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female in the place calculated for one hundred and ten only; but we, your Subcomunttee, experience a considerable dif ficulty in recommending an enlargement of that part of the prison as it is at present constituted, notwithstanding they feel that every accommodation consistent with the nature of a prison ought to be afforded to that description of prisoners who, (as sir Richard Phillips has expressed in his publication) "having broken no moral law, most of them victims of mis fortunes, and many of them confined for exceedingly small debts, depressed by want and every privation, are thus thrown together without, regard to their difference of education, to their various habits of life, or to their degrees of religious or moral feeling." But impressed with this conviction, we are strongly induced to recommend a separate prison to be provided for the exclusive confine ment of debtors, and the whole of New gate being appropriated for the imprisonment of criminals, by which we have every reason to hope those inconveniences and dangers which are to be apprehended from a crowded goal would be removed; and, feeling the great in propriety and injustice of placing persons committed to take their trial on suspicion only of offences, with prisoners who have been convicted, and of allowing that general and uninterrupted intercourse between them which may tend to the total corruption of the morals of the former, and to the annihilation of any good principles that may yet be left within them, and cannot be attended with any beneficial purpose whatsoever, we conceive by this means, those prisoners who are brought there previous to taking their trials might be kept separate from those felons who have been convicted, and are suffering the sentence of the law.

We also feel with extreme concern, the practice of putting irons indiscriminately on all prisoners committed to the custody of the keeper of Newgate, previously to their taking their trial and being convicted, and which at times must fall on persons who are perfectly innocent of the offences with which they are charged, and must greatly distress their minds and aggravate the misery of a confinement in a goal; but we, your Committee, have to lament that from the representation of the keeper, and the most serious consideration we have been enabled to give the subject, they catmot altogether be dispensed with under the

present regulations of the goal of Newgate.

Whilst it appears on one hand that irons are deemed absolutely indispensable for the security of prisoners in Newgate, and on the other side it is evidently an excessive hardship to put prisoners in irons on their commitment, who may afterwards prove innocent of the offence charged against them, the only alterations seem to be either to exclude visitors entirely from the prisoners, or to continue the present system of irons. The Committee conceive that the former would be inconsistent with every principle of humanity or justice, and might deprive the prisoners of the consolation of seeing their dearest friends or relations, or of taking such measures as may. be necessary for their defence in the event of their trial; and as irons, they fear, must be resorted to, they ought in all cases of commitment to be of the lightest kind consistent with safe custody; and that the keepers shall in no instance double-iron that description of prisoner, except in cases of outrage, or by the order of some one of the magistrates, or the sheriffs.

That we beg leave further to report, that we observed several persons within the prison, who were allowed by the sheriffs and the keeper to dispose of sundry articles, such as meat and green grocery, to the prisoners; and having inspected their several weights and scales, and tried them with those kept by the keeper, we found some of them not so correct as they ought to be; and do therefore recommend that in future no scales be allowed to be used within the prison for the sale of necessaries to the prisoners, but such as have been tried by the keeper, nor any weights without being regularly stampt, agreeably to law. That your Committee also found the prices of the necessaries were the same as without the prison, and no other advantage whatever was obtained but a fair profit upon the articles disposed of; and that the beer, from which it was supposed a greater profit was made by the sale to the prisoners than ought to be, we found was sold at the gate at the same price as without the prison, and that the allowance to the person who superintended the sale of it, was made by the publican who supplied the beer under the directions of the sheriffs.

That having taken into consideration the present fees received by the keeper of Newgate, and finding no alteration

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has taken place therein since the year 1729, we recommend, that if fees are to be continued, it should be submitted to the Court of Lord Mayor and Aldermeu, in whom the power rests of making any alteration in the said fees, to take the same into their consideration, and to make such alterations as they may think proper, consistent with the times, and the situation of the parties who are to pay them; and we, your Sub-committee, having been informed that by an order of the Court of Aldermen, the number of prisoners confined in Newgate and the Compters, together with the State of those prisons certified by the surgeon, is laid before that Court at every meeting, upon enquiry we found, that any prisoners who may be detained for not having paid their fees are not included, but which, we are of opinion, ought always to be done, and especially

named.

