The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1821-06-23 00:00:00

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nymenent on the various rates of fees in the Court
of Exchequer. In page eleven of the Report they
would find the classification of the total fees in the
Court of Exchequer. The total ;mount of fees
was 96. Thirteen of these were take.' at the some
late as in 1734, thirty-eight at incretried rates, two
ot diminished rates, twenty-four had ceased alto-
gether, cud nineteen were without any precedent,
quite new fees. With respect to the fees that were
4: betished al/needier, the-Comtaiiitoortrs realarked,
that spine of them lied grown entirely out of des-
. use, and the others so rare as to he almost quite
Sfirprecliteffie,"idd ffia.kei lei which there was no
vrecedentc were anotiarittiiely of considerable
wersouitt. The first reselutiOn he should propose
liselned to the lk.es of sfrerifs ; and he thought it
neceitieer. isk-contlettr, to mate, that the present
Chief Baritshatf flit iiitrochiced this fee. It was
setroduced ity his preeltelesiliir.-;- ( Hear. henr.)--
sltuttfire did not apeleir tei. hies to alter the case.
11. indeed; the anti:Met of 'the fee had been doubt-
ful, then, indeed, the Metre of his predecessor might
be some -pielbation. But there was an express statute
itettifSeo. I.) on the itthject. mid the nsisteessince
of hie, predec• sow Wee tin inetification. The Learned
Judge:ni his Iteni letter, had stetted; that So b.SI ieri ff.
.trod not coast; Within the Mousing of the statute.
Bet •the statute was explicit, for it stated that, in
Order to liscilitite %ail% in the perforaimice of
their datieri,Stetf-Slieriffs shoeld be appointed, ;Ind
then senseneriteelbe wariness ft.es which the 8.00116
is the Ertclirreuer wire- allosied to receive. The
Mfrs* of Sher iff Wardle of cOnsiderable burden, and
artalteseuently undertaken With reluctance, and the
Legishienre. in murder to lighten the burden., hail
• appointed re 4epnty. These was another mode in
which the Chief BY rto r bad attempted to sc.
couht for these fee., namely, that his brother, Mr.
Civet, O'Grady, had charged some of the free, not
erflicially, lint profestintialfy. However ou this
point elan the Art woo explicit, for wherever it was
intended that professional fees shook, be 'mid it
expressly atatedit. To engerestrihr and making op the
Rolls, for lustattee, regular fees had been annexed.
The Hon. Gentleman then saferteetto the sittings of
, . Judges in their ehambers. duce the introductiun of
which consideralde'abonitions had been made. The
• Report of the Cannensiotiers had stated, that its
some insonsices charges hail bees made for 'lat-
ter sigtitonres when they had Hot been affixed :. if
This were true, melon% could require explamitiost
more, and if not, the statement of the Commis.
.ioners most be discredited. He next came to the
inibjeet of decrees, and if he could Lie allowed to
venture on the depths of a question that belonged
entirely to Gessilethen of the Law, he sleuth! with
tot state •is few partieularr. The first preceeding
Wow, to set a Souse down for hearing, and tivally it
Wei broweit tii'it decree; and then the exemplifies.
Woo of a decree; Accenting to the Act of 1734,
two fres Were appointed : For perusing a decree,
if: ed.; for the exemplification, 6.. Bd.—of course,
• until it came to the exemplification. but one fee
%Weald be charged, however the Report stated that
the double fee bad beets charged fur one duty. In
:he case of the passing of a. Bill in that House, it
world appear s.range if • Bill Were eharged us !me-
nus pu.sed %stitch never came to a third reading.
it was vale and absurd to confound, aa hatf been at-
tempted in the Medi page of the Chief Baron's
fitter, the twerdoetimentr. They were &resent in
every respect ; different to the eye, one. being
'waled, the other slot, one stamped differently from
the other. His next resolution should refer to tile
practice of charging British currency on the fees
nod iii junifiCitiun of this percher he had set tip the
practice of his predices'apor ; bat this he thought was
dither an aggravatibm - If a master discovered thst
Pis steward hail charged the" tenants more than the
sent he paid to shire.. this would be a very proper
ground of interferen'Ce 'mi. the part of the master,
bit not for the .pirpose of 'confirming the fraud.
