The Press.
London, England, 1858-09-04 00:00:00

THE PRESS, SEPTEMBER 4, 1858.

LEO X. In the violent and fanatic brief which
that Pontiff gave to his confidential friend, the
Bishop of FABRIANO, when he sent hint to the
Diet of Nuremberg, while he inveighed bitterly
against the new doctrines, and appealed to the
Princes of Germany to draw the civil sword
against all who propagated or even favoured
them, he did not hesitate to own that the troubled
state into which Christianity had fallen was to be
principally attributed to the clergy, and to the
abominations, the abuses, and the excesses which
the Holy See itself had been the source of : the
disease, he said, had begun at the head and thence
spread to the members, till, from the Supreme
Pontiff's down to the lowest prelates, there was no
one to be found who did good—no, not one.

the King and his principal advisers, and between
the King and the members of his family. They
express, I understand, apprehensions of a popular
outbreak, and they say that, from the divisions
which prevail in the royal councils, it is to be
feared that if one takes place it will not be easily
suppressed. The situation of the French Govern-
ment in presence of this Sicilian danger is some -
what embarrassing. On the one hand, it cannot
and will not strength en the King by coming to
a reconciliation with him, so long, at least, as he
shall refuse to make the con cessions which France
and England long ago demanded ; on the other
hand, a successful revolt in the Two Sicilies
might lead to a sudden resuscitation of the
revolutionary spirit throughout Italy and in—
France.

As attention will probably be excited in Eng-
land by the accounts in the newspapers of the
arrest of some Protestants at Maubenge, nea r
the Belgian frontier, who had assembled for
Divine service, and of the prohibition by some de-
partmental prefects of the hawking about of
I'rotestant Bibles, it may be well, in order to re-
move misapprehension, to state that, in all pro.
bability, the Protestants in question neglected to
observe some of the very strict formalities which
are imposed on all public meetings in this
country, even those for Divine worship; and that
the prohibition of Bibles, though in Protestant
eyes extremely illiberal, and even wicked, is no
novelty, and is in accordance with what is done
wherever the Roman Catholic clergy possess
predominating influence. Doubtless, it is to be
regretted that France does not enjoy more liberal
laws ; but as she does not, it would not be fair
to get up an outcry against the present Govern-
ment for executing those she has. It may be
added that in some places, of late years, the re-
volutionary party have held meetings under pre-
tence of being Protestants, and have spouted at
them the wildest sedition—a fact which naturally
renders the Government somewhat suspicious of
the movements of soi-disant Protestants in towns
where Protestants were never before known.

Some weeks back I informed you that Marshal
Bandon had resigned the Governor-Generalship
of Algeria, but I learn to-day that it was not
until yesterday that his resignation was formally
accepted. lie felt bound to give up the post in
consequence of his authority having been trans-
ferred to Prince Napoleon, the new Minister of
Algeria and the Colonies. General M'Mahon, of
Crunean celebrity, will most likely be nominated
Governor of Algeria, with little more than
nominal powers. I hear it said that before long
a series of regulations for that colony, drawn up
by the Prince, will be decreed by the Emperor.
The Emperor and Empress have gone to
Biarritz, leaving behind them, as last year, the
little Imperial -Prince. By the way, when Lord
Palmerston was received by their Majesties, they,
not without pride, showed him the little Prince ;
and it is positively asserted—whether truly or
not I cannot tell—that his lordship solicited and
obtained the honour of kissing him ! If this
should be true, one would almost be inclined to
credit another story which is current about the
noble lord, but which is certainly not becoming
his dignity as an ex-Minister : it is, that hear-
ing that the Emperor wears, in hot weather, a
Panama straw hat, which cost the enormous sum
of 641. English, he humbly prayed to be allowed
to see it, and it was brought forth for him ! A
third story told of him I am not at all disposed
to believe : it is, that on being shown at the
Louvre the coats, waistcoats, chemises, stockings,
pocket-handkerchiefs, and other articles of ap-
parel belonging to Napoleon 1., which are there
exhibited for the veneration of the vulgar, he
was "profoundly affected," and even tried to
shed tears, but couldn't.

