The Sun. — London, England, 1834-12-25 00:00:00

ion - from Mr. Peel which found a place in the me mory Vier the debate was over." On the same day the Times buried him as a Statesman, with the fol lowing inscription on his tomb :—" Mr. Peel may have been, and has been—but, spoilt by flattery, he will not be again—a temperate and useful subaltern rfficer. To talk of such a person as a statesman ! or a chief ! is surely an idle abuse of tvords ; for no man whom it wo u ld be worth whil e t o d ece i ve would listen to such misrepresentations." After an interval of two months' reflection the apostate Times maturely affirmed, that Peel's " talents are not of that first-rate quality which excites the dread of opponents." or " even the envy of friends." Such was the estimate of Peel by the Times, when Mr. Canning first broke the charm of .Tory Government. From that moment, except on the question of Catholic Emancipation forced upon him, Sir Robert Peel has been the blind and inveterate opponent of liberal principles, and of that system of po licy which the Times now asserts can alone give vita lity to his Administration. Such are the Men, and such the Journalists whom he has enlisted into his service. Only twelve days since Lord Stormont declared, to his constituents at Norwich, " that he always had a violent dislike to the word Reform—he had strong feelings against the name ; " and in the journals of this week Si r Edward Knatchbull boldly avows himself, in she f ace of the Premier, the same - rank bigot as heretofore. What then, are we to hope from the Men selected by Sir Robert Peel for his Coadjutors—from the kadens, the Knatchbulls, the scions of the houses of Newcastle, Salisbury, Carnarvon, Lonsdale, Beresford, and Mansfield, cemented together by a few apostates, and:the refuse of the Liverpool and 'Wellington Ad ministrations ? There are five Somersets already : one.rnore must surely complete, early in the Session, the Christmas gambols and tumbling tricks" of these fanatic Tories. It is high time, therefore, for Sir Robert Peel to abandon his false pretences of Reform. John Bull cannot he humbugged into the . belief that such servants as the Peelers would suit his purposes. Captain Forbes, the liberal Candidate for Dudley wittily observes, " When he was on board ship he always looked out for men to do the work who were experienced and willing ; he would never have thought, for instance, of selecting tailors, because it was possible the smell of the tar might be disagreeable to them ; and then when a gale arose, and it would be necessary to have all hands at work, they woulo probably be sea sick. Now such, he thought, they would find the Tories."--Morning Chronicle. We are unwilling to say more about our 'Weather cock Contemporary to-day ; indeed, the press of other matter precludes the possibility of our doing more than me. ely point the public attention to its refined scur rility of yesterday. The City Reformers are now " a ruffian, unlistening, unreasoning mob," whose conduct was characterized by " clamour, violence, fury, bru tality." Because it has suited the blustering policy of this Renegade to change its course, the sturdy and honest Reformers of 1834 are now represented by the Times to be " a party formidable at once from num bers, restlessness, ignorance, and combination, who would not be satisfied with any change but such as • was equivalent to a subversion of the monarchy," and that for no other reason than their consistent adherence to the - principles which " the Weathercock" described to be enlightened and patriotic in 1831. " The Lead ing Journal of Europe may, indeed, do more to " guide three-fourths of the people of England" to a feeling of contempt for the public press than any other journal that ever existed in the country.—Morning Chronicle. In its political character and bearings the civic en tertainment given to his Majesty's Ministers was ha portant enough to justify a more extended commen tary than we had time to bestow upon it in our paper of yesterday. It is true that the Address of Sir Ro bert Peel to the electors of Tamworth had forestalled much of the interest that would otherwise have attached to it as a political banquet ; but, under the existing circumstances of the time, it must still be considered the most important civic festival connected with the peculiar state cf public affairs, and having reference to the position of his Majesty's Government, which has been celebrated at the Mansion-house for a long time past. The speech of Sir Robert Peel was, of course, the great object of political interest on this occasion. Before we mike any particular allusion to its contents, it is only an act of justice to notice the judicious man ner in which the Lord Mayor introduced the toast which drew forth that speech ; namely, " the health of Sir Robert Peel and his Majesty's Ministe rs ." A s a C on serrative, he expressed himself consistently with his principles. He warmly eulogized the Statesmen whom his Majesty had chosen to direct his councils, but carefully abstained from casting any refleetions on those Ministers whom they have succeeded. This was in good taste. He stated that, standing there as Chief Magistrate, he should be guilty of a departure from the line of his duty were he to indulge in criminating Tel - narks upon persons who had previously been called upon to fulfil the duties of Ministers of the Crown. Had he chosen to follow the example afforded by a Whig Ecclesiastical Judge, he should ha ve b een l ess scrupulous in giving a fling to party feelings and party virulence, in alluding to Statesmen of an opposite party. But that cause can be scarcely worth any ra tional man's attention which requires to be advocated and graced by the temper of the Tower Hamlets and the courtesy of Cddgers' Hall. As to the speech of Sir Robert Peel, it was able and eloquent, con taining much with which our own opinions coincide, and some sentiments from which we differ. Nothing could be more appropriate and judicious than the following introductory observations :—" I cannot pretend to be overwhelmed by personal feelings on this occasion. I believe your object to be, in a crisis of great importance, to convey an assurance to the King, that in the exercise of a great constitutional prerogative, according to the forms and the spirit of the Constitution, there is a great body of the King's subjects, remarkable for their intelligence, their respec tability, and their wealth, having a deep interest in the welfare of the country, prepared to give their Sovereign their constitutional support, and to animate and encou rage the objects of his Majesty's gracious choice in the performance of an arduous duty. I neither consi der that we are met for the purpose of paying compli ments to individuals, nor of celebrating the triumph of any party. I believe your feelings, if I have not incor rectly interpreted them, to be in consonance with those of a great portion of the - people of this country." We should not wonder to see the fiery partisans of the late Ministry represent the moderation of tone