'the next point was the "bills of coot. The Chief
Baroo asserts that i.e charged for no bill which his
jirederesser had not. His resolutions did not make
Oil assertions, they merely included the Report of
time Commissioner,. On this point the Chief Huron
end the Coninsisstooese mute at valiance. The fees
• were received by the ullie:r, mud handed over to the
crier for the benefit 'of else Chi4f Barest. The
usher did Hot include them in his return, nor the
crier, because the fees were slot for them. and the
money was not seceieed by Min; het by the usher,
lb be disposed, a by him:— (flFak, bear.)—He had
now srooe through the whole of the liesolutious ;
send in doing so, he had endeavoured to state
a:tithing that was not necessary,. and omitted
tiothing essential' to the undenstauding of the
question. The Chief Baron has stated in hi.
/etter that his fees We're reduced, while the fees of
the other Judges were increased. But the Report
of the Comanstionets was quite different. There
waa'the Chief j'estice (Dower"), and it was a mat-
ter of pride and sitisfaction to beer testimony to
hit character; his Satiny was 5./e3f., the Chief
Justice of the Common Pleas, 5,6.11/., and the
Chief Baron 6,6721. He bad now gone through
all . the statements, and be could again assuret be
Home that nothing bnt a sense of duty could in•
deiee him to bring it forward, fur he was sure no
man would be dispesed to colloid, r it as a party
queseimoi.—(Hear. /sear.)—He must coufess he
thought the letter of the Chief Baron came in
• tiler a " questionable drupe." Hitherto it hod
is the cu.toew for the Report to be shown to the
Ofiis %Verret Court.. It wes done in the King's
~... Is and Common Pleas, and be presumed also
t*
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i fie Exchequer and the only answer they had
is '''" ; ---i th Iry -if the Chief Br Th Ile•

that a gentleman of the name of Pollock, ts'Ao,
until that unfortunate occurrence took place, bore
a most excellent character, was dismissed from his
office. It hid been clearly proved that Mr. Pol-
lock had followed the example of his predecessors,
yet the Chief Baron dismissed him from his si tuat
and irbeChief Just ice removed him from another office
in consequence of the stigma cast upon his character.
Dere was one revenue bill of cams which had beeu divided
into Tositeets by the Chief Heron, on each of which
cases he had received a separate fee, waking the whole re-
lease amount to 45/. After some further statements from
the Report, lie proceeded to observe, that it might not be
advisable for him to say what would be the best course for
the House to adopt ; it would suffice to have laid the facts
before them, sad leave the House to choose it own couese.—
Utter, hear, kear.)—if he succeeded in getting the Corn.
millet to adopt the statements, he apprehended that some-
thing must be done thereitpou. As far, however. as the
consideration of an ulterior measure to be founded on these
facts weir, though perfectly willing, and without any affec-
tation of diffidence, 11111.101111 10 leave it to be decided by
more experienced persons, lie still bad an opinion of his
own. It would be preciptlate and indecorous in him to pro-
pose it without some previous ex/skean . Assuming tha
ease of delinqueney to he cited, astablished against the
Chief Baron, some other steps must he taken; matters could
not rest here. The words of the Chief Baron's letter were
(mite suited to the occasion. After acknowledging she
charges owl imputations of the Report to have been
brought forwrod by hunt sable men under the best mu.
