Ebe lprobinces.

Rebecca has sustained a defeat in Heverfordwest. The Magistrates received information, on the evening of Thursday last week, that the rioters intended to attack Prendergast gate, near the town. The Mayor, the Reverend Thomas Martin, Mr. J. Griffiths, and Mr. William Owen, made arrangements for defending the gate in person, with a body of twenty-five special constables ; detachments of cavalry and marines being in the neighbourhood as a reserve in case of need.

"Very soon after their arrival at the gate," says a correspondent of the Morning Chronicle, "Rebecca and her Daughters, consisting of about two hundred horse and foot, made their appearance ; when the special constables, about twenty' five in number, assisted by several respectable townsmen, most valiantly attacked Rebecca, who was mounted upon a charger, and carried a double-barrelled percussion gun, loaded with ball cartridge, when in the scuffle one of the barrels went off, and lodged the contents in the loins of the horse, and the constable (Williams) succeeded in securing the gun. The second barrel was loaded with ball. Rebecca, finding herself disarmed, gallopped off; the horse, however, fell dead at the distance of one hundred yards. Un- fortunately, in the darkness of the night, the rider escaped. In the mean time, a fierce contest took place between the constables and the rioters; when two of the latter were captured. Their faces were blackened, said they were otherwise disguised. Finding themselves vigorously attacked by the con- stabulary force, the rioters fled in all directions."

The two captives proved to be Joshua Walters and David Vaughan, both aged twenty, and both farm-labourers.

" On investigation before the Magistrates, it appeared that the prisoner Walters had been seen with a gun in his hand, but which he contrived to pass away before his capture ; and on examining his person blank-cartridges were found in his pocket. It was also proved, that as the rioters passed a black- smith's shop, on the way to the gate, they forciby entered it, and stole several sledge-hammers and other deadly weapons. A. farmer from the neighbourhood of Little Newarth gave evidence as to the very general dissatisfaction of the farmers and others with regard to the tolls; alleging their heavy and unequal pressure. This man seemed well acquainted with many of the individuals who are under the guidance of Rebecca ; and on being very closely examined, he very reluctantly admitted that he knew the owner of the horse which had been shot—a very fine horse, four years old ; but refused to give the name, even if 100/ were offered."

The two prisoners were committed for trial as rioters.

The Times reporter relates an outrage connected with the Rebecca riots, which, more than almost any thing that has occurred, shows the extent of the bad feeling against the law-

" I wrote to you the other day that Glangwilly-gate, within one mile and a half of the town of Carmarthen, was destroyed on Friday morning, immediately after the soldiers left it. The gatekeeper, David Joshua, was enabled to iden- tify four of the Rebeccaites. The gatekeeper is a bookbinder by trade, and carries on his business in a small way in a cottage close to the gate. Fearful of his personal safety since giving the information he has done to the Magis- trates, he took a room in the centre of the town of Carmarthen thinking he should be there safe; and on Saturday proceeded to remove his goods thither in a cart. On arriving in the town, it was soon di'-covered who he was : he was surrounded by a mob of people; and in broad day, in the middle of the totes, his furniture was thrown out of his cart, and every article of it broken in pieces. The mob then disperad, before any interference of either civil or military force took place."

A great meeting on grievances was held on Mynydd Selen on Fri- day ; composed principally of working colliers, farmers, and coal- dealers (persons who often cot-join the business of coal-dealing and farming)—

