The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-03-02 00:00:00

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'X~


accusation Ina made w tbe .41 We see le be vomisred at
that he met it instant Op bib* 1114 She no.
mem exeited,etby the saleoien ammo& lib VII
to emerge, studtat
air woad yet hoe
adopted. Perhaps tee 'felt- Mb. ex* • iao eseddiely at
an accusation 'Mitts, Se It was reareirealeseed to bins, he felt
l" Altiriotk'apid frAtin ; ang t net to be wondered
at tivirere alsould hive fat and sinlistlignandy on hearing such
a charge' preferred again* him, alter to many years of merits and
aersicese (Chesil Melt the Miniserld et.) lie might not
s virtues "on his sleet le! dews tbitoek: at.'" Re might
ehei. sen'siti'vely afWe to Shit be believed to be unjust
duct ; but If to be too sensitive on such a sub.
'I be remembered that It was only an excess
,should therefore be not toe harshly dealt with.
imated to him, that the papers which contained
'h formed the foundation of the Lord Chan-
n only put into his hands as he was going
impression created in his mind might
strong excitement which provokedthe unfor-
', was the subject of this night's discussion.
at the statement of the Hon. Gentleman was
tne Lord Chancellor had commented; and be-
Chancellor and the Hon. Gendrnan there was a
h the error lay. That error was the inisrenre-
of the lion. Gentleman. This explar.ation
he applicability of any harsh remark which
in have pronounced. The Hon. Gentleman
any imnutation on him, fully to the satin-
i of tit! country. It was unnecessary,
and now that it had appeared it was
a misrepresentation of it, that the ob-
.....____ eielicable, he would ask the lion. Member,
in candour, If that misrepresentation was not calculated to excite
in the mind of the Lord Chancellor a cerresponding indignation
to that Wh'eh he so properly felt and expressed that night, on the
sepporition that he was the object of the expression which was so
clearly inapplicable to him. Under these circumstances, as the phrase
was one occasioned by a misapprehension which was not Tectitied ;
it the Hon. Wender therefore persisted in pressing his motion to
a divislce. he would certainly vote against it, and more particu-
larly, as the Hoe. Gentleman had set himself right in the opinion
of the House and of the country. (Hese, hear.)
31r. BROUGHAM rose.—lf the only object of his Hon. Friend
(Mr. Abercromby) in bringing forward the present motion was
to obtall a triumph over the Lord Chancellor, of to establish a
defence of himself, the object of his motion had already been ac-
complished, for his triumph over the bard Chancellor, and his
vindecation of himself, were complete. (('heers.) %Without refer-
ence to the statement of his Hon. Friend, the admissions which
were made, he Must say with great fairacss, with great candour,
unit not a little of judiciousness, in defence of the Lord Chan-
cellor, fully established aid sustained his vindication. Thesead.
missions, which were very humble and very submissive, could
not justify, or excuse the conduct of the Lord Chancellor, al.
though they might be in some degree available as an extenua-
tipn of it. However these admissions might so serve to extenuate,
they 'coeld not surely be considered as a substantial defence in
tale: case of a breach of the privileges of the House, more glaring
nod more flagrant than any to which, within his recollection, the
zateation of the House had been called. It was not alone the
nrutection of the aharactee of his Hon. Friend that the house had
now to consider •-that character which had always stood clear
arid utiimpeached, and high in the estimation of all who knew
him—over which even "the shadow of a shade" bad never passed,
and which die Lord Chancellor of England, in the present
instance, had so unjustly maltreated. Wear, hear.) High us was
chiracter, yet his lion. Friend would excuse him fur saying
there was a higher consideration still—the privileges of that house,
wrmiehif the present motion wee not acceded to, would exist only
•
to he laughed at by those who hate, and despised
, by those who
subdue us. If this motion be rejected, I say (said Mr.
gritagbitn emphatically), the privileges of this House are only
powerful against the weak, but that they are impotent against the
strong:" (Loud cheers.) If the Editor of a Newspaper had come
tetented tc.s freely on any thing, that occurred in that House,
veruld be not immediately be called to the bar, end 'be made an.