which characterises the above passage as abjectness—for such was the term applied by angry commentators to those portions of his address which spoke with modesty of his own pretensions and the merits of the new Government. Had he indulged in a more confident tone, it would have been ascribed by the same parties to overweening concert and pre sumption. We believe no sensible and reflecting Englishman will think the worse of a Statesman be cause' he only asks for " a fair trial" of his measures, as the best criterion of opinion as to their merits, in stead of parading his specifics on the public stage with all the ostentation and pompous air of infalli bility which distinguishes a charlatan. The allusion to the general state of the public mind is a pas sage of unadorned but impressive eloquence :—" It is impossible to deny that since the great and im portant events which have taken place within the last six weeks--it is impossible to deny that there has been a calm and tranquillity in the country, which could not well have been anticipated. I do not mistake the character of that state of calm and tranquillity. Ido not construe it into an indifference to public affairs— into a lazy acquiescence in any Government that the King may be pleased to form, or in any measures which that Government may propose. On the con trary, I feel convinced that this calm and tranquillity are perfectly consistent with the utmost vigilance, and, if necessary, the most determined resolution. The present condition of the public mind is no more incon sistent with those active qualities than the tranquillity of the ocean is inconsistent with occasional displays of resistless and overwhelming force." Rightly, in our opinion, does he express the state of public feeling as appertaining to that large portion of society who seek constitutional and preservative reforms--those reforms which, by clearing our ancient and valuable institutions of abuses, by well-considered and judi cious measures of purification, will strengthen and .S 7, consolidate the magnificent and unrivalled system of civil polity which Vandal ignorance and destructive arbarism would undermine and destroy. He says— " I believe that if public feeling could be embodied in words I should correctly interpret it in language of the following import :—' We are tired of agitation —we are tired of that state of political excitement which in. private life withdraws men from their proper business, and in public life exercises the energies of public men upon other matters than their proper du ties we hate the pressure from without—we will not have the domination of clubs—we are content that the public will should be expressed through authorised and constitutional organs. At the same time we re quire Government to be admiuistered for the sole par- Jose (2f promoting the true interests of this country. Te require that there shall be a full and patient con .,ideration of everything that can be fairly suspected as partaking of the character of abuse ; and if, after ,uch patient consideration, the abuse be prT;„;.- Ne - require that it shall be corrected—f.;„, froin hatred of he abuse, and seeondl - from love and respect for hose ancient ii-2:„.itutions, which abuse has the ten -lency t(.l disfigure and impair.' " There is no :: , iistitutional reformer that the above sentiments, as far as the general principle of reformatory Government go, will not fail to satisfy. We have here an admission from a Tory Minister, which concedes the great proposition that it was the 'aboured object of the enlightened John Locke, in his admirably-reasoned " Essay on Government," to trove—namely, that all Government is for the benefit ge the governed. L e t th e present Administration only ' 0 1! o w this out in practice, and we care not by what party name they are called, they will deserve tht gra itude, of the nation, and earn the imperishable praise of impartial history. There is a portion of the speech levoted to the discussion of the maxim " measures, not men," in which we consider the opinions of Sir Robert Peel fallacious, or not clearly explained. He says that, in every department of private and public life, it is upon the confidence that we feel in certain individuals that we proceed. So it is, no doubt, after they have, by such a course of conduct as enables us to form an estimate of ability and character, entitled themselves to our confidence. Thus the confidence originally placed in individuals, at least by sensible people, is the result of an experience of their good qualities, evidenced by their actions—in other words, lie confidence that " measures" create is in time, and imperceptibly transferred to the " men." 'lut it sometimes happens that, both in public and private life, men change from what they have been, and commit actions the very opposite of those which aught to inspire or preserve confidence. When such ehr7naes take place, a blind and unreasoning confidence 'nay still trust in them ; a reflecting ju dg ment will !ease to confide : the former will be for " men, not 'neasures"—the latter will be for " measures, not men." The confidence which his soldiers placed in Wel lington was the natural consequence of the great abilities which he displayed in a series of campaigns in which his " military measures" carried them to victory. So, in political life, the man who, like the great Lord Chatham, would, by his measures, raise a nation from embarrassment, defeat, and despondency, to strength, grandeur, and glory, would carry with his name afterwards a claim to public confidence, which inight gain him credit for pursuing wise and beneficial measures on another occasion, before those measures were actually developed. But we confess that, with re a,ard to Sir Robert Peel, as we have never before seen him in the station of Premier, we can do no more than wish 'inn to have a " fair trial," not being able to give him our qualified confidence in that great and responsible tation, until we know something of his measures. Our opinion upon the most important measure, perhaps, with ahieh his name has been yet associated is not so fa vourable to his statesmanship as to induce our unbound ed confidence—we allude to the Currency Bill—in our mind a disastrous—a fatal measure—a measure which, we believe, he was led into by the Whig economists, who would now excommunicate him from power for ever. We do not wish to dwell upon that measure at the pre sent moment. If we had had the highest confidence in his financial talents before he adopted the wild fallacy ;f the Currency Bill, that confidence would have been abated. Under the pressure of the enormous taxation of the country, that Bill cramped and fettered its in dustry, and we believe that the outcry for speculative changes of late years is chiefly owing to the mischievous effects of th a t Bill on th e w h o l e industrial interests of the nation, commercial, nanufacturing, and agricultu ral. Sir Robert Peel is now a more matured and expe rienced Statesman than he was at that time. He has had greater opportunities within a few years of ascer taining the real state of the country, and of studying the spirit and temper of the age, we mean in the en lightened sense, than during his previous years in office. We trust that both he and the Duke of Wel lington have not been unreflecting observers of pass ing ev en t s —th a t th ey h ave ga th ere d some civil wisdom from political adversity, and are willing to apply it to public affairs; they are both men of great business like talents, and if their principles be sound and their measures judicious, they are sure to act with the firm ness, decision, and energy which are characteristic of Statesmen. They arc men that will work—not merely talk, and after making magnificent promises, let the vessel of the State drive before the wind without any steady hold on the helm, or vigilant eye to the com pass to guide her course. We, therefore, are desirous that they should have a " fair trial." As far as we have any influence upon public opinion they shall have it, but we must wait for the measures as the grounds of reflecting and rational confidence.