The Sun.
London, England, 1849-09-21 00:00:00

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LONDON, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1849,

-• Final judgment has at length been pronounced in
the case of Mr. CHARLES THROSBY. After repeated
adjournments, by which that unfortunate young
gentleman's incarceration has been prolonged to no
less than four months, and very heavy expenses been
incurred, the Learned Chief Commissioner of the
Insolvent Court has declared that he is entitled to an
unconditional discharge. Mr. THOMAS RANDALL and
his compeers, the champions of the credit system at
the Universities, still continued obstinate, and refused
to accede to the arrangement proposed by the afflicted
parent of their victim—an arrangement which the
Commissioner declared to be perfectly " f air and
reasonable." They adhered firmly to the rule adopted
by the Oxford tradesmen : they would accept no
compromise that involved the abandonment of any
portion of their claims. • It would be totally con•
trary to their principles to relinquish their liens on the
future earnings of their debtors until the accounts, made
up at " west-end prices and interest at five per cent.
after two years," should be liquidated even to the last
farthing. They would have the "pound of flesh" or
nothing, and in the present instance their pertina-
cious and obstinate determination has met with a
fitting reward. In vain the presiding Judge recom-
mended, nay almost entreated, that they would, for
once, relax their stringent regulations. In vain, to
use his own language, he laboured for what he had
conceived to be the interests of all parties." Actuated
by a laudable anxiety to carry the intentions of the
father into execution, and thereby to free the unfor-
tunate young man from future liabilities, and at the
same time to obtain something for the general body
of creditors on account of their demands, he departed
from his ordinary functions, and essumed the cha-
racter rather of an arbitrator anxious to effect an
amicable settlement than of a judge adjudicating
on the real merits of the case before him. The
unexpected inflexibility of some of the creditors
defeated his praiseworthy intentions, and compelled
him, unwillingly, to resume the position from whence
—we say it with all respect—he should never have
departed. His futile effort only prolonged the im-
prisonment of an innocent young man for some seven
weeks additional, during which period he was not
merely enduring the loss of liberty, but was exposer
to the dernoralizltion inseparable from a continued
association with the class of persons to be met with
in a debtors' I rison.
If ever there was a case where the insolvent w&
entitled, according to the true spirit of the code, tc
an immediate and unconditional discharge it was the
one now under notice. There was nothing of fraud
deception, or falsehood, that could even be hinted at.
The Chief Commissioner, in delivering his first judg
rnent, declared that " he was happy to exonerate tht
insolvent from any charge of contracting his debt,
by false representations, or by any means tine
trenched on morality and gentlemanly con•
duct beyond his having involved himself it
unnecessary expenses." That declaration, impor-
tant as it might be in ordinary cases, was su-
perfluous in this instance, for the slightest imputatim
of the kind had not been put forward—his creditors
in fact, had sought him, and not he his creditors—ne
inquiries were made. The greatest competition ex-
isted to obtain the honour of his custom, and to sup,
ply him, not merely with necessaries, but with every
luxury and superfluity that fancy or extravagance
could dictate. Had he been desirous of so doing, or
of w hat is termed " victimizing" tradesmen, there can
be no doubt but that he could have obtained credit
for as many thousands as he was indebted hundreds;
but we find it admitted, even by Mr. RANDALL him
self, " that the supply of goods were such as at,
undergraduate, in the insolvent's circumstances,
might fairly require, and that, after the first year, he
became more sparing of his orders, and only had
what was necessary." Here, then, the opposing
creditor himself acquits the insolvent of any
undue extravagance. If it could be at all ascribed
to him, it was only during his first year, when IR
was but nineteen years of age, and, by the policy of
the law, exempted from liability; for had he chosen
to have availed himself of the plea of minority, he
could have set aside by far the greater portion of hi,
debts and paid twenty shillings in the pound on al,
demands for which judgments could have been ob-
tained with the 3001. which his father was willing to
advance. It may be said that such a course would
have been extremely disgraceful and reprehensible,
but it would have freed him from all annoyance, and
he should not be punished because his honourable and
gentlemanly feelings induced Him to confirm these
liabilities after attaining his majority, and not to hare
repudiated them, as he might have done, with full
impunity.
The only ground assigned.by the Chief Commis-
sioner that could possibly warrant a remand was
that "he had incurred debts extravagantly and
without reasonable expectations of payment." We
must totally dissent from this view of the case. Mr.
THROSBY, sen., was at least reputed to be possessed
of a considerable fortune, which would have enabled
him to bestow a much larger sum upon a favourite
child than the amouet for which his son was respon-
sible. Where no less than 6001. was actually sent
over to satisfy the demands in the first instance, the
aggregate of the debts only amounting to 7501., and
where 3001. was freely offered to the last moment,
notwithstanding the unfavourable decision, by which
Mr. TUROSBY, sen., was reported to have had more
then 15,000/. sterling, it could not be said that the
debts
were contracted without " a reasonable expecta-
tion of payment," as seven shillings in the pound were
still forthcoming. And even if it had been so, which
we totally deny, there would still be the
fact of
" nonage," which was not in any degree alluded to in
the course of the judgment.
We have now dune with the case. We
nothing whatever of any of the parties concerned,know
either debtor or creditors. 'We took the etlen
entirely on public ground:, believing that the (Neel).
tionable system wa4productive of the moat injurious re •
cults to more persons even than to the victims, who in
too many instances have their prospects in life blighted,
and who are compelled to submit to the greatest priva-
,„--strthey have attained maturity, through the
, thaegbtlessindiscretions of their early years, and the
fatalefacilitiee afforded for incurring unnecessary
debta. We '6Clieve that the credit system i 3 Cora-
trary, to public policy, and that it should be
discouraged in every legitimate mode--not
only by, the leetaions of Insolvent Commissioners,

-

The Rev. J. Aspinall, M.A., of Althorpe rectory,
Lincolnshire, who is to be the successor or Dr. Hind,
Dean of Carlisle, is, we believe, a moderate high-
churchman, and the author of several volumes of ser-
mons which are greatly esteemed both for their elo-
quence and orthodoxy. He has also written and spoke
much on the subject of popular education; and we be-
!love that the appointment will not be unsatisfactory to
churchmen.— Chronicle.
PoPULATIoN or LONDON.—Tho number of deaths
registered in London 1 Est week (says a correspendeno
was 3,183; that is equal to 454 every day, 19 evcry
hour, and one person every three minutes. This may
appear very alarming to some reader,, but they must
bear in mind that the vast extent and population of our
metropolis, London and its surround:ng districts, con.
tains nearly 3,000,000 persons. If this immense num•
ber of persons were placed in a line, at a distal cc of
Till 4 yards apart, they would reach to the extent of 26,000
es, or more than the eircurnfet once of the globe; so
before
et lif
oeri
e,oaoall
olabove
the rate, a
birthsrt e, ,
oevvvi l ze .
r, oney week, every
it
threet. at
ie
if i personaout es ,
2a
6n died
eeda allowingrsat
would then be
weTreheextie 14 London
Mississippi United States steam-frigate
arrived at Leghorn on the 11th, with
ss-enigate
g!rs,
among ,whom was Commodore Morgan, paanifr
commanding
the squadron Of the Zleditetranean.

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