The Press. — London, England, 1853-08-20 00:00:00

THE PRESS. AUGUST 20, 1853. CABINET LAW REFORMS. THE LORD CHANCELLOR CRANWORTH. on Thursday evening, delivered in the House of Lords " a most interesting statement" of the pro gress which, under his auspices, had been made in that branch of law reform which comprises the consolidation of the statutes. The report of his speech, u given in the daily papers, being somewhat incorrect, a more authentic version has been obtained, of which the following is an abstract : The LORD CHANCELLOR said : Now, my Lords, I think I have some thing to lay upon your Lordships table which will astonish your minds. I always told you that her Majesty's present Government were the real law reformers, and, when the late Administration went out, we promised that the Augean stable of law should be put tidy in less than no time. Well, there was a good deal to do, and here are the last hours of the session, and up to this time we certainly have not been able to fulfil many of our promises. The Irish landlord an►i tenant measures, to be sure, we borrowed from our predecessors, but even those bills we have postponed. However, nor we have really something to be proud of. What do you think ? All out of my own head I devised a plan for the commissioners for consolidation ; and this was it. I advised them to count the number of volumes of statutes. That was something like a conception. Talk of Lord BROUGHAM ! Talk of Lord LYNDHURST ! Talk of Lord ST. LEONARD'S! Did they ever have the law books counted ? I should say not, my Lords. Well, my Lords, they did count them, and there were forty. There is a fact at once, my Lords, a groundwork, a foundation, a basis, for further operations. Forty is a significant number, my Lords. There were forty thieves, and there are forty days in Lent, and a freehold must be valued at forty shillings ; and, but for detaining you, I could mention many other curious coincidences, all bearing on the subject. But this is not all. I had these volumes opened—ay, looked into, my Lords—and the result was that they were discovered to be " printed very closely and in a repulsive form." To detect an evil, my Lords, is to go half way to rectify it ; and I am, therefore, justified in saying that the statutes are half consolidated. But there is more still. I desired Mr. CHISHOLM ANSTIY to proceed with the process of counting, at which he is a great proficient, having so often counted out the House of Commons, my Lords. He and Mr. ROGERS made a list, and they found that from Magna Charta to the Succession Duty Act (which the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER considers, on the whole, a greater work than the other) there have been 10,442 laws made. Think of that, my Lords ! But when your Lordships were at school I dare say that you learned arithmetic; and, if so, you know what proving your sums meant. Now, I made the commission prove their sum. They took the statutes the other way, "beginning with the acts of Queen VICTORIA, and going backward," and I am exceed ingly happy to assure your Lordships that Mr. ANSTEY and Mr. ROGERS had counted quite right. Well, here, my Lords, we might have rested ; for we had achieved a great work, which had never occurred to Lord BROUGHAM, or the other Noble and Learned Lords I have mentioned. But did we stop there ? No, my Lords. I gave " a new direction to the ." I directed them to consider the best way of consolidating the statutes. Perhaps some of your Lordships may think that this was really the duty we had undertaken, and that the preceding steps were merely clerk's work, scarcely worth mention. But such is not the opinion of her Majesty's Government. However, we came to that part of the operation at last ; and as it was desirable to begin upon one of the most important subjects, so that our labours might be useful to the community, we selected the sub ject of distress for rent. Ido not know whether your Lordships know ;what this means, but you may have seen a celebrated picture by Wilkie which will give you some idea of it. Your Lordships are hap pily above such matters, but few of the professional or mercantile classes, and none of the inferior orders, ever pay their rent until their goods have been seized ; and therefore the subject was one of vital and universal importance. The laws on this point were digested. To be sure, my Lords, we found invaluable assistance from an excel lent little pamphlet, in yellow covers, and sold at the ridiculously low price of twopence, and known to the inhabitants of Seven Dials and elsewhere as "Every Man his Own Broker;" but this does not dete riorate from the value of our own labours. Moreover, my Lords, " I do not mean to say that the digest is in the shape in which these laws ought to be consolidated," but it shows that we have done some thing. Moreover, my Lords, the commissioners "have made many sug gestions," and, "though I am unable to