—Mori' ing Herald. It is our duty in recalling the attention of our readers o the interesting proceedings at the Mansion House on Tuesday to correct, in the first place, whatever is erroneous, and to complete whatever is defective in the report of those proceedings, which we had yesterday the satisfaction of presenting to the publie. Happily this part of our duty is exceedingly light. We give in another column what is understood to be an autho rised version of the Premier's admirable speech, chiefly because we feel that the public have a right to de mand of us—not merely a faithful and accurate report of what fell from this eminent Statesman, upon so important an occasion—but the most per fect report that can possibly be obtained, and because also (why should we conceal it ?) we are really gratified by the opportunity of showing how few and minute are the particulars in which any difference can be traced between this authorized version, and our own original and more hurried report. We have infinite pleasure also in sponta neously correcting an accidentol error in our report of another part of the proceedings. The first toast given by the Lord Mayor was the right one, the good old English toast of " Church and King," which, unfor tunately, and as our readers will readily believe quite unintentionally, was mutilated in our report into con formity with more modern usage. To recur, however, to the speech of Sir R. Peel. It must be acknowledged, on all hands, whether we regard the circumstances in which it was delivered, the effect which it is calculated to produce, or the character and position of the speaker, that this address deserves all the pains that journalist can take, and all the attention that readers can bestow. It is, like the letter to the electors of Tarnworth, a frank, manly, direct, and unambiguous exposition of the prin ciples by which the Administration of Sir R. Peel will be guided ; but it differs from that production, as good taste and right feeling required that a speech at table should differ from a written address ; it sheds upon those prin c i p l es t h e li ght of a more splen did eloquence, and warms them with the glow of a more fervent expression. The speech has also this further advantage over the letter, that Sir Robert Peel on Tuesday was surrounded by th e whole body of his col leagues, assenting to every word which he spoke, con firming every expression, corroborating every assurance, affording to the people of England their separate and united guarantee that every profession was uttered in good faith, that every promise would be scrupulously and religiously observed. Sir Robert Peel undertakes for himself and his colleagues to conduct the Govern ment of Great Britain in the manner and upon the principles which are best calculated to command the confidence, conciliate the favour, and merit the sup port of the nation ; and instead of pledging his Ad ministration to " relieve particular burdens, or hastily to adopt particular remedies, thereby debarring the THE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 25, 1834. Government from affording that fair consideration which is due to the claims of all interests, and putting out of their power a deliberate application of the most efficacious remedies," he describes what he asul his colleagues believe to be the temper, opinions, and principles of the nation whose support they are to merit, whose favour they wish to conciliate, and whose confidence they hope to command. Is there any Mis take in the estimate of the national principles and feel ings to which the Prime Minister of the King refers, in order that the meaning of his pledge—his only but his large and comprehensive pledge—to govern in sym pathy and union with the nation may be more clearly and fully understood ? If there be no mistake here, and we feel assured that there is none, the. Adminis tration of Sir Robert Peel, acting ag it will act in strict accordance with its professions, cannot fail to be a suc cessful and p o p u l ar _ a l 'as i tministration. But l e t us hear a.. it. Peel ;--" I believe that if the public feeling-of this country found expression in words, it . would speak in these or similar terms—' We are tired of agita tion—we are tired of that state of continued excite recut, the effect of which in private life is to withdraw men from their proper business, and in public life is to consume the energies of public men on other than their proper duties. We hate the pressure from without. We are content that the public will should be ex pressed through authorised and constitutional organs. At the same time we require Government to be admi nistered for the aole purpoSe of promoting the true interests of this country. We require that there shall be a full and patient consideration of everything that can be Nil) , suspected as partaking of the character of abuse, and if, after such patient consideration, the ' abuse be proved, we require that it shall be corrected, first, from hatred of the abuse, and, secondly, from love and respect for those ancient institutions which abuse has the tendency to disfigure and impair.' This passage in the speech of the Right Hon. Baronet would alone be sufficient to convince us that he thoroughly understands the national mind of England, and that he and his colleagues are unanimously and firmly resolved that their Government shall maintain the strictest conformity with it.