seetible for the freedom of his commentary ? Would any of the
gentle exenses which had been heard that night be allowed him as
au Ovellitile defence? Would it be regarded as a sufficient defence
foe hits say that he wrote it in a moment of irritation—that he
tllought the privileges of the press had been roughly touched?
t (leer, hear, and laughter)—that the remarks were matte hastily,
and that forty-eight hours afterwards perhaps he would not have
written them. Would such excuses be adduced in vindication of
Feditore and Reporters, or any peon without influence and
etitind to sustain him ? or if adduced, would the House entertain
diem.? In the case of such a man they would amount to no
sleenee. He remembered a nee in which the privileges of the
dfouse were maintained with a very strict and rigorous severity.
'llc,. party there accused was not a very high and powerful man—
tle-wall Xi. 'Gale Jones, he believed, a surgeon. The alleged
breach of privilege, in that instance, consisted in his having pla-
c,feded a subject for discussion, at a debating club, which was put
ti the &Wipe of a question to an Hon. Member of that House.
This was by a quibble perverted into the meaning of an infringe-
r:lna of a part of their privileges specified in the Bill of Rights.
The passage referred to was that which provided " that the pro-
ceedings in Parliament be questioned in no court or place out of
it." P.y a contemptible quibble and perversion of all common
sense, the conduct of Mr. Jones was voted to be a breach of this
eraciment of rights; and by this sophistical constructioodt he was
condemned to Ncwgate for the months. It aPpeirid to him
(Mr. Brougham) that without having recourse to any quibble,
the present c.rie more nearly approached a breach of that provi-
sert of the to orßights, on which Mr. Jones had been con-
demned to imprisonment. Here the Lord Chancellor, on the seat
efjuinice, does indeed question the proceedings of this House, and
`lliac top at a time berate he inquirea, before be takes time to &-
quadrat himself with the accuracy of what he hears or reads ; he
does still more, castigates/I' oudiegre—he
.proceads. to condemn,
aed even pronounces sentence on his lion. Fnead(Mr. Abercromby)
without bearing. Let the House consider if tais sentence had been
pronounced against a banister practising in his Coen, whose cha-
racter, fame, existence, nay the very subsistence of whose family,
depended on his professionil exertions. How ruinous to hint must
such a declaration of the Lord Chancellor prove? lie would find
himself deprived of practice and of the well-earned reward of his
talents, and even cut of from existence, as far as in the Lord
tliancellor lies, for ever. This would be one of the evil conse.
einences that must ensue from rejecting the present motion and leav-
ing the characteraof Members of that House exposed to such fearful
observations as were this night the subject of complaint. The result
of giving imptinhy to the Chancellor now would be, that no bar-
rister, a Member of that House, would discharge the duty that he
owed the public, through a fear of being punished by judicial vin-
dictiveness. lie would repeat, that a more gross and flagrar.t yip-
dation of the privileges of that House had not before been sub-
refitted to them, and he should add, that, if they permitted it to
pass manoticed, it was idle any more to talk of privileges. *Should
editors or reporters feel a wish in future to trample on them, they
wpuid be fn',ls to leave that wish ungratified, from aoy scruples
about thepirivileges of the House of Commons. (Hear.)
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL then rose to address the
House; for a few seconds he was not audible, from the wise that
prevail-A among the Members. The first sentence of the lion. and
Learned Gentleman that reached us was, that as the observations
'of the Lord Chancellor had been founded on a representation in a
rev/sparer, that he allowed motions to be mitten' in such a manner
as to create delay, the Home could not understand the merits of
tlie ease unless they would listen to a dry explanation of the facts
ant eiti*Minitances relating to the transaetion. There could be no
doubt, from the statement of his Hon. and Learned Friend (Mr.
