The Sun.
London, England, 1849-01-13 00:00:00

TV i

LONDON, SATURDAY, JANUARY 13, 1849.

Much regret has been excited in Ireland by the
death of ANTHONY RICHARD BLAKE, Esq., formerly
Chief Remembrancer of her Majesty's Court
of Exchequer in Ireland, who departed this
life at his chambers in the Albany on the
10th instant. Mr. BLAKE was a man of very
considerable ability, sound practical wisdom, and
true
.integrity. For many years he occupied an
important position in Government circles. An undue
fondness for political intrigue was consequently im-
puted to him, and he was said to have mixed
himself up in the political affairs of the country
in a much greater degree than was really the case.
He was held up as a sort of bugbear by the Tory
press of the country, because his principles were ever
moderate and strongly opposed to the ascendancy doc-
trines of the good old days of Orange domination.
Every eoncession that was made, every act of justice
or liberality that was sanctioned by the Irish Executive,
was ascribed to the evil influences of the Roman
Catholic Privy Councillor, the irresponsible adviser
(as he was termed) of successive Lord-Lieutenants.
A firm and conscientious supporter of the legislative
union between Great Britain and Ireland, he was
equally obnoxious to the designs of both Liberals and
Repealers. lie was ti.us too frequently exposed to a
raking fire from both extremes of the great parties in
Ireland.

His career was a remarkable one. Having ob-
tained a commission in the army at an early age, he
became so thoroughly au fait, so practically efficient
in his military duties, that he was speedily promoted
to the adjutancy. of his regiment. Having married
and retired from the service, he applied himself to
the study.of the law, and having been some time after-
wards called tlthe English bar, he devoted himself
to the equity ranch of the profession. Although
an Irishman and a Catholic—neither of which
qualities were regarded as very strong recommenda-
tions in those days, Mr. BLAKE made immense pro-
gress, and rapidly rose to a remarkably high position
for his standing in the profession. The ability, in-
dustry, and persuasive address for which Mr. BLAKE
was so remarkable, together with what may be
termed "his Court manner," brought him under the
notice of Lord ELDON, and some interesting reminis-
cences of the estimation in which the deceased gentle-
man was held by the Tory Chancellor, may be found
in the life of that nobleman by Mr. HORACE Twiss.
During that period Mr. BLAKE was distinguished as
a leading and sagacious adviser of the Catholic party
in England. Indeed, he fully participated in that
respect with the late well- known and eminent con-
veyancer, Mr. CHARLES BUTLER. On this account,
as well as for other reasons, he acquired the confi-
dence of the most eminent members of the Whig
party, and amongst others, that of the late Marquis
of WBLIMILVT (whose memoirs were in course of
preparation by Mr. BLAKE at the time of his death).
About this period his health began to give way, and
he embraced a suitable opportunity that then offered
of returning to his native land. This opportunity
was brought about by the passing of an Act
(4 George IV., remodelling
cap. 70), the equity
branch of the Court of Exchequer in Ireland.
It may be worth while adverting to the state of that
court at the time of the: enactment of the statute to
which we have just alluded. It had been the fashion
to give not only to noblemen and noblemen's sons,
but even to noblemen's daughters and other female
relatives, posts of emolument in Ireland. It is well
known that Lord RODEN (the Magnus Apollo of the
Orange party) is even at this moment in the enjoy-
ment of the laborious and lucrative office of " packer
and guager," at one of the Irish ports ; and Miss
HUTCHINSON, daughter of the then Provost of Trinity
College—and, as the old song hath it, " a blood rela-
tion to my Lord Donoughmore "—once obtained a
troop of Dragoons, and actually performed regi-
mental duty, until a suitable purchaser could be
found. It was, therefore, by no means astonishing
that the Marquis of WELLESLEY should in these good
old times have secured for himself the office of Chief
Remembrancer of the Court of Exchequer, the duties
of which office he discharged by deputy, not fur-
getting, however, to take all the fees he could pos-
sibly scrape thereout. It was subsequently thought
desirable to get rid of the Marquis, and to appoint in
his place a really working man who should discharge,

in person, the duties of the office. It also seemede
expedient to convert the appointments of the deputies
in the several departments of the Remembrancer's
office, who had previously been subordinates, into
distinct and independent offices, to be granted thence-
forth by letters patent to the holders for life. The
precious effects of this arrangement will be hereafter
seen.

When it took effect, the Marquis of WELLESLEY
retired from office with a pension of between 4,0001.
and 5,0001. per annum, which he enjoyed until his
death, and Mr. BLAxs succeeded him, with a salary
of 3,0001. In this office (so long as he attended to it
exclusively) he was efficient and useful, and gave the
greatest satisfaction to the suitors of the court. But
his tastes had become rather official than legal (pos-
sibly be had enough of the drudgery of law while a
working barrister) ; by degrees he availed himself
of the opportunities afforded by various Acts of Par-
liament, and undertook the discharge of duties bearing
little affinity to the office of Chief Remembrancer—
which is a ministerial legal office at the equity and
revenue side of the court.