—Morning Post. Yesterday produced a large accession of signatures to the address proposed at the City of London Tavern last Tuesday, and which, with the names annexed, will be very speedily published. It is a fact worthy of no tice, that many of the most respectable Dissenters have signed the paper in question. The circumstance is at present the more striking, from the inveterate violence of the political chiefs and agitators of that numerous body, and their incessant efforts to excite the hostility of their brethren against the Church of England. But there are moments at which party, and even sectarian —the strongest of all patty zeal—must give way to apprehensions for men's lives and fortunes, and for the well-being of their families. The Dissenters who hive signed their names to the address have in some instances alleged as their motive for doing so, that been .Reformers, they durst not encourage the Radi cal-Destructive faction, congregated by such suspi cious methods, and for objects so avowedly sinister, as they showed themselves to have been on the occa sion of the meeting. They durst not, by withholding their signatures from a loyal address, afford even ne gative countenance to men who, in their eagerness for undefined and headlong change, unmasked the spirit of revolution. All the account§ which we have seen demonstrate that there was a plan formed, and dili gently and systematically executed, to put down the meeting of merchants and bankers by the clamour of a disciplined mob. Placards were borne about the streets, and invitations and incitements held out by bills stuck up upon the walls, or dis tributed in every direction. This, which involved the hire of many hands, must have cost some pounds to somebody, and it is no far straining of conjecture, that the few individuals who personally took the Most prominent part in disturbing and confounding the business of the day were those also upon whom fell the weight and trouble of the preparations for the tumult. In our opinion Mr. Grote went far enough in putting the question relative to the nature of the meeting in the committee-room, and ought to have been satisfied with the answer which he there re ceived. If the hon. gentleman had reflected for a moment, he must have convinced himself that such a question,' receiving such an answer, in the presence of a hostile multitude who occupied the public Too m, could have led to nothing short of disturoance. We have elsewhere inserted an able and well-written letter, which is the more entisied to notice from us because it reasons upon the conduct we have held for some time past, and impugns our expressed confidence in the necessity, and therefore in the reality, of those re forms which the country has to look for from the present Ministers. Now we must begin by asserting our own strict impa r ti a lity as between the late Ministers (con sidering the Melbourne Administration to be a conti nuation of Lord Grey's) and those who have succeeded them. There passed not a week while the Whigs were in power, during which they were not severely handled by this journal, which process was unflinchingly repeated by us as often as we found them shirkinee flagging, faltering, or blunderi ng i n t h e course o f Reform, or in the measures which became a liberal and. enlightened Government; and that, we must beg leave to repeat, was not a rare occurrence. Yet for not a few of those Lords and Gentlemen we had, and still entertain, as individuals, sincere regard and esteem, which did not, however, prevent us from doing our duty by the country, and in a manner so little pleasing to the Ministers, that a letter from Lord Althorp to the late Chancellor is now matter of notoriety, proposing to that learned and discreet personage the alternative of peace or open war with the Times. But will any man who has the least regard to truth affirm, that with the single exception of Lord Brougham,who has never rested from forcing himself on public attention, we have in any instance, since their full from office, uttered one disre spectful or unkind syllable of his Majesty's late advisers, either as men or Statesmen ? Known facts we have been compelled to state, but they belong to history, and the reference to them is no matter of-com plaint or just resentment. But have we not, from the first hour, described the abrupt dismissal of the late Cabinet as in many respects a misfortune to the coun try ? and in regarding it as for the present irretrieveable, have we not discharged the duty of honest men and lovers of public tranquillity, by pointing out to our fellow-subjects the many grounds for acquiescence and confidence which remain to them under the ex isting state of things, and the reasons which satisfy our own minds, that from any Administration, however ili-disposed (though we are far from attributing bad dispositions to the chiefs of the new Ministry), the people, fortified by their newly-acquired rights, have literally nothing to be alarmed at ? It is true, and we should be wanting in common 'candour to deny the asser tion of our correspondent "NV.," that there are several names in the present Cabinet, which, in common with the great majority of our countrymen, we would rather have seen any where else—that is to say, if we were not sure that such persons have been admitted into the. Government as executive officers only, and will have no shadow of control or influence over the measures of their chiefs. Is it imaginable - that the Duke of Wellington, Sir Robert Peel, Lord Lyndhurst, or Lord Aberdeen would suffer Messrs. Herrics and Goulburn, or Sir E. Knatchbull, or Lord Ellen borough to obstruct or bias the determination of their policy ? But we have been taunted with an assumed discrepancy between our declared opinion that "mea sures, not men," ought to be the rallying point of a free people, and Sir Robert Peel's expression that he would not be contented to live under a Government com posed of members in whom he could not trust. Why, the difference is in sound, not meaning. Sir R. Peel's dis trust of men is of men from whom- he cannot expect good measures. Our indifference of the men, provided we are secure of measures, still supposes'that the Mi nisters must be such as will grant, whether from ne cessity or inclination, the measures to which we do at tach importance. Now, we are conscientiously of opinion, that given the capacity of the Reform Bill to enforc e a system o f popular legislation Upon every English Government—a point for which we have always contended, and which we never . shall 'be inclined to yield, but on sad, and what appears to us impossible, experience —the existing Ministry, as a whole, is more expert and efficient in the business of the State—is more capable of applying a aeoogniZed principle, by practical and smoothly working details, than their predecessors ever showed themselves. It has also the valuable quality of moral courage founded on sagacity and experience, and will not suffer itself to be kicked out of office one day, and coaxed back to it the nelt, at the will and pleasure of the " mountain" party of the House of Commons. The outcry raised against our maliim of " measures, not men," therefore, ha§ ha seiise Etat hiettiiiiig in it, Unless it supposes us to signify the very reverse of what our words import-- namely, an absence of all choice as between men who will voluntarily or otherwise grant good measures, and men who will or can refuse them. As for the stric tures of our correspondent upon the anticipated policy of the Duke of Wellington towards foreign States, we are firmly persuaded that the noble Duke is the fittest statesman in the empire, under the present condition of Europe, to fill that important office. Let our corres pondent recollect that Poland was not lost under his Government, but under the Administration of Lord Palmerston and the Whigs ; that it is under the Grey Cabinet and its sleepy diplomatists that Russia has been suffered to mature her schemes against the Otto mans, and that, whatever may be the Duke's feelings with regard to Spain and Portu ga l, h e i s b oun d d own to both by solemn treaties, which Sir Robert Peel has pledged himself and his colleagues to maintain invio late.