Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-08-17 00:00:00

BAR PRACTICES.

The morality of the bar appears occasionally under
sums curious aspects, and in none does it assume a more
questionable shape than when the " gentlemen of the long
robe" coolly pocket the money of clients, and render no
service whatever. In the English Court of Queen's Bench
Mr. Justice Cresswell recently administered a well-
deserved rebuke to counsel for such condact. A witness
having been examined by Mr. Denman, for the plaintiff,
Mr. Bovill, who came into coact as he had done,proceEded
to cross-examine, without having heard ono word of his
direct evidence, when the following scene occurred : —Mr.
Bovill: What are you? Mr. Justice Cnesswell Mr.
Bovill, if you had been here before you would have heard
what he was. Mr. Bovill : It is really very difficult to
know what to do ; here are six courts sitting,
and it is impossible to be in all of them:
Mr. Justice Cresswell: There is neither hardship nor
difficulty in the matter. The course to be pursued is very
simple. I
.have observed a very unsatisfactory state of
things since I have sat here, and I regret it. Mr Bovill :
I really do not know what is to be dose; it is unavoidable.
Mr. Justice Cresswell: When I was at the bar, I never
took a briet which I could not attend to. Mc. B will :
Neither do I, my lord. Mr. Justice Cresswell: Well,
the course before the counsel is very simple. We won't
discuss the matter. Go on. Mr. Justice Cresswell saw at
once where all the " hardship and difficulty" lay. It is
in counsel taking briefs to which it is physically impossible
they will be able to attend. In plain terms, they carry
on the profession of obtaining money under false pre-
They hire their services out, and receive
money on the faith of discharging certain duties, knowing
perfectly well, all the while, that it will be utterlyimpossible
for them to perform the services they have undertaken to ren-
der. There might be some shadow of excuse for thus taking
briefs and fees, in the hope that they might be enabled to
attend to the cases, provided when they fonpd it physically
impossible to do so they would honestly return the fees;
but this they invariably decline doing—they consider it no
dir grace to pocket the money of clients and render no ser-
vice whatever for it. We hear a vast deal of cant and clap-
trap about the honour of the bar, and all that sort of thing;
it would be more to the purpose if we had some better
evidence of it than such a practice affords. Common
honesty ought to make every barrister desire to say, with
Mr. Justice Cresswell—"l never took a brief which I
could not attend to"—in other words, I never adopted the
dishonest practice of defrauding clients—of obtaining
money under false pretences.—Belfast Daily Afercury

ten co.

ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE.

BARRY SULLIVAN respectfully informs his
Friends and the Public that bia,BENEFIT will take
place on WEDNESDAY next, the 19th instant. on which occasion he
will appear as

CLAUDE MELNOTTE,
In Bnlwer's celebrated Play of THE LADY OF LYONS ; and, for
the first time, s

WIL LIAM,
In the late Douglas Jerrold's favourite Drama of BLACK-EYED
SUSAN.

do-uniercia aar.

At twelve o'clock, at the brokers' office, 2, Dale-street, 500 bags Rape-
seed, and 800 Empty Bags.—Browne, Hunter and c o.
♦t twelve o'clock, at the broker's office, 7, Exchange-chamber",
60 bales Hex can Fibre.—F. J. Eatoh.

At twelve o clock, at the brokers' office, 16. Exchange-bnildings, 300
tons Carnpeachy Logwood —J. H. Rayner and Co.
At eleven o'clock, at the com-nercial saleroom, Temple•conrt, a quan-
tity of Frair.—Jams Adam, Son and Cs.

nartieulars sea alvertsrmenti.

PtlBLte,

THIS PAY.

RoTAL Am PHI T EAT R E—D raMa Performillcs-7 p.m.

CLAYTON HALL, Claytm-square—Gordon Cumming-3 p.m.
arAs. CoLnsszum—C;oneral Entertlinment-6.30 p.m.

ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS—Grand nnd Varied Entertainments

AlMaio& CRYSTAL PALACE, Lime-street —lO a .m„ to 10 p.m:

[,„' For particulars see advertisements,