That having also viewed Giltspur-street Compter and Ludgate prison, we were attended by Mr. John Teague, the keeper, and we observed that Giltspur-street Compter was every way calculated for the purposes for which it was originally erected, and that the prisoners confined there are much better accommodated than in any other prison within the city; and the only thing complained of was the amount of fees paid by the debtors, which, upon enquiry, we find is regulated by the Judges and the Magistrates at the Sessions, and no alteration has been made in them for some time past; but we, your Sub-committee, have to state, that in consequence of the Act of Parliament which passed so long ago as the year 1804, for removing the debtors from the Poultry Compter, on account of its then decayed and dangerous condition to the Giltspur-street Compter, that prison is occasionally so crowded that great danger is to be apprehended to the health of the same, particularly in hot weather, notwithstanding the numerous conveniences which it possesses. And with respect to the Ludgate prison, we, your Sub-committee, have to observe, that the space is much too confined for the number of prisoners usually there; and if the Corporation should not think fit to erect a new prison for the exclusive confinement of debtors, we are of opimon that inconvenience may be partially remedied by the removal of part of the wall which separates this prison from that part of the Giltspurstrect Compter where some of the cells

are placed, and which have not been used for a long time past.

That on viewing the Poultry Compter, attended by Mr. Edward Kirby, the keeper, we found the said compter in a most deplorable and ruinous condition, and by no means a fit place for the confinement of prisoners of any description. The several persons committed to take their trial are here confined till the goal delivery at the time of each sessions; and the keeper stated, that at the last September Sessions, there were fifty felons confined there. The whole of the night charges of the city are brought to this compter, as well as all vagrants, (Giltspur-street Compter being at this time appropriated for the confinement of the whole of the debtors belonging to the two compters) and whatever may be the cause of their confinement they cannot be separated from the felons, there being one yard only to the whole prison, in which men, women, and children of all descriptions confined there, are compelled to be together; the rooms appropriated to the vagrants, and persons to be passed to their different parishes, are not glazed, the windows being open with iron bars ouly, nor have they any thing to protect them from the weather, or in cases of sickness for their comfort, but what the humanity of the keeper provides for them; and it frequently occurs, particu cularly after an expedition has sailed, that a number of soldiers' wives and children are there placed till they can be properly removed, and some of them in a very ill state of health from fatigue or otherwise; and it has happened that some of them have been so far advanced in pregnancy, as to be confined and delivered in that compter. No divine service has been performed in that compter for the last five years, and the chapel is now converted into a sleeping-place for felons. Irons are put on all prisoners committed for trial, and are never taken off till sent to Newgate, unless directed by the surgeon; there is no regular table of fees at this compter, and they are regulated by custom only; that the keeper frequently remits the fees, and no person is detained for the non-payment of them. Under all the circumstances, we are decidedly of opinion, that the present Poultry Compter is not at all calculated for the confinement of prisoners, nor from its present ruinous state can the same be rendered fit for that purpose. And we are further of opinion, that from the present state of the buildings in the vici

nity of this compter, and its confined situation from being entirely surrounded by private residences, that the present scite is a very improper and insecure situation for a prison, and that the same ought to be erected in a more open and unconnected space, as we found no less than three notoriously bad characters had lately effected their escape from this prison.

That we, your Sub-committee, upon a review of all the circumstances, are deep v impressed with the absolute necessity that exists of a new prison being provided in lieu of the present Poultry Compter; and after the most mature consideration, are unanimously of opinion, that the said prison should be erected on a much larger space than the present compter occupies, and in a situation more unconnected with buildings, and that the same should be solely appropriated to the confinement of debtors under proper regulations, allotting different spaces in the same for the different descriptions of debtors; for the county debtors who are now confined in Newgate; for the city debtors who are confined in the Giltspur-street Compter; and for those debtors who are usually confined in Ludgate; by which means Newgate will be relieved from a large portion of prisoners, and may be rendered fully adequate to the purposes required, with some internal alteration only, and without any further enlargement; and the keeper will probably be then enabled to make that separation of the prisoners confided to his care which justice and humanity so loudly calls for; Giltspurstreet Compter, with the addition of the present Ludgate prison, and by removing the Sheriffs' offices to the new prison, will be thereby rendered fully adequate to all the purposes of the confinement of persons (committed to take their trial) previous to the goal delivery at each Sessions of Oyer and Terminer, for prisoners committed to the Quarter Sessions, and for nigh: charges and, vagrants, with very little internal alteration and expence. And we are of opinion, that in the Compter where prisoners are confined only previously to taking their trial, or com mitted some for offences at the Quarter Sessions, the same regulations with respect to irons might be adopted as above recommended for persons committed to Newgate.