— Times. In our paper of yesterday we made some allusion to the conduct of the vestrymen at the meeting on Mon day evening last. Without considering how far their assembling to select a representative for the borough of Mary-le-bone may be a departure from the objects and intentions of their office, it is clear that in prohibiting the electors, who were present at the meeting, from giving their votes its a decision in which they were equally interested, the vestrymen assumed an autho rity un warran t e d b y reason , an d i nconsis t ent with the principl es o f lib era li ty t h ey were assem bl e d to vin d i cate and support ; and that such were the sentiments of a large portion of the meeting is evident, since, of the number present, not above eighty-five would so far join in the proceedi ngs as t o vote i n t h e selection of a candidate. SOMe strange inconsistency seeing to have pervaded the proceedings of the meeting, since of the candidates who were voted for, one must have bee:: without a proposer, there not being a single vote in his favour I while from another no answer had been received to the application of the vestrymen, to know his inten tions of becoming a candidate on the conditions they had proposed. - It is with considerable regret we contem plate the injuries which may result to the cause of Reform MarylebOne from so injudicious a course of proceeding ; for while the attention of reformers is directed to vestry meetings balancing the merits of candidates, the true means of success are abandoned to their adversaries,who are straining every nerve in canvassing the electors. We still hope, however, the time may be retrieved by the union and activity of the Reformers, and we have little doubt of their success, should they combine their ef forts in favour of Sir John Scott Lillie, supported as he is by the powerful influence of the Licensed Vic tuallers, and the many friends he has acquired by his exertions as resident Magistrate for many years in the county. We would advise the attendance at the pub lic meeting to which the Vestrymen are to make their report of as many of our readers as are anxious, by their votes, to secure for Marylebone the success of the liberal cause, by the choice of a candidate who can combine in his favour the entire strength of the reform in terest. In our paper of yesterday we observed that " the Chairman, Mr. Hume, does not appear, according to report, to have conducted himself politically in the way the public had a right to expect from him. The decision of the Committee is such that if Sir John Scott Lillie is not put upon the list, the result will be that one, if not two, Tories will be returned for that borough." The above sentence bears a meaning which was never intended. IVe never spoke, or meant to speak, disrespectfully of Mr. Hume's conduct as Chairman, in which capacity he has on all occasions evinced a calm ness of temper, and an impartiality in hearing all par ties, which cannot be too much applauded ; and if the article had appeared as it was meant to appear, the Honourable Member would have had no occasion to. complain of it. But let that pass as one of the errors incidental to an accumulation of business, against which it is impossible to fight always with success. Suffice it to say that Mr. Hume will propose Sir John Scott Lillie, in the event of his determination to stand for the Borough of Marylebone, as a fit and proper representative, and with that admission we are satisfied. There is no other candidate on the liberal side who has the slightest chance against him.—Morning, Advertiser. COURT OF CHANCERY, DEC. 24. SWEARING INTO OFFICE THE NEW CHIEF BARON. This morning the new Chief Baron (Sir James Scarlett) was sworn into office by the Lord Chancellor, in his Lord ship's private room at Lincoln's Inn, under the title of Baron Abinger, of Abinger, near Dorking, inSurrey. Barons Parke, Alderson, and Gurney, attended Sir James to Lincoln's Inn, and were present during the ceremony. The patent is now preparing for the elevation of the Learned Gentleman to the Peerage. BARRATT V. HOWARD. This case stood at the head of the paper for judgment, which the Lord Chancellor proceeded to deliver. The bill was filed for the specific performance of an agreement to purchase a house at Tunbridge. The defendant alleged that the agreement had been signed by her brother, and denied that she had given him an authority to the extent to which that agreement would have the effect of binding her. His Lordship stated the effect of the evidence given in the cause, and his conclusion was, that the Court could net decid e upon it until some of the witnesses had been examined viva voce, and particularly the clerk of the plain tiff's solicitor. He therefore directed an issue to be tried at law to ascertain the fact whether the party signing the agreement was lawfully authorised by the defendant for that purpose. ANDREWS V. WALTON. Mr. TINNEY begged to be allowed to proceed with a part-heard motion, when The LORD CHANCELLOR said—No, Mr. Tinney, there is a motion for the discharge of a prisoner, and as long as I have the honour of holding the Great Seal I am deter mined, that in every case where the liberty of a subject is at stake, to hear all motions for his discharge, before I pro ceed with any other business. Mr. WA.KEPIELD and Mr. ANDERSON were heard at great length in support of a motion to discharge the plain tiff from prison for irregularity. His bill having been dis missed with costs an attachment was issued against him for the costs, and he Was arrested on it in the passage to the Registrar's-office, where lie was inveigled by the other party for the purpose of arresting him. The arrest was wrong, being in a privileged place, where he was invited for the purpose of passing the minutes of the decree. Another irregularity was that the attachment had not been pre viously entered with the Registrar. The clerk of the de fendant discovering these irregularities, discharged that at tachment of his own accord, and issued new one, upon which Mr. Andrews was now in prison for eighteen months. The Learned Counsel contended that the second attach ment ought to be held inoperative. The LORD CHANCELLOR decided against the motion. The motion was refused, and the prisoner remanded. Several applications in cases of lunacy were made and granted in the course of the day. NICIIOL V. NICHOL. Mr. ROMILLY said he had to apply in the case of a ward of Court, a lady of nineteen years of age, who had contracted marriage without leave of the Court, for an order of re ference to the Master, to