tiles, lie admitted that they had shiwn the greatest relue-
fence on so doing, •nd that, in unsay instances they hail
themselves furnished tisanes. The hater Weld UIII to state
the Chief Baron's couvictio• that there was a middle Course
which might be taken with oat accused of public defalcation,
between ',enlistment and acquittal, by allowing the party to
go bark into obscurity; bat that be deprecated, that sort of
judicial purgatory whipent .• great public officer might pei-
lisps lie placed, which implied that he was too bad lo be
trusted, mud uot bad enough to be punished. The letter te-
thered as • some, of jostificetiou to 4$ Geo. 111. He errolil
not see what connexion there was between that statist, and
the ease be had been sluing to the House. !fatty meth con-
nexion maid be established, Ise was happy to see the Hon.
and Leaned Member fur Barnstaple iie his place, ready, as
he hoped, to effect that object, for the experieuce of the
Hon. and Learned Member upon a case on which be was
Counsel for the Chief Baron in the nurse of Curds, meet
have Made him master or all.t he arguments which that source
could furnish. Crating the remedy to the suggostimis of
the experienced and trailed persuus whom he saw around
him, and thanking the House sincerely for the attention
which hail been thews him, he concluded by snoring a series
of Resolutions respecting the alterations made by the Chief
Bacon of the Exclequer its Ireland in the fees of his COWL
The CHAIRMAN then pot the first Resolution.
Mr. O'GRADY claimed the kindest iudidgence of the
House while slating the reamers which Ire bad for opposite'
one and all of the Hewlett' submitted. Under any eir-
eIIIIISIIIIM, he must litre felt must unwilling to address a
Committee of the House of Commons, because of the scare
which he bad of his ivability to make such an address with
advantage to the cause he might undereke, or with satiates.
lion to the House. He looped fur their most patine alien.
lion, as it arose from necessity, said was by no means of his
own accord that he came forward, and as he was ready to
promise that he would occupy no enure of their time and
attest ion than were accessary fur. the defence which it had
devolved on hem to make. Every one who knew the profes-
sion to which be behoved, knew that lie was then about to
embark in an element in which he never had embarked lee.
foie, and fur which he had never been intended or qualifii d
by any part of hie past life. He would begin by remarking
that the Honourable Gentleman. who Hail brought this
sobject forward need not to have taken such extraordi-
nary pains as he used to guard himself from scruples, as
to the unfairness or partiality of his conduct. lie (Mr.
('Grady) would be ashamed to question the motives, or
attribute meanness in any way to one who, from a sense of
duly, had undertaken (to use his owst expression) to drag
before the judgenem of the nation an individual holding a
high judicial station. He felt his deficiency of legal know-
ledge is sedesvostring to meet the simentent of the Hos.
Gentleman. lie would not, however, accept of the compli-
ments made to the talcuts of the Clod Woos by the
Hou.'Grutleman, while he withheld the chat Jeer of lire-
ority ; would be sorry to accept. any eumpliments un
behalf of the Chief Baron which were to be pureiresed at so
dear • rate. The Chief Baron's character must nut he com-
plimented on the a are of prufessional ability, while sub-
jected to inspotatittas of the mealiest and must insignificant
exactions. Unseensiumed as lie was to address AN assembly,
Ire feared lest he might be lcd into any impeopet observations
lit commenting.nu the stetement of the and
the Report of the Commissioners. fle gave every credit to
the latter fur the mutires whirls had guided them, and be
admitted the candour of the Hon. Gentleman on the course
whirl, he had lake,.. They had dime their duty with the
most lionumable intentions; mad any irsegulartiea which he
might discover its hie researches into their Report, he was
ready to impute to the emboli-rimming situation in which they
were placed, and habits of life ill-muted to qualify the.o fur
an examination halo aßkirs of such miliuteuess as those which
came under their consideration. IV here he fumed the upii.
Moos of the Courts and of the Commissioner* at issue, he
must, on the other baud, be allowed to attribute mere wr-
etches. to those of the Judges, es bring far better
qualified to determine on minute forms and matters of usage.
