The Sun.
London, England, 1853-08-15 00:00:00

expression of respect usually used by native vakeels ;
in addressing the Mofussil Courts." A few days after
this Manockpe presented a petition in rejoinder.
He pointed out that the rights of the Bar, of which
he was a member, could not possibly be affected by
any accidental act of carelessness or disrespect of
which he had been individually guilty ; but he ex-
plained that European barristers were often un-
prepared with a case when it was called on, and
had applied for and obtained postponement in con-
sequence ; and he stated that the expressions of
respect used by Vakeels in the Mofussil Courts, in
addressing the Company's judges (your Omnis-
cience, &c.), were blasphemous to apply to any but
the Deity, and were dictated only by the abject
servility which rendered the native Mofussil Bar
useless for the ends of justice. The Court thereon
threatened to fine Manockpe, and reminded him
that it had recently fined two other vakeels. Ma-
nockpe protested against their right of fining
vakeels, saying that if others had submitted to it
he would not, and that such a practice was utterly
fatal to the independence of the native Bar. The
Sudder judges could never venture to talk of fining
an English barrister practising as a vakeel beE)re,
and it is stated that while the Court was thus ex-
acting an abject servility of address from the
native pleaders, it took no notice of an European
barrister addressing the judge on the bench with
" Look here, Mr. Frere.'
The Sudder Court has lately signalised itself by
another of those, extraordinary Indian decisions
which Mr. Norton has rendered famous. A man
was convicted of murder by a district judge, and
sentenced to transportation for life, subiect to the
confirmation of the Sudder Court. The Sudder
judges each recorded minutes in approval of the
conviction, and each stated, either that the district
judge's sentence should be fully confirmed, or that
it should be very slightly mitigated ; yet when the
same judges laid their heads together, the mur-
derer was sentenced to one lash and six months'
imprisonment only.
The local directors of the Bombay Railway have
issued a notification, refusing to carry any of the
sweeper or scavenger carts. This order is univer-
sally disapproved by the European community and
by the press ; and we believe that the officers of the
railway were also opposed to it. It is generally
thought to be illegal, for the railway company
being public carriers are bound to carry every one
that offers. The sweepers are said to be remark-
ably clean in their dress and person when " off
duty," and as the amount of native passenger
traffic, before this order was issued, had been con-
sidered most satisfactory, it would appear to have
been wholly uncalled for. It is to be hoped that
the London directors of the company will cancel
the order as soon as they hear of it, for the
breaking down of caste prejudices has always been
considered one of the principal benefits that the
general introduction of railway communication
would confer on the country. Immediately after
the arrival of the home dispatches of the
last mail, Lord Falkland was closeted with
his secretaries at Poonah, and an order was dis-
patched forthwith to the Company's law officers at
Bombay (the Advocate-General and the Solicitor-
General) to repair to Poonah to aid the Governor
with their advice. It was stated that the Bombay
Government was severely censured in the dis-
patches in question, and from the law officers being
summoned it is surmised that some steps are to be
taken at last for instituting a public inquiry into
the Surat case.

The junior member of Council, Mr. Bell, has
resigned the service, and is considered in a very
precarious state by his medical advisers. Mr.
Warden is the new member of Council.