The Sun.
London, England, 1854-09-28 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUY.

SlR,—The new " Beer Act " appears to excite quite a
sensation in the "trade ;" and well may. it "do so, con-
sidering that it has been smuggled through the House
in such a disreputable way. And the case appears yet
harder, if we take into consideration that the capital
thereby affected is estimated at about 55,000,0001., or
upwards—that the licensed victuallers pay enormous
taxes; they have their licenses to pay for, and I -opine
few escape the doubled- inCoMi tax. Then, again, there
is the duty on malt and spirits, and the continued sur-
veillance of the police. The fact that, on the one hand,
they are bound to furnish refreshments to a, traveller, or
be indicted (Rex v. Hews, 7 c., and p. 219 ; and Rex
v. Leuellin, 1 mod., 445). An action on the case also
lies to recover- compensation for any injury in con-
sequence of such refusal - (videHavrthqn v. Hain-
mond, 1 c., and k. 407 ; Lane Cottarn, 1 Salk.,
18 Collin's Ca. Godb. 346 ; Palm 476.; 2 Rolls
Reports,-345 ; Newton v. Trigg,. 1-Show 270). It has
also been laid down that an innkeeper may be compelled
by the constable of the town to receive'and entertain ai
traveller as his guest (5 Ed.: ,IV : 26.; Dolt, cap. 7
1 Show 268). The question then arises, Who is a !
guest ? The word guest is derived from the Saxon
" gest," which haul the same meaning as _the French
" gist" or " glte," the interpretation of which is " a
stage of rest in a journey," one entertained in the house
of another, a stranger. Again, as laid down by Justice
Bailey, in Thompson v. Lacy (3 B. and And. 286), an
inn is defined to be "a house where the traveller is fur-
nished with everything which he has occasion for whilst
on his way." This being the legal definition of the words
"inn" and "guest," it really is a mystery to account
for the very absurd decisions of our magistrates, particu-
larly if they would take into consideration the preamble ,
to the Ist of James, chapter the 9th.

On the other hand, if the publican unwittingly enter-
tains a person who is a stranger to him, and whom he
really believes to be a traveller (though he may, by possi-
bility, be not so), he is open to the lynx-eyed watchful-
ness of the police, and that of the five shillings' and costs
loving magistrates' clerks under the new Beer Act.
What are the licensed victuallers to do ? My humble
advice to them is, that they should organise themselves
—form districts, with a board of management—try two
or three cases, preconcerted and definitively ascertained
from legal authorities, who is and who is not a " travel-
ler"—also to use their Parliamentary influence in order
to obtain the material and sufficient alteration of the
before-mentioned act.

Are the police to be continually lurking about the
doors of respectable inns, when crimes of far greater mag-
nitude are being carried on ? Let them look to the
" soll" shops out of which parties come reeling—the
parties professing to sell " soll," and having the word
" soll" burnt on the ends of their barrels, when really
and in fact they are selling beer. But, irrespective of
the interests of the " trade," and taking this measure
into consideration in a Sabbatarian point of view, it must
be evident that you cannot make men by act of Parlia-
ment more moral or religious than they are inclined to
be. If the Sabbatarians wish to work a good, let them
agitate for the education of the people. If you cleanse
the moral character of the people, their conduct will be
in accordance therewith ; but as for making a people
better by act of Parliament than they are naturally dis-
posed to be has been incontestably proved by the result
of a decree of one of the ancient republican cities. Then,
again, the honest, hard-working artisan, who has to earn
his bread by the sweat of his brow, who goes to bed
when ke has done his work, and has to rise early to
begin it, and whose only leisure time is on the Sunday,
who, if he takes a walk to inhale the fresh air which
God bath given to us all in common, and gets a few
miles from home, cannot obtain refreshment. Parties
going to christenings, burials, or to see the
grave of some departed parent, child, or friend
(having no friends there), though requiring, cannot obtain
refreshment ; in fact, there are innumerable instances in
which the act presses upon the people, and on the poor•
more especially. The wealthy have it at home, and can
enjoy themselves there. The Sabbatarian, whilst advo-
cating the new Beer Act, sits sipping his wine with all
the gusto in the world. Under the new act, the result
is, to my certain knowledge, that there is a larger amount
of wrong committed than prior to its enactment. Where
a working man got his glass of beer before in a respectable
inn open to the surveillance of the police, he now fetches
it out in bottles, jugs, tin cans, and even pails. Parties
congregate together in the fields, in barns, shippon',
stables, and in very many cases in the house of one of the
party, where the children see and hear all the demoralis-
ing proceedings of the bacchanalian party, and in this
instance gaming to a great extent is carried on, and that
where the police can have no effectual surveillance. Your
correspondent begs to suggest that it would be far mere
conducive to public morality if the inns were opened to
travellers until eleven in the evening, admitting every
stranger as a traveller who signs his stance and address in
a book to be kept for that purpose, and let hint be amen-
able for either giving a wrong address or• falsely stating
himself to be a traveller. Have it definitively defined
" who is a traveller," and well would it be if the bter.
houses were closed altogether on the Sundays. It
would be much better it our members of Parliament
would attend more to the details of the laws of the land
than to hunting, shooting, fishing, and drinking wine,
and that on Sundays too.—l am, Mr. Editor, yours.
FAIRPLAY.
Enfield, Sept. 23d, 1854.