Aberteomby). that the speech he made, and the speech he was re.
presented to have made, were not one and the same. His HOD.
arid Lesened Friend bad correcdy stated what he had spoken, but
he was represtoted to have said that whereas under the `'ice-Chao.
cellars Mill no appeal could beheard from a decision of that Judge
upless the petition was signed by two Counsel, the Lord Chancel.
lqr had by a forced construction heard appeals without the edema.
tare of two Counsel. in such a manner as to bring disparagement
-upon the Vice-Chancellor. Under these circumstances, he would
a4k his Hon. and Learned Friend, who had appealed to the send-
bilita of his own feelings, if it had been publicly asserted of him,
that while 'acting under the high responsibility and solemn oblige-
tains of a Judge, he had been guilty of' a public breach of an Act
of Parliament, nay, that die multitude, frequency, and repetition
of his breaches of law were such, that they constituted a great pub.
lac grievance his Hoth. and Leareed Friend had boa thua4
c'mr.itycd with so aggsrattd a breach of his public duty, would not
his lettings have been greatly initated ? (Hear, hear.) The ac-
Gaunt given by his Hon. and Learned Friend that night was most
adcurately stated ; but if the House attended to the representation
i idle paper, they would find that a gross misrepreeeniation of that
speech had been given forth to the public. He would cecupy their
attention only a minute, while he read one peewee from the report
is the .Itornang Herald, the paper to which he alluded. The Hon. ,
and Learned Gentleman then read the following passage from the ;
r,eoort of sir. Abeicromby's speech in the -1/ornieg Herold of ,
Wednesday lest :
L` Any cause that had been before the Vice-Chancellor might be
agein, according to the present practice, brought before the Chao.
calor—not by. way of aeaeal, but on rehearing, by getting the
pieties to furnish new affidavits, setting forth new matter, although
the law w .s, that no appeal should be brought without the sips.
turn of two Counsel. The Lord Chancellor permitted that mac-
tiCe, by which a great cepense was brought on the litigating parties,
and great disparagemeat on the Learned Judge who had just heard
the cause. fleece arose ;latch of the increased business of the Lnrd
Clianceilor's Court, in permitting those causes to be brought for his
liMring by that construction, or, rather, evasion of the Act of
Porliatnem."
The lien. 'and Learned Member resumed. He asked could any
Snake fail to express his indignation on reading such a passer, in
which a breach of duty was openly imputed to him, and the mime
eduction of an innovation of practice, by which d' ement was
brought upon the Vice-Chancellor? It was not in alleged
that the Lord Chancellor had introduced the innovation with that
intent, but that in effect it had been productive of render-
ing the Alce-Cliancellor's Bill c bortire. The House had been
told azeurately that the published account of his Honourable
sad Learned Friend's speech was not cornet. ll'hen the Lord
Chaneellor made allusion to the subject on Saturday, he (the Soli-
cimr.Gimeral) was absent from the Court of Chancery. lie could
not, eterefme, speak of his own knowledge as to the expressions
vied by the Noble and Learned Lord. It' he could, he would can-
didly, for be could have no object in concealing it on such a motion
as this, or the consideration of which his honour, his veracity, and
his independence were concerned (hear, hear), and on which he
would for no man go either to the right or to the left. (Iles% hear.
her.) He had gone into the Court just after the Chancellor had
used the words complained of. lie (the Solicittrr-General) was not
itt tile habit of reading the debates when he had heard them. He
Ceerefore hot referred to any report of his Hoe. and Learned

wear his virtues " on his sl
hate—V.Wi' t 6- senile:li*
comment on his conduct ;
;eel welt a fault, it shnuld b
of tight feeling, and should
It had been just intimated
the daily report which fon
cellar's %marks, had been
into Coot. The sudden
have prouatt.! that strong
tunate exprems',nt which *1
IrWas now manifest that tl
nt mat on which the Lon
tWisep the Lord Chancell(
nOtrk pDint in which the
se Cation of the speech of tl
eteMpted him fecal the a
ttieLorti Chancellor might
h3deler-ed himself from su
faction of the House and
Pier:fore, to go further;
rot to his speech, but to
jsCtionalk phrase was np.,l
in cando:•.r, if that misrem
. .