The new engagements of the Chief Remembrancer's
time subsequently rendered necessary the recon-
struction of an office that had grown into a sinecure—
that of the Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer. A
" Second Remembrancer" was accordingly appointed,
with a salary of 1,500/. per at.nuin, which has since
been reduced to 1,0001. Experience has proved that
all these changes were bad, although it must be ad-
mitted that some change on the old system was
essential.

A Commission had been appointed previously to
the passing of the Act to which we have alluded,
which strongly recommended the abolition of " pay-
ment by fees," and the substitution of fixed salaries
on a reduced scale—too reduced, indeed, considering
the then business of the court, which was crowded
during the period that Chief Baron O'GRADY (after-
wards Viscount GulLLAmoue) presided there.
It was emphatically the equity court for
the southern counties. The recommendations of the
Commissioners of Inquiry were disregarded. Pay-
ment of the several officers—and that on a superb
scale—was continued by the•new Act, and the con-
equence was, that offices for which salaries of 500/.,
800/., or 1,0004 a year were thought sufficient by
the Commissioners, grew into places of enormous
magnitude on account of the prodigious quantity of
business in the court. It has been calculated that if
the recommendations of the Commissioners had been
fairly carried out, the business that now costs the
country nearly FOURTEEN THOUSAND POUNDS PER
ANNUM could have been as efficiently transacted for
Three Thousand Pounds a year, or little over. 11( ar
this, financial reformers Let the fact be borne in
mind by Messrs. HUME and COBDEN, and MAC-
GREGOR, when exposing the jobbing that has pre-
vailed in the public offices. What an agglo-
meration of sinecures —of sinecures, we say, for
the equity business has been greatly reduced, if not
practically annihilated. Indeed, it could not be
otherwise, for so great is the accumulation of business
at the Pleas side of this, the most popular of all the
common law courts, that much time could not be
devoted to its discharge if it were required.
It was said that the last Government had resolved
upon sweeping away all the useless offices in the
equity branch, as they had previously► done at the
law side, and thus getting rid of the iniquitous system
of fees, and putting for ever on the shelf the glaring
sinecures that so long as they are permitted to exist
afford an example for imitation, and infuse discontent
and dissatisfaction among the people. Why the in-
tended plan for the abolition of fees and sinecures
in this court has been given up we are unable to
say►, but most sincerely do we hope that some
sturdy financial reformer will inquire into the matter,
and bring it prominently forward during the forth-
coming session. There is really no excuse for a con-
tinuance of these abuses. We do not of course object
to the proper and adequate payment of all persons in
situations of trust required for the public interests,
whose condition no one of true sense or practical
economy would desire to deteriorate. Such persons
should ever receive fair and adequate remuneration
for their services. It is not against the real working
men, but the useless drones, that the pruning-knife
should be applied. It is not, however, to the Castle
clique that we can look for substantial reforms. There
has hitherto been a backstairs' influence at all times
working in one part or another of that edifice, to effect
some paltry scheming that interferes with real im-
provements. Beneficial changes must emanate from
a really disinterested quarter. Lord CLARENDON has
exhibited much wisdom and firmness in the discharge
of his important duties, and if he should neutralize
these malign influences, he will have rendered good
knightly service to the community.
_ _ _

We should not conclude this notice without bear-
ing our testimony to the personal efficiency of the
several officers of the Equity Exchequer, who are all
well qualified to discharge their duties—if there were
really any—and who really do well whatever they
may have to do. It is not against them, but against
the aystem, that we have offered these observations.
There is one gentleman especially who, without
seeking to draw an invidious exception, is an inva-
luable public servant. We allude to the respected
register of the court, on whom devolves much of the
court business, and who discharges his duties with a
skill, impartiality, kindness, and good nature, that
are highly satisfactory to the Baron, to the Bar, and
what is not less important, to the public at large. He
has, indeed, won golden opinions from all classes since
he first undertook the duties of the office.

