, 

 *nd rise out of it perpendicularly. I'er- 



on the Clyde. 1 19 



hapsthis slighthintmay suggest some im- 

 provement on the present mode of con-, 

 structing those cuiplo3ed iu this coun- 

 try. A. N. S. 



For the Mmtthly Magazine. 



EXTRACTS from the minutes of EVI- 

 DENCE, tahen before the sklect com- 

 jiittee, on the insolvent debtoks* 

 ACTS, iUustrutino- the .state of the 

 LAWS bettveett debtor and credi- 

 tor.* 



Mr. Thomas Clark, clerk of the I?isohent 

 Debtors' Court. 



YOU have laid a rctnrn before the 

 House of Commons, of the amount 



of the debtors' debts, and their schedules? 



• — I have. 



And of the money that the assignees 



have got in?— 1 have. 



What is the total amount of their 



debts, up to the 1st of l-'ebruarv ' — 



6,598,574/. 11*. Wid. 



[The witness delivered iu a paper, 



which was read as follows :] 



The number of petitions pre- 

 sented to the late and pre- 

 sent coniinissioners, by 

 debtors, to the 1st day of 

 Febiuaiy last .... 7 509 



Of these were witiidi-awn, in 

 consequence of the pass- 

 ing of the Act of the 54 

 Geo. Ill, cap. 23, for Re- 

 lief of Insolvent Debtors 1,419 



Of the remaining 6,090 peti- 

 tions, there liave been 

 hoard and determined by 

 the conimissioneis, and 

 discharges ordered . 



Remanded 



Petitions not finally deter- 

 mined ........ 



6/)90 



5,497 



407 



6,090 



Total gross amount of «£ 

 debts stated in .Sclie- 

 diiles, in all the peti- 

 tions 5,598,37^ H llj 



Total gro.'ss amount of 

 dehii stated in Sche- 

 dules, of petitions 

 withdrawn . . . 1,132,171 



Ditto of petitions re- 

 manded 220,699 



Ditto of petitions not fi- 

 nally determined . . £79,081 



Total amount of Sche- 

 dules of debtors dis- 

 charged .... 3,966,622 8 



Number of debtors, of 

 whose (fleets assig- 

 * Tlie whole of this interesting bo;ly of 



evidence has been published by Ch:ment, 



in a thick octavo pamphlet, p'ii««j 73. aud' 



it merits gen'.'ial circulation. 



nees 



12 10{ 

 7 3 

 4 4J 



41 