The Reports of the C0101111;1110DeF4 had been prepared
with jumpily, sad as far as that went were entirely
faultless. But admitting that they were altogether so,
they would form no grounds fur • legal prosecution
whatever. He considered that fact proved by the case
of Yulloek, whom ihe Atturuey-General had beet, called on.
to prosecute on the Report: The Court of Exclimpore re-
fined the application of the Attorney-General on the occa-
sion,. as the evidence contained in the Report had beets
taken under compulsory process, and the parties were not
legally miswerable for the commas of their evidence. The
Alturney-General was told that if he could found aey
charges by evidence on the sugersitolis of the Report, the
case would be head, but that the lietHll4 Wile 110 erideace.
The case was brought forward, mid a coue.ution took place
upon separate evidence : a plain prod' that the Report was
held to be no grimed for a criminal pomentiott. *lime
was • ease still stronger, that of Sir .1 Galbraith, it bids went
before the twelve Judges, who decided that the Report was
so illegal ductiment, and must he exeloded fixer the evi-
&lice. They gave the same 410111011 other respects as the
Court of Excheenter, that if a e r.e awe gruianded upu
the Report it could be tried. The •Ilrgatems were pal
se that issue, and the ease was dismissed without kev-
nog the least stain on the clieractre of the party. He
could not, therefore, hold the Coinniieium is to be lurid-
Mile. He agreed with the observetion of the Chief
Bartisis letter, that it was difficult to see the prospic.
live advantage which was to be derived limn agitating the
.abject at all. A Bill fur al:owing compete:dams for the
abolitina of fees was at the very time about to I rce,v e the
- time he would be sorry to hate
Lion. so hare a deaf car turned to
es slim before the Hesse. The
the pent of his office, and the
, for all the free winch be had
as to the fees of a Judge, it was
receive say which the Neill-
had led them to be remiss iu
o the fees 4.f usage, which had
'ruble Gentleman. Het bought it.
tn. Member should Wye atupp d
is Report, and sot have looked •
other Courts, or that be could
no mialogy in those Acta which
he quite mongrel and proper, and
o lead to a criminal conviction.
Ile oiler Courts was the same,
but in the Earebequer Court
considered as crams and
'is was land treat.
e. veil, fie the sike of
rid bare so managed. The
Moue, the other Courts
eel for which it WlOll
Chief Justices of the tither Courts

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- , . , mitryect It att. A Bill fur al:owing cumin
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~,, e IftethEe eireltstreqrucur, arid ti ,e ot.iy :Answer they hail .4,„iiiiiio of Cies ,as at the very time ,abriu
. f the Chief "lawn. The douse Itu)al Assert; at the same time he would h
eras now On the eve of bending nut :mother it supposed that he was ansionv to hare ade
. lorti vs.' ••••••i'
a case of such importance a. 'lett before th
.09 t Colonti - to Jr nd, in thetropriety of %;Ucli
Chi. f Baron had referred to the pa•eeit of his
b:. full I:gi'
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0,.. ............int it.ir delisiqueileY bleu.usages of his predecessor', fur all the fie
1 syle:t•tu
e. lir bleu. Dlo time ecesairing as to the fees of
vas 5:. '
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''s .-. I. ? Ritteli as he justrilmble Mau fur him to receive any wl
I vet .
~-; ,Or I. - 411 who coot- Reece of his predecessors bad led them I
Ilte Ireland, he eulleelin• lie ell
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~ , edge tidied to the A,I. I 1 till
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th '4,t,
,: been noticed by the Honourable Getilleman.
I. • .7, . extraurdioary that the Hon. Member shin
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Da3-2,ArtheN, ! -,4*. 4 I , abort at the contents of this Report, sod win
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the iota the alfairsof the other Courts, o
I • .°' • after awns looked, no analogy i• ill
Ift i:
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ellig/MMMYrlr'' . ai'lli— - • •I. r alone ease to be quite 'littoral
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, -....1 1 • • la aio if, bet is the E
tA: -- -- 4 • • i titedo6raawie 'bias was''. ,e •. considered
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