The Express.
London, England, 1856-12-15 00:00:00

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THE EXPRESS.—Th. PUBLIC sad TRADE
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HAYMARIZT.
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♦ FAMILY ■AILING. Mr. Barbara,: Mrs S. lass.—isna
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TRINOMIAL
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THE CORSICAN DROTIIIIItS. Mt.C. Kau.

SQUIRM
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Widdloomb. Beall Potter, set Calvert; lilt WM. MA Y. asedise.

STANDARD..
Tan Evrstve. MACBETH. Mr. C. RmSsi I 11:=as
Arabs N 1 parform.—And THE MEM OW
Maim Jests Jollamese, E. B. Or4oll. ■F. libeetri. ma J.
Montane(; MIA Limy, Mt.. a !locust.

RION WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.
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To-acamow—ldanda& 41. Es.-.....Aftsracca, h. 20or

LONDON, MONDAY.

THE rents is drawing to a close, and an wood is
already being opened with the Hovernment as to the
measures about to b 3 brought forward, and—aces
important still—about to be paned, In the came of
the next session. Lord Puri ILMISON has &eland
that a few good mcuu►es complete are better than a
great show of buskin, and mach talk, with amail
pnetinl results. This declaration of the Punkin,
larseetly urged upon that eminently practical body—
the House of Commons—entitles us to expect that the

measures indicated by Government, which ere chiefly
law reforms, will be maenad:y framed, and so clearly
speed upon in the Government itself, as to have the
beet possible chum of forthwith passing into law.
It is necessary, however, that the other parties
concerned in amending our law and policy should
poetically ;remember their responsibility. When
any temporary influence, any ousel incident, reuse
our passiins or our prrjud:ces, we an inundate
Parliament with petition.. Sunday bands, &May
trading, Maine Liquor Laws, or some fashionable
topic, may load the table with platform which prove
nothing so much as the party excitement of the
petitioners, while the most pregnant proposals of
reform are left to be. managed by the parties
whose proper business they are &append to be.
It is natural and nameable that Government should
complain of the defective annoet afforded them by
the people for whose intetests they are working; and
if we would not Lave the despots of the world pre-
Bounce that our institutions are in advance of oar
merits, we must prove that we value our con-
atitatiocal privileges by using them freely aid
diligently. We have now apparently an oppor-
tunity to obtain reforms of the last import-
ance to our domestic morality and our social
Interests : everything depeLds on our signifyiag
oar opinions and wishes with du earnestness: and if
the reform of our EcclesiastiCal Courts, of our law of
Matrimony and Divorce, and some other valuable
ebsogea, fail to be established in the omits, maim,
it will clearly be the fault of an apathetic people.
The Government declare that they are ready;
and Parliament, we know, always doss what
the nation with sufficient earnestness desires. This
is the purpose of its institution; the fulfilment of
that purpose rests with the people. Uwe desire to
get rid of the laws, old sad new, which tura marriage
into a means and a mask of corruption, and to plant
divorce on some principle of reason and humanity,
we must simply declare our desire; or we have no
right to complain that we are misrepresented in
Parliament, and treated with levity or bad faith by
Government. Our case is in our own hands; and if
we send up—u is too probable—ecoree of petitions
against the ticket-of-leave system, while we have
nothing to say about reforms which will obviate
more crime than our whole body of convicts commit,
we so far strengthen the hands of the uremia of
representative institutions. Only last Wednesday
Lord CAMPBELL declared in court, with an emphatic
Amen from the counsel and everybody present, that
be trusted this was the last year in which we should
present to the world the ignominious spectacle of
conjugal dishonour being the basis of a claim for
mosey. He said that he felt ashamed when any
foreign jurist spoke of our actions for crim. con., by
which a man was enabled toput meaty in his pocket
for the dishonour of his wife. If the hacknied
explanation is made—an explanation which no man
living could find out for himself--that our law mites
an action for damages an indispensable step to ob •
taking a divorce, the obvious criticirm is--why do
you allow such a law to remain? However, the law,
we are told, is to be amend-d, and, as Lord CemrsELL
sad the Bar anticipate, this next session, if, indeed, we
exert ourselves sufficiently to speak our minds by
means of petitions in behalf of a bill which, however
short of what we might desire, yet removes the worst
reproaches from the conditions of divorce—ths medals
that divorce can be obtained only by mesas of an
action for damages, in which the wife has no epper.
tunity of explanation or defence; and that Aimee
can be obtained only by persons rich enough to p to
the Lords for it, and spend a poor maa's hotels ow
the case. The opening of the session sproosbos.
What step are we taking to support such molly good
measures as Government hes announced ?
If Government needs the support of petitionessinsh
mote do other prepares of good measures. The Law
Amendment Society is not idle; and the intradmlll
of their measure. haves right to expect and temple*
substantial and energetic support, it their work is to