That having duly considered the circumstance of fees being taken by the different keepers of the prisons within

this city, we are of opinion the same should be abolished; and that the keepers and their assistants should receive fixed salaries in lieu thereof, so that no partiality should be shewn to any description of prisoner; but should this worshipfut Committee or the Court of Common Council differ with us in this opinion, we think it should be strongly recommended to the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor and Court of Aldermen, to take into their immediate and serious consideration the present fees, and make such suitable alterations therein, as to them shall seem advisable.

Thomas Bell.
Edward Wigan.
Wm. John Reeves.
J. Jacks.

J. R. Mander.
W. Pritchard.
John Ord.

For the Monthly Magazine.
LYCEUM OF ANCIENT LITERA-
TURE.-No. XXXI.
Amatory Poets.—CATULLUS.
NDER this comprehensive title

U

we shall include the three Roman poets, Catullus, Propertius, and Tibullus. It is obvious that any observations upon this species of composition, where the imagination is indulged beyond the boundaries of reason, and often of decency, are altogether unnecessary. We shall therefore proceed at once to our account of Catullus.

Caius, or Quintus Valerius Catullus, for the prænomen appears to have been a subject of much controversy, was born in the peninsula of Sirmio, formed by the lake Benacus, in the territory of Verona. Eusebius supposes Verona itself to have It took been the place of his birth.* place in the 2d year of the 173d Olymp. A.U.C. 667, in the consulate of Luc. Cornelius Cinna, and of Cn. Octavius, about 85 B. C. He was thus a contem porary with Varro, Sallust, and even Virgil. His parents do not appear to have been remarkable, either for illus-, trious birth or opulence. But his father was attached to Cæsar, who frequently visited at his house. † At a very early age, he was sent to Rome, and consigned to the patronage of Manlius Torquatus, a patrician belonging to a well-known famly, and whose marriage with Julia Aurunculeia, the poet has celebrated

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in a beautiful epithalamium.* Under such patronage, and introduced into the best circles of the capital, the native talent of Catullus could not fail of high and rapid improvement. The suavity of his manners, the brilliancy of his wit, and a display of learning very rare among the poets of his time, procured him many friends, among whom we must distinguish Cornelius Nepos the historian. To him Catullus dedicated his works. In the infinite variety of his smaller poems, we may easily collect the names of those with whom he was in the habit of associating. Even Cicero is said to have highly valued him. That he pleaded some cause for the poet, or rendered him some essential service in the forum, of which we are totally ignorant, is probable from the elegant little epigram which contains his thanks.t

The loves of Catullus must necessarily form a prominent part in every sketch of his biography. His amatory productions, equal in renown to the epic labours of the Mantuan bard, proclaim his inconstancy and his successes. He was chiefly attached to Clodia, whom he celebrates under the name of Lesbia, in honour perhaps of the Lesbian Sappho, whose poems were his delight. Clodia was frail, but possessed all the beauty of her sex; probably of a gay and sprightly temper, from the comparison he draws between her and the inanimate Quintilia,§ a celebrated beauty of a different complexion. Some suppose Lesbia to have been sister to the infamous ClodiHypsithilla and Aufilena, both Veronese ladies, also shared his affections; but the latter, proving faithless, and being, besides, convicted of incestuous pleasures, incurred the poetic castigation of the injured bard, whom the happier Quintius had rivalled in her affections.** Many other females are mentioned in his poems; but these appear to have been his favourites. It were to be wished, that the account of his amours ended here; but, from his own confession, we are compelled to acknowledge that he was no stranger to

us.

*See Carm. 65.
+ Carm. 46.

Apuleius, Orat. Claud. Mac.
Carm. 83.

Carm. 29.

Carm. 106.

* Carm. 95.

the detestable vice, which infecte age in which he lived.*

What rank Catullus held amon wealthy, may admit of inquiry. I earlier days, he might experience verty; in later life, perhaps after father's death, he appears to have affluent. On the one hand, he fra confesses the emptiness of his pu and he followed Memmius when P into Bithynia, it would seem, with hopes of gain. This employm though probably creditable and im tant, produced no profit, from the dity of the Prætor, and his inatten to the interest of those who accompa him. So low was the condition of tullus, that in one place he says he c not even afford the expence of bea to his old travelling coach: and in a ther, that he was obliged to mortgage Country-seat. Some critics, howe have argued, that his having a coun seat implies that his poverty was inherited from his parents: he ha farm in the Tiburtine territory; he himself the lord of Sirmio; he naviga the seas in his own vessel; he grati his taste and inclinations, gave enterta ments, indulged in love, and emplo numerous emissaries in the pursuit of amorous pleasures;§ in short, he lived terms of friendship with the great. T extravagant turn involved him in tresses, and accounts, says Vulpin for his acquaintance with so many characters.