" The place," says the Welshman, "forms a division of a mountainous dis- trict, the population of which is for the most part employed in or connected with the collieries ; it is situated about twelve miles from Carmarthen, and six from Llanelly. We were on the spot at an early hour, and saw, not without interest, dark group of swarthy colliers in the distance. Some were observed on the heights descending the mountain, while others were slowly making their way upwards with beaded form and outstretched step. But these broken masses of human beings, occupying such different positions, were all seen directing their footsteps to My nydd Seim, as to a common centre. Nothing could be more picturesque than the spectacle thus presented to the eye of an observer." Several gentlemen were present, and Mr. William Chambers junior was called to the chair. Mr. Hugh Williams, who seems to be a bar- rister, as he is called a "learned gentleman," advised the me eting to put no implicit trust either in Whigs or Tories : the former had proved but feeble, if not false friends, while the latter had been looked upon as the hereditary enemies of popular rights. He did not care who was in office. What the country wanted was good government- s paternal government—a government powerful enough to protect the people from petty tyranny, such as had driven the hitherto peaceful population of South Wales into a state of incipient insurrection against the turnpike jobbers, the county " crabs," and the Poor-law officers. He read a petition, thus abridged by the Welshman- " The turnpike-gates grievance is set out in the petition, with specific statement and detailed explanation ; and it prays that a consolidation of the several trusts be effected. Then the Poor-law's operation is described, accord- ing to the view the opponents of that measure adopt. The operation of the tithe-commutation is described as most onerous, unequal, and unjust. 'Never in the whole process of legislation was a public measure, promising benefits to the community, more deceptive and insidious.' The next point adverted to in the petition is 'the present distressed state of the country,' in connexion with the 'increased amount of the county stock.' Magisterial costs and fines fall in, most justly too, for a share of censure. Rent follows : the adoption is prayed for of such measures as may at the same time render the condition of the land- lord and the cultivator easier. The petition concludes in the following terms : That the petitioners most humbly and earnestly implore her Majesty to exer- cise the august prerogative for the benefit of the country, and thereby to dissolve the present and to convoke a new Parliament, with directions to consider the various grievances of the country and as to ameliorating the same ; and also to devise measures to restore the commercial prosperity of the country generally, whereby the demand may be commensurate to the supply,—a course which would conduce to the prosperity of the whole country, and your petitioners among the number. Your Majesty's retitioners earnestly entreat your Majesty to listen graciously to their humble complaints ; and they beg to tender to your Majesty their humble assurances of their loyalty and fidelity to your Majesty's sacred person and to the constitution.'"

Some opposition was made to this petition by Mr. Rees, a Magistrate, partly on the ground that it was not in Welsh. It was read in Welsh ; and was vigorously supported by a farmer, who spoke in his native tongue, and is described as electrifying his auditors by his eloquence. Ultimately, the petition was carried with only two dissentients.

A large meeting was held at Pontardawe, some miles from Swansea, on Monday ; about 1,500 or 2,000 people being present, chiefly farmers and colliers. One of the speakers alluded to unpopularity which he had formerly incurred for opposing the Reform Bill ; but he now pointed to the New Poor-law as a consequence of that measure. Divers resolu- tions were carried, among them one of thanks to the Times : and finally, on the motion of the Reverend W. Thomas, a petition to the Queen was adopted, setting forth the loyalty of the petitioners ; imputing the distress under which they laboured principally to protecting-duties, which impede the free interchange of the commodities of different countries; construing the course of legislation last session into a decla- ration by Parliament that it was "inadequate to meet the circumstances of the country"; and praying the Queen to "dismiss the present and summon a new Parliament, to consider the best means of restoring the country to its former state of prosperity."

----A -meeting oft rate-payers was held at Westbromwich on Monday, convened by the overseers on a highly respectable requisition, to con- sider the best plan of removing their burdens. Resolutions were passed. declaring the willingness of the rate-payers to support the poor, but not the new County Police force. During the proceedings, a Mr. Powell said that he would not again pay the poor-rate while it was conjoined with the rate for the maintenance of the Police ; and though he would not propose any resolution to that effect, he held up his hand in token of his sincerity : at the same instant every hand in the meeting was _held up, with loud cheering.

Lord Western has written a long letter, dated Felix Hall, 234 August 1843, to Mr. Richard Spooner, Chairman of the late meeting of the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce ; expressing the writer's con- currence in the opinion of that body, that the Currency Act of 1819 is "the source of all the calamities which at different periods have pre- vailed during the last twenty-five years."