THE CITY CHURCHES.—Yesterday an important Par-
liamentary document was issued, of the churches in each
parish in the City of London ; the names, residences,
and income of the clergy; showing, also the number of
sittings in each church. There are 60 churches in the
list, and only a few of the incumbents reside within the
City. The largest income is 2,081/. 9s. 4d., for St. Bo-
tolph, Bishopsgate ; and the smallest but one is 401., for i
St. Helen, Bishopsgate. The average attendance, in-
cluding children, is remarkable, compared with the
church accommodation. In one church (St. Laurence
Jury and St. Mary Magdalen, Milk-street), with sittings
for 1,000 persons, the average attendance is only 30.
The incumbent resides at Hampstead. The income is
310/. a-year. The services in January, on Sundays,
were 2 ; and, on week-days, 3. At another church, wish
700 sittingi, the average attendance is 30. The fees re-
ceived in January last were very small. The largest
amount was 551., and the smallest 2s. The communi-
cants are very limited, compared with the attendances,
and the baptisms by no means numerous. The return
was procured at the instance of Dr. Phillimoro, with
reference to the proposed removal of some of the City
churches. _ _

THE MEDICAL SCHOOLS OF THE METROPOLIS.--The
various medical schools in the metropolis, almost with-
out au exception, commence their winter course of
studies, both in the lecture-rooms and in the hospitals,
on Monday next, the 2d of October. The onlynew
school of medicine that opens on the approach of the
coming winter medicalsession is that recently established
and organised in connection with St. Mary's Hospital,
Paddington, near to the terminus of the Great Western
Railway. Since the close of the last session, the new
building of King's College Hospital, at the back of Lin-
coln's-inn•fields, in Portugal-street, has advanced ra
pidly towards completion, and is even now so far com-
pleted as to be open for the reception and treatment of
patients. The part of the building at present completed
consists of the department for ont-patients, separate
wards for nearly one hundred in patients, the dispensary,
a chapel, and rooms fol. performing surgical operations.
The first floor of the building is designed to contain
apartments for 'the dispenser and house steward, with
the laboratory, and servants accommodation. The
ground floor of the building will comprise the dis-
pensary, accident wards, and other appendages, whilst
the other floors are so constructed. as to contain bath-
rooms and wards for various classes of patients.

CHOLERA AND THE BOARDS OF GUARDIANS.—In Con-
sequence of the progress of cholera, the guardians of some
unions have called upon the medical officers to provide
depots of drugs in various situations within their
districts to which the poor can have easy access. We
have received communications complaining of the hard-
ship inflicted on medical men in some localities by such
requirements. In an extensive parish it must, doubt-
less, involve a larger amount of labour than usual on
the part of the medical man, as he will be required to
visit these stations with regularity, and it will also in-
volve some increased expense not contemplated when
the services of the medical men were originally given.
Although strenuous advocates of every measure calcu-
lated to increase the facilities of affording relief to
cholera patients, we do not think that the guardians'
ought to tax their medical officers unduly for the pur-
pose of carrying out this object. Whatever new medical
arrangements may be required in connection with the
treatment of cholera patients should be considered as
special service, and should be paid for separately out of
the local funds. We understand that in some unions
very heavy additional duty has fallen on the medical
officers for which the guardians have neither given nor
promised adequate requital—a parsimonious dealing
with their medical officers which is exceedingly unjust
and reprehensible. We advise that in such cases an ac-
count should be sent in to the board of guardians, and if
declined by them, forwarded to the poor-law commission,
who, we should expect, if sufficient ground were shown,
would promptly repair the injustice of the board of
guardians.—Medical Circular.
THE THANKSGIVING DAY.—The local authorities of
the town of Guildford have announced that on Sunday
next being the day appointed for a general thanksgiving
for the abundant harvest, collections will be made after
the several services in the churches of that town in aid
of the widows and orphans of those persons who have
died in London of the cholera. This is certainly a very
laudable example, coming from the market town of a
peculiarly agricultural county, and worthy of imitation,
not only in other counties, but particularly in the metro-
polis. The Bishop of Oxford has advised his cler
throughout the diocese to make collections on that day,
but recommending their appropriation on behalf of the*
Cuddesden Training Institution.

THE CUR'S WORST FEAR.—We consider the occapa
tion of the Crimea is nothing to another invasion of
Russia which must take place—and that when the war
is over. We may pitch shot and shell into Sebastopol,
and throw French and English troops upon the town
and fortress ; but what is that to turning loose some
thousands of heads, primed and loaded with liberal no-
tions, on Russian soil ? This we shall do in sending back
the prisoners whom we have taken from the enemy,ancl a
structed and educated by their sojourn in
.E
Nicholas will uNicholas do
bued with the ideas of freemen. What
to avert this blow ? No quarantinew purifyitihnat
from liberalism ; will he order the vessel and sunk,
shall
ve y them to their native country to
tee scuttled
hanged or slot
or command that they shall
Really, in the event of a
be to remain where they
Russian prisoners to do will
much to be suffered to
peace, the best thing for the
exist among their countrymen
are : they will have learned tboyo
theCzar.--Punch.