With these defects, his dispositi was amiable, grateful, and affectiona The elegant composition on the nupti of his patron Manlius, is a proof of th In his epistle to the same, a strain tenderness pervades the whole, that de honour to his heart; he apologizes his deficiency in friendly offices a poetical offerings, which he attributes his grief for the loss of his brother; a his apostrophe to the memory of th brother, is exquisite. The few lines composed on performing obsequies at tomb, on the Rhætian coast, breathe t purest fraternal regard. It appears th while Catullus was on his expediti with Memmius, his brother died prem turely in the Troad province; and w

*Carm. 21, 45, 78, 94. + Carm. 23.

I C. 28.

Carm. 98.

See Vulp. in Vit. Catul.

buried on the promontory of Rhætium, once celebrated for the sepulchre of Ajax Telamon. Returning from Bithy hia into Italy, he necessarily passed Rhætium; where, in love and veneration For the memory of his brother,* he stopped at his tomb, and offered a solemn oblation.t

The learned character of Catullus is acknowledged by writers, both ancient and modern. Tibullus, Ovid, and Martial, give him the appellation of Doctus. The elder Scaliger alone,¶ among the moderns, disputes his preten sions to that title, and asserts, on the contrary, that his poems are vulgar, his thoughts low, and his expressions trivial. But he seems to have changed his opinion, when he pronounces his galliambic poem a noble composition; and declares, that the epithalamium on the marriage of Peleus and Thetis almost rivals the majesty of the Æneid. On what account he more particularly obtained the epithet doctus, is uncertain; perhaps from being well versed in the Greek language, then considered a great accomplishment, and the proof of a learned education. We know how neatly he has imitated an ode of Sappho, and an elegy of Callimachus; indeed, all his compositions appear to be formed on the Grecian model. Perhaps the distinction arose from the various metres in which he wrote his poems; or else from some peculiar literary talent, with which we are unacquainted, or some other works now lost. To those who have been accustomed to consider him only as a trifling amatory poet, the epithet, no doubt, appears singularly applied.

Catullus died some years after the age of 40, as Vulpius has satisfactorily proved.**

Scholiasts have not agreed in what class the poet of Verona ought to be placed. Quintilian has placed him among the Iambics; though Horace boasts of having himself been the first

Carm. 62 and 65.

+ Carm. 96.

Eleg. 7, lib. 3.
Amor. Eleg. 9, lib. 3.
Epig. 62, lib. 1.

Poetices, cap. 6, lib. 6.

See Vulp. Comment. on Carm. 50 and 108; though Eusebius, in his Chronicle, affirms that he died at the age of 30, about the time that Virgil was a student at Cremona.

MONTHLY MAG, No. 202.

Others have

to write Latin iambics.* considered him merely as a writer of epigrams; while a few have dignified him with the title of a lyric poet. But, perhaps, to neither of these in particular, does Catullus belong; it is probable, that he wrote many poems whose

and

nature even is unknown to us, of which we have been deprived by time and accident, and which very possibly conferred upon him the distinction of learned, which we have alluded to above. Speaking of himself when young, he says, multa satis lusi;† from which we may infer that his Muse exhi bited herself in various kinds of poetry. It may be collected from Pliny the elder, that he composed a something on incanta tions, of which we have now no remaius ;. and according to Terentianus Maurus, he wrote an Ithyphallic poem, there is still left a specimen of the Priapeian style in which it was written. As it is, the poems transmitted to us, and generally received as belonging to Catullus, though some have doubted the originality of all, have been divided by many of his commentators into three classes: the lyric, the heroic and elegiac, and the epigrammatic. The volume, in general, includes a few others attributed to the same poet, of a more suspicious character. Of these, it may be doubted whether the Pervigilium Veneris be genuine. This beautiful piece, which ought rather to have been called A Hymn to the Spring, has been attributed to a variety of authors, whom it would be tedious to enumerate. Ausonius, I know not how justly, puts in his claim to the honour of having composed it; but it is, most probably, the production of some pen more modern than that of Catullus, or even of Ausonius. Gyraldus asserts that he had never seen it, and only heard that it was among the MSS. of Aldus Manutius.

Whatever were the various walks in which Catullus exercised his muse, he was successful in all. In the voluptuousness of amatory, verse he excelled; in the galliambic he was unique, and his

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