The monthly circular of Messrs. Ferguson and Taylor, the Man- chester brokers, gives an encouraging report of trade in that quarter-

" The trade of this district, since the date of our last repc.rt, (July 29,). has been characterized by considerable activity, and an improvement in prices. The demand, however, has been principally for export ; the home consump- tion, we regret to state, not having exhibited any thing like a correspondent progress. The fine weather and harvest prospects, not only in this country but on the European Continent and in America, have no doubt contributed largely to encourage the improvement visible here ; and, agreeably with the expectation which we expressed in the concluding paragraph of our circular aforesaid, speculation has been largely entered into in the raw material, and ,the cotton-market has been forced up correspondently. Although we ventured to calculate that the capitalist, owing to the cheapness of money, would invest in cotton as soon as the goods-market should evince Positive improvement, we bad then and have still our doubts (now that we see our anticipations realized) of the safety of the speculation. At this late period of the year, with an ex- cess of 313,600 bags on hand, over and above the amount held in stock in August 1842, and with the prospects of a most abundant crop being gathered in this fall, we think the sudden rise which has been effected cannot be main- tained. The low value of the raw material has latterly enabled the spinners and manufacturers to produce at the depreciated prices of last year, with an encouraging margin of profit : and these low prices have no doubt led to that increased demand for manufactured goods from the Continent, &c. which has taken place during the past half-year. To encourage production, t least the present amount of interest on capital invested is necessary to le manufac- turers; and this is only to be had by a correspondent rise in goods : were this effected, we fear two evils would arise from from it, namely, first, the impos- sibility of giving to the workpeople a better scale of wages, so much needed; and secondly, a limitation of demand, which, we apprehend, would follow a

considerable rase in the cost of yams and goods. •

"The present improved state of manufactures is finding employment for our population, and that top, happily, at a time when quietness in these districts is so essentially necessary to orderly government. The inequality of prices paid by manufacturers led to a suspension of production, and operatives' turn- out ' in the populous neighbourhood of Ashton-under-Lyne &c. The work- men confining their demands within reasonable bounds, and asking only for au uniform scale, in order to prevent the recurrence of the pretext which has been so often used for reducing the value of labour to the lowest standard, which some individual manufacturer might have succeeded in establishing, the ground of dispute was capable of early arrangement ; and by a judicious con- cession, the recurrence of the events of which the 'strike' just concluded was the anniversary, has been avoided. Although our home trade, from a variety of causes, yet remains dull and stagnant, yet we think the prospects of the country are improving, and we still calculate that the trade of this dis- trict is in course of gradual revival. If the connexion between this country and the United States approximates to its former extent and activity—a con- summation which by many well-informed parties is expected—that return to prosperity, which we have marked with satisfaction, will be speedily acce- lerated."

At Liverpool Assizes, on Monday, John Anderson was charged with receiving seven 1001. Bank of England notes, knowing them to have been stolen. The notes formed part of a sum lost by Mr. John Marquis during the Preston Guild, in September last. It will be remembered that Mr. Marquis was accosted in the streets of Preston by a man and a woman, who walked one on each side of him ; and that after pushing him, they ran away ; when he found that he had lost 1,9901., among which were nine 1001. notes. The prisoner was a keeper of two bro- thels in Liverpool ; and last autumn he became acquainted with a Mr. Jennings, who was a clerk in the Branch Bank of England. This Mr. Jennings had recently been married ; but he kept up an intimacy with i one Harriet Bentley, n whose company he went to Anderson's house. While there, Jennings found a gold watch ; which he took away, telling Bentley that he would restore it if claimed, or advertise it. It was claimed, through Anderson ; and Jennings was obliged to pay 21. through Anderson to "arrange it" with the owner. In the conversations on the subject, Anderson learned that his new acquaintance was a clerk in the Bank, and proposed to him a manteuvre which would be mutually serviceable—to exchange a 100/. note. Jennings agreed, and actually did substitute the 100/, for one in the Bank, which he gave to Jennings, receiving 7l. les. for his trouble. In a similar way, and on the same terms, he disposed of six other 1001. notes, and was told that they were part of the Preston Guild robbery. Subsequently he changed two 501. notes, for which Jennings gave hint a breast-pm ; and at length a 1,000/. note was given to him to change, being part of 3,0001. stolen from a gentleman in a London omnibus as he left a bank. Jennings depo- sited this note as security for a loan of 20/. ; the note being traced, it led to his detection • and in the agony of alarm and contrition, he dis- closed every thing ;hat he knew before the Liverpool Magistrate. The. defence of Anderson's counsel consisted in an attempt to throw dis- credit on the evidence ; but it was too strong : he was found "Guilty," and sentenced to be transported for fourteen years.