inquire if it was a proper mar riage. The gentleman, the other party to this clandestine marriage, was a tailor, but in good circumstances, and the lady's friends did not think him unsuitable. The lady has a fortune of four thousand pounds. Mr. RICHARDS appeared on behalf of the lady's friends, to say they diilnot object to the gentleman. The parties were in the precincts of the Court, ready to submit to its protection. _ Tho LORD CHANckx,Loa . would hea r th e ma tt er i n hi s private room at the rising of the Co ur t. The names of the parties did not transpire in Court. VICE-CHANCELLOR'S COURT, DEC. 24. In consequence of the Lord Chief Baron's having to take the oaths this morning, in the Court of Chancery, his Honour did not come into Court till some time after his usual hour. WELLESLEY V. BEAUFORT. This petition prayed the transfer of certain funds to the eldestf October son Wellesley, who came of age on the 7th o tob of M erlast.r. The funds were the proceeds of the sale of certain real estates, of which Mr. Wellesley, junior, was tenant in tail in possession under the will of Sir John Tilney Long, and the marriage setticmdnt of his father, Mr. Wellesley. The prayer o f th e pet i t i on was o f course granted. His HoNoun having disposed of all the unopposed peti tions, rose at half-past one o'clock. COURT OF EXCHEQUER, Dtc. 23, SMALL V. ATTWOOD. His LORDSHIP said it a plea to the supplemental bill filed by the plaintiffs, which plea stated that Francis Bailey, one of the plaintiffs in the supplemental bill, had disposed of his shares and interest in the partnership, so that at the time the bill was filed he had no interest in the concern, or in any of the proceedings. This was the substance of the plea, and the question was whether, under the circum stances of the case, it was a good defence to the bill. It appeared to his Lordship that the facts as alleged by the plea had not been made out, and consequently the plea must be overruled. Just peevious to Lord Lyndhurst leaving this Court this day—_— Mr. BOTTELER, as senior King's Counsel present, said —Before your Lordship leaves this Court allow me, on behalf cf the gentlemen of the bar,..w.ho..ire in the habit of practising in this Court, to express . the strong sense they feel of the uniform kindness and attention they have experienced from your Lordship since you have presided-in this Court. His Lordship bowed to the whole bar, and immediately retired. SHERIFFS' COURT, DEC. 24. JENKINS V. FROMOW. Mr. HEATON stated this action to be brought to recover ID/. 7s. Id. for money lent (1.50 and board, and dinners furnished by the plaintiff, owner of the Bristol Coffee house in the Strand, to the defendant, who resides at Norwich. A Mr. Brook was examined to prove the case, and he stated that he was in 1831 in the habit of frequenting the Coffee-house in question, and had seen the defendant there. He was shown two letters, which he swore were the de fendant's writing, for he had seen him write more than fifty times. The defendant had admitted in the presence of se veral persons that he owed the plaintiff the sum of 151. and regretted that,- in consequence of losses, he could not pay him : that ho wished Mr. Jenkins would make out his bill for board and dinners, and that it should be paid. There was evidently much confusion in this witness's tes timony as to times and places where he said the defendant had acknowledged the debt, and given his address at Norwich. The Jury, after a short consultation, found a verdict for the plaintiff for 15/. 1 ls. 2d. : that is, 15/. money lent, and 11 s. 2d. for dinners. DEBTORS' COURT.-DEC. 24. dispose of th e arrears , an d The Court sat this mor illn g on its rising adjou r n e d, a t a l a t e h our , until Friday, the 2d of January. Samuel Gibbs, coal-dealer, was opposed by Mr. ;:r9on- ROFFE, on the part of Mr. Burrows, a coal-merchant. Be was supported by Mr. COOKE. The ground of complaint against the insolvent, was that he had obtained a large quantity of coals from Mr. Bur rows shortly before he went to prison, and at a period when his affairs were in a state of irretrievable derangement. It came out in the examination of the opposing creditor, that he had seen the insolvent in prison, and had told him in the course of conversation, that if he put him in the sche dule, as a creditor, lie should oppose his discharge, as he considered his debt had been incurred under aggravated circumstances. Mr. CooxE, on this admission, objected to the opposi tion. The Court had held, is a case of extensive fraud, that a creditor who had made a similar proposition to his debtor, could not afterwards complain of his conduct in the contracting of the debt. An insolvent was bound by his oath to insert in his schedule every debt be owed. The opposing creditor was not aware of that circum stance ; be bad recovered debts which had been omitted from schedules. The insolvent was discharge.l, and Mr. Burrows was ap pointed assignee with another creditor. POLICE INTELLIGENCE. MANSION-HOUSE. Yesterday a very tall man, named George Glover, was brought before Alderman KELLY, who sat for the Lord Mayor, charged with having stolen a cash-box containing 402/. ls., in cash and bank notes, the property of Mr. Larby, the owner of the Crown and Anchor public-house in Moorfields, and of his brother-in-law. Alderman KELLY committed the prisoner for trial. The prisoner said not a word, and upon being asked whether he wished to make any statement shoal( his 'head. A blear-eyed cabman, named Michael Ryan, who has been often seen in different parts of the town, acting some times as an omnib us d r i ver ; some ti mes as a cab driver ; and not acting very creditably in either department of the profession, was brought up by an officer who very humanely protected him on the preceding night. The officer as he was passing along the street saw the defendant, who was driviag a cab, tumble from his seat. The wheels passed over the defendants's legs, and a crowd gathered round him, and witness raised him up and carried him to the nearest surgeon, the general belief being that the poor fellow must have had both of his legs broken. To the astonishment of those who witnessed the accident, the moment the defendant was put down in the shop he stood upon his legs, and walked about as if nothing had hap pened. Witness did not think it possible that the wheels of a cab should have rattled over a pair of legs with im punity, but could not refuse assent to the opinkin of the surgeon, that no damage had been done. • Alderman KELLY—What on earth are your legs made of, defendant ; wood or cast iron ? Cabman—l do'nt think, please your Worship, they are made otherways nor another body's, but I know they always stand to me whether I'm drunk or sober. , Alderman KELLY (to the officer)—May you not be mis taken in saying that the wheels actually passed over his legs ? Witness—Not at all. I saw it myself. The people thought he was killed, but he was only drunk. Mr. Hobler—l dare say he will get drunk again to-night, upon the pretext that it was the gin that saved his life. Defendant—No, your Honour. I'll never get drunk again as long as 1 live. Alderman KELLY—How often have you sworn that within the last month ? Defendant—Every day I got sober, your Worship.