A slight thing pleases the Parisians; and they
are now talking, with very evident pleasure, of
having a real Chinese Ambassador in Paris before
long. If one should come, he would certainly
for at least a whole month—an eternity in a
I'arisian season—be one of the greatest lions
ever seen. He would have to eat dinners until
he would be almost dead of indigestion; to go to

soirees until he would be wearied and to finre
at balls until he could scarcely walk; and, besidi
(as the Queen was) he would be overwhelineti
with petitions for charitable donations, and would
be pestered by thousands of people to make them
Knights of the Chinese Orders of the Green
Dragon or the Peacock.
I hear that M. Fould, Minister of State,
rather seriously ill at Vichy. Ills brother (lied
quite recently.
P.S.—From what I hear it is not at all impro•
bable that the French Government will shortly
send an expedition to Madagascar. It is not eren
improbable that under the auspices of Prince
Napoleon an attempt will be made to open up
other African and Asiatic countries to French
commerce : there is even a talk of forming a
grand commercial company to exploiter those
countries.

CORONER'S LAW.
TO TEM EDITOR OF "THE PRESS."

Sir,—ln your strictures upon the mode in which
coroners administer the law, you appear to have over.
looked the terms of the statute from which they
derive their powers. The statute de officio coronatorfi,
after defining this classes of cases into which A
bienqitntitirue,iregdoewsheonwetroe, saanyd:—in whet
Like
wise
it coroner
is
ss
manner, cutlotpoable, either of the act or of the
force, and who were present, either men or
women ; and of what age soever they be (if they
sceaenvesrpebaekfeournd haveeul
paanbyledbiyscirnetitinoin) and h
inquisition
enin
any
neon
yw
of
the
manners aforesaid, they shall be taken and delivered
to the sheriff, and shall be committed to the gaol."
esot ed in
that
htaarngtyedht
he i coroners, ro
with
s nhaeor,
eusl,dni.
ot
be
permitted
epttsoetwdi
yetroasbpslrui
ekrvede
ntthtoeasaerpgevir
ste
offence from being before his court. It is alike doe
to the gravity of the inquiry and to the interests of
the party charged, who might wish to make his
defence, that he should be there. The unseerob
conflict of the two jurisdictions is not created by the
coroner, who simply adheres to a practice which bee
worked well for eight centuries. The powers of the
justices, who are the successors of the conservators of
the peace, and who, like the coroners now, were for-
merly appointed by the freeholders and not by the
Crown, are comparatively modern. The statute I
have quoted will, I think you will admit, disposed
your progressive theory of, Ist, the coroner's inquiry;
2nd, the inquiry before the magistrate; 3rd, the
committal. The fact is simply this, that if a person
should, upon the coroner's inquiry, appear to have
been guilty either of murder or manslauuhter,—
according to the laws of England he stands coni•
mitted, on the coroner's warrant, to take his trial in
the ordinary way. Your maxim, that a coroner
and a coroner's jury are to do nothing more thin
"inquire into the facts," and "everything be
yond that is unnecessary and irregular disquisi-
tion, the sole object and end of which are the
self-glorification of the office," seems to me to require
explanation. The duty of the coroner and thejari
is to inquire whether any person be culpable. Cul-
pable of what? Why, it of anything, it must nee.
eerily be of an offence against the law; and how is s
jury to be reminded of the law, but by the coroner'
and how can that be done, but by explanation and
reference to the law ?
The subject does indeed require ventilating, sod
no doubt it will he. What is wanted is some legisla-
tion upon the subject, ariapted to the exigencies 0.l
t
the age. One great fallacy which appears to prevai
even in well-informed quarters is, that an inquiry
.bY
the coroner is like an ordinary proceeding betore the
justice of the peace, having simply for its object h,
detection of some criminal act. But, rightly viewil
the duties of a coroner embrace a much wider fiei
They extend not alone to the detection of foul p
but to a public investigation by a perfectly
pendent tribunal into the policy and administration
of the laws which relate to the preservation of human
..
Thet;
life—taws which affect our sanitary arran"nien
navigation, manufactures, and railways.
embrace a consideration of all the mean'
by which death in every shape
romay
e
t or
averted. Can you suggest a more a a
Pp p
bunal than one which has existed some eitl_cs.
nine hundred years, and has on many a trying
'".
sion done good service ? What is wanted is to dorn
the
and in some directions to extend, the
powers
salon salon
coroner, and to pay him by a moderate
proportionate to the value cf the services of
tnel;"`_.
and intelligent public servants instead of, by
—I au"
sent objectionable system of payment by fees.nattri
sir, your obedient servant,

Wri.uAm
Bentley, near Doncaster, Aug. 30, 18V.