At the same Assizes, on Friday, John Hulme was convicted of the murder of Thomas Garland, at Ashton-under-Lyne, in October 1840. In the autumn of that year, there was a strike among the sawyers ; and the fresh workmen, engaged by the master-sawyers, were frequently attacked by those who had turned out. Garland was one of a party of five who were on their way to Manchester, and were attacked by a more numerous party ; and Hulme struck Garland after he was down, with a heavy piece of iron. The wounded man afterwards died. Some time

i after, n 1841, Hulme met Beswick, a pauper, at Hyde, and told him he was not afraid of any but one Heaton, a sawyer, who had left the turn-out, and who had seen him strike Garland. Hulme subsequently went to America ; but, probably thinking that the matter had blown over, he returned, was detected, and arrested ; and at the trial Heaton appeared as a witness. Mime was sentenced to transportation for life.

Higginson, convicted at Stafford Assizes of murdering his own child, was executed on Saturday. He was a widower, in poor circumstances ; and gained his bread by working as a farm-labourer. He had a little boy five years old, whom he put out to nurse at is. 6d. a week. The nurse insisted on the child's being removed in April, as the allow- ance was not paid up : Higginson took away the boy ; and he has con- fessed that he actually buried his child alive in Bishop's Wood ; where the body was afterwards found, with a bandage tied over the month and eyes. A large concourse witnessed the execution ; but there was no disturbance.

Two murderous assaults, both the result of insanity, have taken place in the country. One was fatal. On Tuesday, Mr. Lester, a Rochester butcher, found in Cobham Park, near Gravesend, the dead body of a gentleman, and near it a large knife, covered with blood. The body was carried to the Ship inn at Cobham ; and it proved to be that of Mr. Charles Dadd, who had once been a chemist at Rochester, but more recently the manufacturer of an improved oil for artists, in Suffolk Street, Pall Mall East. Mr. Dadd had been accompanied by his son Richard, a promising artist, twenty-four years of age ; whose mind had been upset by too arduous study and a stroke of the sun in Italy ; and the father was conveying him into Kent, under medical advice, for change of scene. On Monday evening they were at the Ship, and the young man was observed to be very sullen. They went out for a walk, at half-past nine o'clock ; and the son has not since been seen. A Coroner's Jury, in the absence of direct proof as to the person that struck the fatal blow, have returned a verdict of" Wilful murder, against some person or persons unknown."

E 'y on Saturday morning, a youth, much jaded in appearance, surr. 'ered himself as a murderer, to a Policeman at Derby. He said that name was Joseph Growcock; he had kept a school at Leicester for a:, ,at nine months ; he decamped under a charge of stealing books, and went to live with his father, a pensioner on the East India Com- pany, at Nottingham : he often had a fiendish desire to murder some one, and had made many fruitless attempts to decoy little children for the purpose : on Friday, as he was on the point of striking a little girl with a hammer, her father came in sight, and Growcock ran away : meeting with some boys and girls nutting, he persuaded a girl named Allwood, sixteen years of age, to accompany him to Derby,—telling her that he was overlooker in a mill there, and he would secure her good wages : about an hour after midnight,: they were in a secluded lane ; and the girl, being very fatigued, went to sleep : Growcock seized the occasion ; stuffed a stocking into her mouth, and struck her again and again with the hammer, until the head of It came off, and then with his fist ; leaving her as if dead. Growcock was detained ; while the girl was sought, found to be living, and carried to the infirmary.