The following question appears in the 'Boston Herald' of Friday last: L.C. Somerville, Query - How long ago is it since the small boy was hanged in St. John, N.B. for stealing a loaf of bread? Answer - We know of no such case. If it happened, it must have been prior to this country, when capital punishment was meted out for other offences than that of murder. - The case referred to by the 'Herald' correspondent was, no doubt, that of Patrick BURGEN, a youth of 18 years, who in 1828 was tried for entering the shop of his employer, John R. SMITH, in the night and robbing the till of a few coffers, amounting to one quarter of a dollar. Smith was a manufacturer of ginger beer and his shop was on the corner of Union St. and Drury Lane. Burgen was tried before Judge Chipman, who was afterwards Chief Justice of the Province. Burgen was defended by the late William B. KINNEAR who was assigned as his counsel by the court. In those good old days the counsel of a prisoner charged with a felony was not allowed to address the jury in his behalf or to refer to question of fact. The jury found Burgen guilty, but added a recommendation to mercy. The judge, however, sentenced him to be hanged, and told Burgen when pronouncing the sentence that there was no hope of mercy and that he must prepare for death. A petition in favor to the Lt. Gov., Sir Howard Douglas, asking for a commutation of Burgen's sentence was rejected and the unfortunate youth was duly hanged less than four weeks after the date of his trial. A Sir Howard Douglas was not only a humane man, but a man of excellent understanding, it is clear that Judge Chipman, in transmitting the recommendation for mercy to the Governor, must have added unfavorable comments of his own, so as to defeat the attempt of the jury to save the prisoner's life. This legal murder was committed in this city only 65 years ago, and men are still living in this community who knew Burgen well, one of them being the late chief of police, John R. MARSHALL. The people of St. John may congratulate themselves on the fact that our laws are very different now from what they were in 1828 and that we have no judge on the bench with as hard a heart as was possessed by Ward CHIPMAN.