--(Laughter.) Alderman KELLY—A very respectable cab-driver you must be! I dare say that although your own legs escape, you sometimes break the legs of your customers. De fendant—No, your Worship. I don't think I've broke many legs.—(Great laughter.) I a'nt the driver of this cab. The cabman was gone for to sup with his club and play a game of cribbage ; and says he to me, " Alic," says he, "go and earn a shilling ;" so I goes along, and I gets a countryman of my own for a customer, so we stops and drinks at every public-house we come to. Alderman KELLY—And where did you part ? Defendant—He left me in the Minories, for the mare slipped there, and he was bowled eut into the mud ; so I thought it unsafe to drive a man that couldn't keep his seat ; for where a customer's bowled out the people always says its my fault. Alderman KELLY observed upon the numerous serious accidents which happened in consequence of the looseness of the law with respect to drivers. He was about to inflict the penalty of 6s. upon the deputy cabman, but discharged him upon being told that all the property found upon his person was a farthing and a piece of an old horse-sltoe, which he had pocketed for good luck. GUILDHALL Yesterday two young men of respectable appearance, named Arthur Barnes and Chas. fousiffi., were brought be fore Sir John Key, in the custody of Herdsfield. the Guild hall officer, to account for their possession of a bill of ex change for 891. Bs., part of a number of bills and bank notes, to the amount of 4301., with which a clerk in tke ser vice of Messrs. Barron, Harvey, and Co., druggists Gilt spur-street, absconded on Saturday last. Sir J. KEY thought their conduct was so suspicious that he should remand them for a few days unless they could give good bail for their appearance. They were accordingly remanded. QUEEN-SQUARE. A Mr. Bradfield, of Derby-street, Parliament-street, applied to the sitting Magistrates, Messrs. GREGORIE and BURRELL, relative to a decision of the latter gentleman upon what be considered a most important point under the new Act of Parliament for regulating the weights and measures. Mr. Bradfield stated that he had been an inhabitant of Westminster 21 years, and he was deputed by several tradesmen to ascertain whether a report which had ap peared in most of the morning papers was correct or not ? Mr. Burrell, according to that report, had decided that the city and liberties of Westminster were not at all liable to the new law, and that there was no necessity for tradesmen having their weights and measures re-stamped. He consi dered this decision, if reported correct (which he doubted), completely at variance with the new Act of Parliament, and he wished to ascertain from the Magistrat es w h e th er the decision upon this important Act as it bad gone forth to the public was correct or not ? Mr. Bradfield here produced a newspaper containing the report in question. Mr. BURRELL said the report was perfectly correct. Mr: Bradfield then contended that if such had .been the decision of the magistrate, it was calculated grossly to mis lead the tradesmen of Westminster, and he considered it a complete trap for informers, and baited, too, in the most delicate manner. GREGORIE—For what do you apply ? Mr. Bradford—l wish to have the report which has ap peared in the newspapers publicly contradicted, to set the. tradesmen of Westminster right with regard to the Act. it is stated that there are no inspectors of weights and mea sures appointed for Westminster. That is a gross untruth. There is an office at the Guildhall, Westminster, specially assigned for the regulation of weights and measures. A country Magistrate who was on the Bench said that the Magistrates had not appointed any inspectors under the new Act. Mr. Bradfield said that by the new Act of Parliament they were called upon to appoint inspectors, under the 10th clause, within th e i r respect i ve j ur i s di ct i ons. He considered that his application was of paramount importance to the tradesmen of Westminster, as it was absolutely necessary that a proper conclusion should be made upon the point. He had made an application to Mr. White, who would , not entertain the subject. _ GREGORIE informed Mr. Bradfield that if he would bring forward any complaint of a definite nature he would listen to it, and requested him to sit down. M. Bradfield then entered into a long explanation vrith regird to the provisions of the Act ; but as the Magistrates considered that there was no case before them, he was de sired to retire. Mr. Bradfield still continued his address about the re port being a trap for the tradesmen of Westminster, and the Magistrates were at length compelled to direct the officers to eject him, and, after a few words with the officers, be retred, declaring that he would immediately ico t o the Secretary of State's office to complain. 1 1 fARLBOROUGH-STREET. A Gentleman named Ewen, applied to Mr. CONANT ou bellalf of a number of tradesmen in the palish of St. James, who were in some doubt in respect of the course required by the recent Act, relative to the re-stamping of their weights and measures. They were under the im pression that they were exempt from the operation of the new Act because they lived in Westminster. In the Act itself, however, no particular exemption appeared ; but in the schedule of the Act there was a.clause excepting the cities of London and Westminster, which afforded gro unds for inferring that the intention of the Legislature was to exempt those portions of the metropolis. The question was of the greatest importance to all parties engaged in trade, as in the case of any mistake as to the meaning of the Act on their parts they would no doubt be subject to the bar raHng proceedings of informers. Mr. CONANT fully agreed with Mr. Ewen in considering the matter to be of great importance, and intimated his in tention of applying for information to Mr. Phillips, the Under-Secretary. Mr. Ewen having called yesterday by appointment, Mr. Conant informed him he had seen Mr. Phillips, but at present he was not prepared to say anything decisive o n the quo ,tion. Mr. Phillips had intimated that as yet Counsel's opinion had not been taken on the point. The matter, therefore, remains for the present in an un determ;;:'2d form. Yesterday informati on was g i ven o f an extens i ve jewel robbery, cornr o ;;ted on Wednesd a y n i g h t at t h e man sion of Lady C ann i ng , ut,;svenor-square. The property was usually deposited in her Ladyship's bed-chamber, and was contained in boxes and drawers on the evening it was stolen. Her Ladyship, we believi, lives much retired, and is but seldom disturbed by large parties. O. Wednesday some ladies dined with her, anti this was seized by the perpetrutors of the robbery as a very excel lent opportunity. Her Ladyship saw the jewellery safe at eight in the evening, and at ten it was missed. Ballard, 1/ 0 officer of this establishment, has examined the premise thoroughly. There is a pane of glass broken in the attic window, seemingly in order to enable a person from the out side to withdraw the bolt in the inside, so that the window might be pushed up. Ballard has tried, and finds it impose &ble to have forced the bolt through the aperture, and feels confident, after examining the root; on which there is n° mark of footsteps, that this is merely a ?we to mislead in quirers. None but the most valuable articles have been tak. f ii, and these have been so picked for in the apartment as to show that none but those intimately acquainted with the 1 )ca!ity could have perpetrated the robbery. It is but just to the domestics to state that they all bear the most excellent eh erecter. The following is a list of the property stolen : —A se t of amethysts and crysolites, consisting of necklace, ear-rings.