be done. Early in the masks a Bill le to be brought
is, prepared by that Aseceiation, in favour of which
ipatitions should ba sent in fess all parts of
the kingdom, and the more abundantly en ea
eosin et the sort of opposition which mesh a
aware is sure to encounter. We refer to a
Bill to alter and amend the laws relating to
the property of married women. There is a en&
Moat sanesseikaes between the reasonable wishes
of the wears of England, es already exposed by
peddeas, and the views of law reformer, both within
and without the Association, to guide the petitioners
of this session es to what they ought to ask for. The
first requ4sition is that all property belonging to a
married woman, before marriage or accruing after
marriage, shell, in the absents. of any settlesseut,
belong to her is if she were a fens sole. The
next point follows of eourse—that the wits shall
have, with the pommies of her property, all the
powers and liabilities which belong to it: power to
contract, to ens and be sued in respect of it; and
liability to its being taken in execution upon any
judgment recorded against her, in reaped of contrasts
entered into by her, either before or after marriage.
Again, it is proposed that, in ease of the wife dying
ietestate, the husband shall have the same right
to her property as the wife now has to the
husband's property under the same eircumstaaess.
The husband is not to be liable in respect of any
debts of hie wife contracted before marriage; and
the property of bothshall be jointly liable in rasped
of debts incurred for household expenses and the
maintenance of children where the husband and wife
an living together.

These ire the points, already dimmed and exa.
mined with all du urnestness and an, which form
the substance of the Bill which we are told to expect
early in the session. Fora lug cures of you there
has been a plentiful martian of the mischiefs of the
existing law and practice by which no roam is left
for the requirements of an improved civilisation, sad
of a rising morality ; and, as far as appears, there
is really no denial of the wrong and the atissltiii.
What denial there is is simply of any power to
amend the existing state of thing.. This is the point
to be proved. Times are changed. Women work
for their maintenance—even to the number of nine-

tenths oldie women of England. Their improved
education and altered position enable them to earn
comiderable sums of money, or miller imam
of essential importance to the household. As might
be anticipated, selfish and vicious husbands compel
their wives to maintain the whole family, and even
to support the husbands' profligate pleasures; and
thee the improved capacities of the wife are made ea
injury and a burden to her. The old law, mad*
ender a different state of things, has became intoler-
ably oppressive; and the obvious remedy is to amend
it, fa order to mit existing circumstances.

This must be effected by a gallant =pre miss of
paha° opinion. Individuals, an amociation, a go-
vernment, may propose laws; bat it rests with the
people to get them carried. We might well feel
aehamed to say anything so true IA this, bat it Is the
complaint of all law makers, in every sessios, and
especially in the crisis of any reform, that the people
do not afford them sufficient support. It would be a
pity that, in the prevent ow, the people should more
too later It the bill is to be preamted early i■ the
seirion. it in now high time that the due support
should be prepared. There is no doubt about the
keenness, the virulence of the opposition that will be
made by three whose passions, prejudices, or interests
will be crossed by this reform. The zeal of oar
moralists, of our wisest husbands, of oar best wives,
of oar clar•sighted lawyers, and of our hard-headed
and warm-hearted lovers ofj notice and domestic peace

should be in proportion to the opposition—lsoWever
vigilant, earnest, and persevering. When the energies
are fairly snatched, the best cause will carry the day.

Vbe Court.

OSBORNE, Du. 13.
l'he Clean and Prince walked out yesterday
V 6•

no Primers Royal went oat deviag.
Tlo royal oltildzen took their usual awes&

Dad. 14.
Das Musa sad Priam, with the royal !address. walked 's
t►e grew* at °shoals yesterday.
Tb. Maharajah Dhaka') Singh arrived oa a visit to bar
Majesty. Ms Jobs Lassa was la stadium, ea We Highs's,.

The Committer of the War Department held a nasetlag
eri Saturday, at the Moe of the Secretary of State for War,
La Pall-mall. Present—the Duke of Cambridp, Vieseast
Palmerston, Lord Penman, Sir Charles Wood, /Ir. Seem
Wiry Lebonehers, Sir John Burgoyne, Colons] Owen, HAW
Jena', sad Captain Lass.
♦ meetiag of the Cambridge University Collnilleloll was
held on Wedneaday, the 10th init., at 6, Adelphi-terraire.
Present—the Lord Bishop of Liehil4d, the Lord Biology of
Chester, Load ficauley, the Right Ha.. M. T. Baines, the
Right Hon. Sir Laurence Peel, the Very 8... the Dina cf
Ely, sad the Roo. Dr. Vaughan.
The Chancellor of the Erchrquer left town CS Saturday
for hi. mat, Harptos Court, Hilltop, Herefordshire.
Despiteful' for the Governor of the Cape of Good Hope
were seat es Saturday from the Colonial-Moe.

Has Majesty will, it is said, by in out of singular
rase mad searteey, evince her gene of the good foam of
the UMW& State", by to-morrow paying a visit to the
Amebae, sad biddlag Captain and hie "flan