The Express.
London, England, 1868-02-08 00:00:00

vac ilea of his at once, without judicial experience,
_ . _

with very moderate learning, and no high capacity
of any kind, being foisted into au appellate posi-
tion, where his mistakes admit only of tedious
and costly correction, is an outrage on the adminis-
tration of justice in the Court of Chancery.
lay offering the appointment to Sir Itoustani.
PaimEs, it may be said that the LORD CHAN-
et:LLutt did his best to avoid weakening the appel-
late court. hut the offer was, in truth, illusory,
if:a-smut:li as Sir Itot.Nort.t. PALMER was, it is
notorious, indisposed to leave the bar. And
there was an arrangement which would have
I,erii hailed with satisfaction, under the circum-
stances, by the whole profession. We mean the
appointment of Sir W. PACE Woon as Lord
Justice and his devotion to the Peerage, which
would have beneficially reacted on the administra-
tion iu the House of Lords also. To have raised
a second-rate practitioner to a position where be
has to review the judgments of Sir W. P. Wooi,
a magistrate of the highest capacity, to say nothing
of those of Sir JOHN STUART, distinguished by
great experience and strong sense, and of Sir It.
MaLiNs, is certainly a feat for Toryism to have
performed. It shows how the claims of party
prevail over the highest interests of the public.
No Lord Chancellor of modern times, other than
the present, would have been guilty of such an act.
Lord Cuetvisroito's judicial appointments are, it
is to be understood, to be confined to party
lawyers, however inferior in qualification to the
lawyers that might be selected were the field of
choice enlarged to the public advantage. We
know, and must be prepared for, the worst.

Oxman has just been the scene of another of
those extraordinary gatherings of the country clergy
which so astonish foreign—and even some native
oblervers—when it is explained that they are ono I
of the resuur:es of the government of our greatest I
University. The occasion which drew so many
non resident members of Convocation together last
Thursday was the election of a Professor of Poli-
tical Economy. There was no unusual difficulty
in the case to call fur remote assistance. Oxford
already had a must efficient Professor of that
science in the person of the Rev. J. E. THOROLD
RoJEus, who has devoted himself to the duties of
his chair with an energy and conscientiousness
known to all who interest themselves in the affairs
of the University. The term of five years for
which Mr. Rouses was elected had expired, and
he offered himself for re-election. We believe it
will be found that a majority of the residents sup-
ported Mr. Rouses, but the country clergy voted
for Mr. BON AMY Parer. We are not called to
infer from this fact that political economy has
suddenly become a favourite study in our seques-
tered vicarages, and that exchanges and incon-

vertible issues are now the waking dream of arch-
deacons! and rural deans. Mr. Boxiart Paica's
new lights on these and other subjects, however
gay and dazzling they may be, might have failed
to attract members of Convocation to Orfcrd,
without some other powerful inducements. Of
what nature these were has been made sufficiently