„ clasp, and brooch ; a nec kl ace , b race l et, and oar-r i ngs , °I rose diamonds and rubies, with a small gold chain and cross ; a set of chrysolites, consisting of necklace, with gold chain, girandole earings, branch with drops, a nd cf . .mb set in Gothic points ; a set of garnets, necklace, bracelets, ear-rings, comb, cross, broaches, and ornament s a set of turquoise and pearls, necklace, bracelets, head-or nament, clasps, and ear-rings ; a massive gold bracelet; with cat's-eye op a l s ; severa l ot h er b race l ets and armets °' gold and coloured stones ; two sevignes, with coloured stooce drops, and enamel ; two rope pattern gold chains, ° ll bright gold, the other dead ; several other gold chains, 0 ` various sizes and patterns,. and some Venetian gold chain, very small ; a gold watch chain, with serpent slide, and bunch of seals ; an elastic serpent gold necklace ; an enam melled cross of the Legion of Honour ; gold empossed Dutch costume head ornaments and ear-rings ; set of g old and silver filagree chess men ; several rings, seals, clasps , and other ornaments. Three gold watches, and other al' ticks of value, are also stolen. W ORSHIP- STREET. Henry Banks, IV. Chapman, and John Pheasant, men of respectable appearance, who described themselves to 10 nocturnal musicians, were brought up from the station-hous e of the H division, and charged before Mr. Twyford with creating a disturbance on the preceding night in Brick-lane' S i ,.;talfields, under the following circumstances : It aoeared by the evidence of several constables of the H division, that about twelve o'clock on the night preced ing, the prisoners struck up in a charming manner in front of a public-house, and shortly after they were joined by " German set of waits. They played in rivalship for so"' minutes, when the prisoners, considering that they were be ing outvied by the Germans, created a great disturbanc e, and assaulted them, but instead of the Germans retorting, they made off. The constable, on interfering to p r eserve, order, met with every o b s t ruc ti on f rom th e pr i soners , an 4 they in consequence took them all to the station-house. The prisoners said that they had now been carrying ' l2 their profession in the neighbourhood of Spitallields as oril" for about three wee k s , an d th ey h a d never b e f ore me t Wit' , rivals in the district that they claimed. Mr. TWYFORD reprimanded them rather severely, o na then ordered their discharge. UNION-HALL. Yesterday Count Alexander Szaduiski, charged with ut tering a forged bill of exchange for .500/., purporting to be drawn by the house of Steiglitz and Co.. St. Petersburg . ' to George Finch, of Shooter's Hill, was brought before Mr. TRAILL for final examiliAtion. The office, as on the former occasion, was crowded with persons, and after addi tional evidence had been taken agaizst the prisoner, be .W committed on the charge of uttering a .500/. bill of ex change, knowing it to have been stolen, and also on th e charge of fraud. There is said to be this difference between politics and policy; the former being wisdom for one's country — t b° latter wisdom for one's self. BIRTHS. On the 17th inst., in Grosvenor-square, Lady Emily Pusey....,° f : daughter. Also, on the 21st inst., the Countess of Carnarvon, daughter. On the 22d inst., a t Richmond, the Hon. L a dy Susst'x Lent °lcP of a son. On the 21st inst., in Cadogan-place, the lady of Captain E. Daniell, H. C. S., of a daughter. .111 A RI? lED. Oa the 21st inst., at St. Georg e ' s Ch urc h, Si r Al ex . 161 lot. of Bart., of Welbury, Wiltshire, to Mariann e D ora , on l y d au ghter - the late John Spalding, Esq., of The Holm, New Gallowa/. On the 24th inst., at St. M ar yl e b one , J . M . Elwes, of loss`rle ton, Hants, Esq., to Emily, daughter of the Rev. Dr. Custom , Prebendary of Westminster. On the 22d inst., at South Cadbury, Somersetshire, the Re l. George Moberly, Fellow of Balliol College, Oxford, to Mary It l l,' eldest daughter of Thos. Crokat, Esq., of Lansdown-crescent, Ba`" . On the 18th inst., th e R ev. Ri chard Shawcross, of 'Whitehtlrel il ' Salop, to Louisa, eldest daughter of th e l a t e J. C. A. Carrighe n i Esq., of Small Brook Lodge, near th e same p la ce, an d f or merly ° London. DIED. On the 13th i nst., Fl ora E l i zabeth Heathcote Lindsay, °Id"! '" ding-liter of the Hon. Ch ar l es R. Li n d say, o f t h e H on . Company Civil Service, Bengal. On the 23d inst.-, at Epping, Ann, the widow of the late 31asfen Arrowsmith, Esq., and formerly the widow of the late Willis ° Andrews, Esq., of Chelmsford, solicitor, aged 71. On the 10th inst., at Florence, Captain Ferdinand Thomas Wil liamson, late of his Majesty's 73d Regiment, eldest son of the 11 , Rev. Thomas Williamson, Rector of Stoke Damerell, Der and nephew of th e l a t e Si r H e d wort h Willi amson , B ar t, of Whit burn, burn, Durham. _ On the 23d inst., at Brighton, George Parry, Esq., aged 6S• On the 24th inst., in Percy-street, Bedford-square, Mrs. Sa ra W; ht, late of Woodford-bridge, Essex, in her 78th year. On the 20th inst., at Elto n , Huntingdonshire William Ra fus . Gray Bates, aged 19, on ly son of Joshua Bates, Esq., of Portia'," place. On the Bth of August last, at Kulladgee, in the Presidency °.f Bombay, En s i g n R. J. Holmes, Interpreter and Q.M. 26 t h Regi ment N. 1., third and youngest son of N. Holmes, Esq., of Derby. On the 22d inst., at Taunton, Somerset, in her 60th year, Sarah, wile of Lieut.-Colonel Barrow, late of the 69th Regiment. On the 22d in s t., a t B roa d sta i rs , K en t, i n h er 77th year, Ann, wife of Charles Lancaster, Esq., late of Drury-lane, London. , On the 29th ult., M r . G eorg e Moss, of Thames Dittos, aged 64. On the 21st inst.., at Kew-green, Mrs. Mary S. Smith , ag ed I d On the 23d inst., Harry, only son of Mr. Thomas Finden, Jo "in-street, Fitzroy-square, and Baron-house, Surrey, age (l , 23 ,_; o f On the 4th inst., in Flanders, Clara Eliza, second datigal''' Patrick Mannock, Esq., of Gifford's Hall, Suffolk, aged 11. London : Printed and Published by MURDO YOUNG, at The Sus Office, No. 112, Strands with of th arnpt Jinu in T, 'tree Nun TI Four wa r a Re an u ter's Cole Soli( Ham