The Sun.
London, England, 1854-08-16 00:00:00

SIB BENJAMIN. HALL.

By a curious coincidence, nearly all the morning papers
yesterday, devoted an article to Sir Benjamin Hall's ap-
pointment to the office of President of the Board of
Health. There is a great unanimity, not only among
our contemporaries, but in the public mind, as to the
exceeding fitness of the Hon. Baronet for the important
and honourable situation which he has accepted. We had
the satisfaction of being the first of the London journals,
to express our gratification at Sir Benjamin's acceptance
of an office which he is so well qualified to fill, under the
new constitution of the Board of Health. The situation
will be one in which the party filling it, will have great
influence for good or evil ; and therefore the metropoli-
tan community may well share the gratification with
which we announced the appointment of Sir Benjamin
to that ofice. He is thoroughly conversant with all
matters pertaining to the sanatory and other subjets
with which he will have to deal ; and fortunately, his
connexion as representative with the largest borough in
the world—the borough of Marylebone, for the period of
seventeen years, has furnished him with opportunities of
satisfying the public, that his views are in perfect ac-
cordance with those of the more intelligent and liberal
part of the community.
There is another circumstance of encouraging augury
in connection with Sir Bnjamin's appointment to the
of
fffi haspcue
b beenloi fe
induceddMinister E
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ai
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oep
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officene Boardver
sh
hunter. His principles and his position alike put that
out of the question. The salary attaching to the office
which be has accepted, though it would be everything
cyaloesflybHefreeonam: taha.psleaHneseee.
to many others in public life, could not have weighed in
the slightest degree with him. His salary, indeed,
though handsome, will constitute no adequate compen-
sation for the domestic comforts which he will have to
forego. In the fact, therefore, of the hon. Baronet's
accepting the office, under the circumstances we have
mentioned, we have a Strong Presumptive proof that
he will devote his whole ener • - • •
energies
and laborious discharge of the ard. duties which will
uous
devolve upon him.
•addressing the vestry of St. Pancras
on Monday, made some announceruents which will be
hailed with gratification, not only b—
y his own consti-
tuents, but by the metropolitan PUblic at large. "Of
1 one fact," said the hon. baronet, "he had to assure
them—that the duties of, his office should be ever trans-
acted with a view to
tthe upholding of the
principle of
local self.governmen, as contra-distinguished from that
of centralisation, and to place the department on such a
footing as to command the respect of all parties. The
appointment gave him no power whatever over the me-
tropolis, except as regarded the provisions of the
Nuisance Removal Act ; but he should be glad at all
times to do all he could by- way of suggestion."
The assurance on -the part of Sir Benjamin which has
all the duties of his been given, that
transacted with a view to the upholding of the principle
contra-diet* •
of local self-government; as .. inguished from
that of centralisation, was hardly necessary, because he
has so long, so ably, and so consistently been the advo-
cate of local self-government, and the opponent of cen-
tralisation, that no one would even for a moment have
regarded
a deviation from the course be has hitherto
pursued on these questions, as within the
pale of proba-
bility, Still, though needed, this renewed assurance
of his attachment to
.the principle of local self-govern-
ment, and of his hos
• tility towards that of centralisation,
will be received by the public with great gratification.
The Government, we say, once for all, could not have
made a better
,selection then they have done for the
offige of Preside et, of! the new ,Board of Health ; and we
feel confident that before many months have elapsed, the
metropolitan community will have such practical proofs
of the fact furnished to them. as will
. more than justify
the universal approbation ,withthe appointment
dvertiser. has been received.--Morning A

THE CHOLERA V. THE LIVERPOOL ASSIZE COURTS AND
BAR.—The removal of the assize courts from St. George's
decora-
tions toofthte formerehSessions ac
House, at
Liverpoolti
(the
completion),decora-
having
given rise to much comment in the House of Lords, we
think the following paragraph, extracted from the Liver-
pool Albio'h of yesterday will amuse if not ihterest our
readers :—" The Old Courts.'—Notwithstanding the
amount of abuse which has been heaped upon the old law
courts, and the choleraic character given to them by the
highest judicial authority in the kingdom, no cases of
the prevailing epidemic have yet been reported. We re-
gret, however, that premonitory symptoms appear to
have manifested themselves in a learned serjeant, whose
antipathy to the old courts' is of no recent date. On
Saturday morning, soon after the commencement of
business, a tumbler about one-third filled with a suspi-
cious-looking liquid, in colour much resembling a prepa-
ration of chalk and tincture of rhubarb, was brought in-
to court and passed to the learned gentleman, who swal-
lowed the draught with legal
.alacrity. We' trust that
the specific was taken in the spirit of the axiom, that
prevention is better than cure. Indeed the resignation
with which'the patient Waited for the dose confirmed ue
• in the conviction that this really WAS the case."