The Express.
London, England, 1865-05-19 00:00:00

OLD CRAINB.-JOHN BROOD= be
21
to cell the attention of the gab& to the 1101111 ofir
!VICE wttc be delivers with Gold (hard Cluing parebeeta at
by meattfatal II 0. 4.
to wcalasenalp of pattern @bag 64 baba
To (18) carat gold, weaning os. dvit. pa, at
£3 pa ounce, Stint peke

Total
Upoti this system the QUALITY, WZIGHT, and VAIN' et
.be gold are setuelly defined. and gnarenteed to the purchaser
John lirogden looking for • lair remuneration on the w,ohmanship
only, which Is charged according to the intricacy or simplicity of
the gwitteru.—JOHN BIitOODIM Goldsmith —Nlanufactory.
lleorietutetreet, Covent-garden, London. Yatablbhod a.n.119&
N.B. This establishment ls clewed at d in the evening, sad 011
datordays et 1 °Wadi.

R_
MEMBER 1 you wall we your friends at
EVANT atter the Open. We shell sup there.

Attie Orpreoo.

TO 00/31SPONDXNTS.
Advaltelmillft latrikiel kr 0 The limpren" dos Eirtithat
out te at the Mos. 3lloatatts4treat. N TV*
ce its day el pabiladiss.

HATILAIRRT.
TITS 1,111150 R 2111 KILLECII D•vcomm. Roomy.
awl Nadsmos L 1•481 and F. WAAL—OUR=
RICAN COUSIN. Marra Bowes. Ilocketoeo. Rogers. • curio
Raidaess abowdo• and Street—And NISEI UUT OF WATILIL

PIINOISSIL
TES InGGIPi4 GIAST4ILINOS AND WIDDLVITNINGIL
POGOI. Maws. D. loa•Imalt. Peousisal.
H. YsIGIM. D. Tabor. D. Yung, Saitao. ~asD.
%adman and DCbs Oliver.—And AN AWLS APOLOGY.

ATM:MIL
TO VIM', A DAY Ann THZ
W ar, Fi WZDDINO. DON
C.Cialt DS UAW. Nachiar, tzpatrick,
Garden. aad Itarzoond : Yra Leo, sad Mims Lamm and Car-
lotta LAWN.—And IDST CHILD. Kr. Wlldlcomb.

BRITANNIA.
Tea MM.*, BILLUTY AND THZ BKABT. Mean. Luba
and 12ton. Weir St. Came and SoMa.--Ilee Templeton +Oa.
'treat—TlM VOLCANO OF ITALY. Rm. 8. Lanik.—And ARIL
FUN L Idea Yesseld.—Oemeassee se baltsaM
RION WATER AT WNDON-BRIDOII.
TO PAT -- Mariam 411. 1101... —Ananias. am
To-aolaow Mariam 11. Nies.....Aftarsook 9. 60 N.

LONDON, FRIDAY, MAY 19.

A arrincx moved for last March by Mr.
Moreau, setting forth the oaths now required to
be taken by any of her MAJWITY'S subjects in the
United Kingdom, stating of what classes or indi-
viduals each oath is required, and showing also
all oaths that have been abolished or altered since
the let of January, 1829, has just been presented
to Parliament. If Mr. Mowssix wished to show
by this return the beneficial program which bar
been made during the last five-and-thirty years in
the direction of his Bill read • second time on
Wednesday, be has succeeded in that object.
It is only by bringing the multifarious forms
of unnecessary and repealed oaths together into
one view that we are enabled to perceive the
exaggerated part which declaratory and pro-
missory oaths once tilled in our system of
administrative government. Formerly scarcely
a thing could be done in any of the departments
without swearing. This was especially the case
in the Customs. The master swore when he
reported his vessel; the importer when he took out
his brill of sight ; the traveller swore to his map,
or to the " Childs Harold "that he carried in his
pocket ; the tide-waiter swore to his day
and the collector to his account for the carriage of
parcels. There were oaths upon entering fish of
British taking, and more oaths upon exporting
foreign pork ; there were oaths to be taken before
encasing a gangway, and others upon picking up •'
basket. The oath, in short, was universal, and an
appeal to the Darrr was a substitute for the per-
formance of the commonest duties of supervision,
and • cover for every species of fraud. Some of
these oaths vanished before the improved fiscal
legislation which removed the duties that had
given occasion to them. More, however, were
abolished either by Acts of Parliament or Treasury
warrants. A simple declaration made under the
ordinary sanction of the law is found to answer
every purpose for which Heaven was previously
invoked. The public departments in which no oaths
are now taken by the members are
the Foreign-office, the India-office, the Admiralty,
the Board of Trade, the Exchequer, and the Post-
office. The return from the Audit-office exhibits
a number of declarations now substituted for the
oaths formerly administered : among them the fol-
lowing, which savours of the memory of the last
generation, when wars were rife and alliances pre-
carious, and treasons not unknown :
do solemnly and sincerely declare th►t the
money paid to me for foreign secret service (or for secret
service in detectiog, promoting, 'and defeating treasonable
end other daogerous conspiracies against the State) has been
bond Ps applied to the said purpose, or purposes, and to
no other, sad th►t it bath not appeared to me convenieot
to the State that the was should be paid abroad ; and I
make this Dolman deolusitioe, coesciastionaly believing the
same to be true.
It may be hoped that this form has fallen into

Most of the oaths now administered to persons
appointed to public duties will be found, on exa-
mination, to consist essentially of a statement or
acknowledgment of the specific duties of the office.
It is in this, and not in the promise which is
made, that the true value of the oath lies. Who-
ever accepts an appointment as a clerk in a bank
or an actuary in an insurance-office, by the fact of
acceptance undertakes to fulfil all the duties
which belong to it, either from its nature or from
well understood custom, and • promise to dis-
charge them would be considered superfluous.
Even in private engagements, however, it is often
found convenient to define the duties of • post by ,
an exchange of letters, in which each party states
what he expects to give and to receive. The oath
taken by a Secretary of State is of this nature.
It is an injunction not to be privy to anything in-
jurious to the QuEetr's person or dignity, but to
withstand and reveal the same ; further, to keep
the secrets of the QCEILN'S Council, and to defend
her SI.t.TESTY'S authority and pre-eminence
against all foreign prinoes and States. It
is • brief compendium of the Secretary's
duties, and the response he makes to the reading of
the oath is an express acceptance of them. Whe-
ther it is worth while to invoke • holy name to
witness an agreement which is already perfect,
•nd which is placed under the sanction of the law,
may be doubted. It is, however, for the Right
Reverend the Bishops, rather than for the public,
to point out and object to an unnecessary use of
sacred names.

AU the oaths scheduled in Mr. Mowsexes return !
have not, howe ver,this positive and precise aim. There
does not, for instance, seem to be any reason why a
Commissioner of Income Tax should be required to
assume a special obligation to maintain, defend,

and support the succession to the Crown as it
stands limited to the Princess Sonny Electress
of Hanover, and the heirs of her body being Pro-
testants, or to declare that the Pore has no spi-
ritual or ecclesiastical power or pre-eminence in
this realm. As little doss it appear what mischief
would result from the omission to take an oath of
the Constable of the Tower to keep and preserve
all the privileges that lawfully appertain to that 1
venerable institution. The Constable would no I
doubt perceive the propriety of disclosing
to some of the Privy Council, sod with all
convenient speed, anything that he might hear that
was hurtful to the Tower or prejudicial to her
Kuser; althongh he were not solemnly sworn to
those special duties. This oath, however, if obso-
lete, probably has some reference to functions that