say that I agree with them, I gm quite certain they will prove of incalculable advantage." It would Pi be exceedingly convenient to have a good consolidation " of the re venue laws, of the civil and criminal law, of the law of real property, and of all other laws—a remark, my Lords, which has, lam aware, been made once or twice before during the last century. Her Ma jesty's Government have done their part, they have promised a con solidation of the statutes, and at the end of the session they have counted those statutes, and have produced a digest (which I do not think is in the right form) on one insignificant topic. I therefore think, my Lords, that we have vindicated our title to be called law Wormers. (Hoar, hear.) THE BAGMAN POLICY. THRRN is a species of policy still urged in the country which can only be defined as a Bagman Policy. The essence of it consists in this, that you should act towards foreign countries entirely with reference to trade. A dispute arises about religion between two nations. Put it thus —which has most exports? The balance of power being brought in dispute—let there instantly be substituted the butter balance. Is the sword talked of?—send a man with a yard measure, at once. With regard to Ambassadors—they are no longer necessary. The Bagman supersedes the Mull)°, and inquires of foreign Governments —what orders they have? No nation is to be supported which has not a well organised paving and lighting system. No wars allowed. Arbitrations freely offered by Ricketts and Squash, Manchester. Russia is a poor country—therefore we should not meddle with its conduct to its neighbours. Turkey is a poor country, with dogs running about the streets— therefore it is not to be maintained. Russia could not invade England with alone. leave lour England is very rich and powerful—so she must on no account go to war. Republics to be encouraged—against the home aristocracy. Despotisms encouraged for the sake of their wool, leather, iron, &c. The advantage of this system is, that while it attacks every country, and alternately supports and assails every system, it leaven the Bagman triumphant. neat Bagmannms! FILICUS: • PORTRAIT. Now preaching peace high prices to sustain, Now preaching war a higher mart to gain, He thinks of Freedom as a thing for sale, And weighs his country's honour by the bale. For him not Liberty bath charms, unless The Goddess chance to wear a cotton dress ; While Tyranny of half her sins 'twould If Free-trade Hemp were plaited in her whip. One single aim is his, one thought—himself, The one bright hope that gilds his future—pelf; A cotton-mill his heaven—a cotton-pod The solo impersonation of his God. ADMIRALTY STYLE. MR. 11,:axAt ORRONNE'R remarks arc not generally long remembered : but a stray reader, here and there, may recollect that he impeached the grammar of a public document some time since. It has fallen to his lot (such are the vicissitudes of fortune) to have to express to the Spithead squadron her Majesty's approbation of the way in which the review was conducted. A man of spirit would have rejoiced at the opportunity of embodying the Royal courtesy in appropriate language. But ho has contented himself by showing the faculty of a reduced joker, in raising a laugh at his own expense instead of other people's. It was said of l'rrr that ho could have spoken offhand a king's speech. But even the present Ministry would not, no think. trust such a task to the author of the letter of the 12th of August to Sir T. COCHRANE, with every opportunity of painful cogitation:— Her Majesty—(imy. the epistolary labourer)—oliserved with great satisfaction those effects of tinier and discipline which never fail to sustain the honour of the British lag, and afford pledges of the undiminished power of the British Navy. " Those effects" which " afford pledges" are worthy the attention of a pawnbroker ; and, leaving them to his assessment, we proceed to that which follows The Queen received also with peculiar pleasure the hearty proof of goodwill shown to her person, to his Royal Highness Prince Albert, and family, which mingled grateful feelings with proud recollections; and they added happiness to conscious strength in witnessing the evolntions of such a fleet, ready to defend the authority of the Crown and the independence of the nation. It is doubtful whether " they" refers to the " Queen and Roya Family," or to " grateful feelings," or " proud recollections." In fact, Mr. OSBORNE is not only oblivious of his antecedents, but he has not yet learnt from his Ministerial colleagues the duty of attending to his relatives. We propose that a fog-bell should henceforward lie rung at the Admiralty, to warn the clerks of the peril to their official character whenever Mr. OSBORNE takes his pen in his hand. And, as a further suggestion to the compromised clerks, we would propose their binding up his "Joe Miller" with " A Complete Letter•writer." i k I