They are tempting the thunderbolt! Yesterday
we said this when speaking of the latest conspiracies
of the reactionaries, those conspiracies which are
tending towards the immediate dissolution of the
National Assembly; and the thought has since re-
curred to us that France may now comprehend in all
its bitterness the folly of her ingratitude to LAMAR.
TINE. For it cannot be forgotten that that great
man was, to use his own beautiful and expressive
definition, the lightning conductor that raised its
head towards the thunder-clouds of the Revolution to
carry off the electric fluid of the factions who were
conspiring the destruction of the Republic. The
lightning conductor has been thrown down, and
France must abide the issue of her rashness and her
ingratitude.
The real difficulty which embarasses the au-
thority of the President BONAPARTE, is this, that his
Government has not yet effected a cordial and visible
coalition with the Republicans of February. The
only link connecting them together is discernible in
the person of M. ARMAND MARRAST, the distin-
guished President of the National Assembly; and
that bond of union is considerably lessened in its
value from the circumstance of its being to a great
extent of a strictly fortuitous character. It is a
singular fact that the man who has now, under the
Prince Louis NAPOLEON, the supreme direction of
affairs, is the only man who, on the convocation of
the Assembly on the 4th of May, 1848, when the
nine hundred representatives rose with a simultaneous
shout of Vive la Republique ! retained his seat, and
was at last only induced to join his colleagues with
an air of sullen and ungraceful reluctance. It is a
fact not undeserving of consideration. And,
in addition to this, it may not be unwise
bear in mind that M. ODILON BARROT
was not only the latest and most unwilling
convert to Republican principles, but that he
was the statesman who, with M. ADOLPHE THIERS,
last attempted to patch together the rotten fragments
of the Monarchical system under Louis PHILIPPE,
and when that was found to be altogether imprac-
ticable, endeavoured to foist upon the nation the
wretched mockery of a Regency. That the man of
the veille should abstain, in the first instance at least,
from co-operating with an Administrator of such a
Very dubious and unsubstantial reputation, is by no
means surprising—particularly when we reflect that
M. ODILON BARROT must be regarded as an
isolated politician lagging in the rear of the rear-
guard of the
men of the lendenzain. In this
respect he bears a resemblance to that blessed infant
jppertaining to the house of A. TETTERBY and Co.,
ho was always carried in all on one side," and, in-
-
~riably, too late! M. ODILON BARROT is the very
v
loLocu of the Revolution.

Of late it has been rumoured that the President of
thP. Council, painfully impressed with a sense of the
armmaly and instability of his position, aspires to be
elected to the office of Vice-President of the Re-
public. The impudence of this has about it some-
.thing of the sublime. We shall next hear of Dlr.

MITH hims eN f—SMITH of Claremont, formerly known .
as KING of the FRENCH, " man without
whiskers," as Cousin FEENIX would term him—
putting himself forward as a candidate. We
wish he would. The joke would then be
complete. Diorr BOURCICAULT may as well
try his ingenious hand at a dramatic
companion to his first and wittiest comedy. He is
welcome to the suggestion. Paris Assurance would
" tell" admirably at the little theatre in the Hay-
market. Fancy M. ODILON BARROT " hit off" to a
T in a new version of Mr. DAZZLE! And M. TITTERS
metamorphosed into little DOLLY SPANKER ! Ridi-
culous as the theatrical representation would be if
undertaken by CHARLES MATHEWS and KEELEY, it
would be as nothing, absolutely as nothing, when
contrasted with the political farce now being actually
performed to crowded houses in the French capital.
" Her MAJESTY'S servants" would find rather serious
rivals in the leaders of the counter-revolution at
Paris. They would " take" better, too, we fancy than
the unfortunate ladies and gentlemen of the Thbatre
Historique, who endeavoured last year in Drury-lane
to portray the characters of Monte Christ° to the
lieges of Queen VICTORIA.
Coupled with the name of M. ODILON BARROT as
candidates for the Vice-Presidency of the French
Republic, we find, in the rumours which have been
of late prevalent, the names of M. DUFAURE and M.
DE LAMARTINE. There is a distinctness in the policy
represented by the two latter which is sadly wanting
in the former. We take them as the three degrees of
comparison in'regard to Republican loyalty ; and as
such they will no doubt be viewed by the majority
of the National Assembly. Were M. DE LAMARTINE
installed as Vice-President under the Presidency of
the Prince LOUIS NAPOLEON, with General CAVAIG-
NAC in the 'War Department of the Administration,
or at the head of the Government of Algeria, with
M. ARMAND MARRAST reconfirmed in his post as
President of the Assembly, with Marshal BUGEAUD
still Commander-in-Chief under the Alps, with
General CHANGARNIER still at the head of the Na-
tional Guard, with M. BASTIDE as Minister for Fo-
reign Affairs, M. MARIE as Minister of Justice, M.
GARNIER PAGES of Finance, M. CARNOT, of Public
Instruction, M. ARAGO, of Public Works, M.
Bum, of Commerce—the Republic might then look
forward to its permanent consolidation. As it is,
the Government could scarcely be composed of more
fugitive materials. It is idle to attempt to conceal
the fact that the Ministry of M. ODILON BARROT is
a mere makeshift. At the very moment of its crea-
tion it was infected with a corruption which inevit-
ably tends to decompose its elements. It is visibly
crumbling down day by day. We shall soon hear of
it 3 disappearance. Meanwhile it is manifest that
the President BONAPARTE is acting in a manner
worthy of himself, and with a circumspection worthy
of his august and elevated rank. He abstains alto-
gether from mingling in the squabbles and recrimina-
tions of party. He is neither intimidated by conspi-
rators nor cajoled by sycophants. 'Whatever may
be whispered about by the men who
are solicitous to undermine his popularity,
that popularity has suffered no diminution, and what
is more it has not tempted its diminution by pro-
ceedings either rash or unpatriotic. If the National
Assembly only closes its career with the dignified
consistency which for eight months has been its
principal characteristic, it will enable the Prince-
PRESIDENT to succeed in the formation of a compact,
majestic, and vigorous Government. And the readiest
way to effect this will be by the repudiation of the
preposterously impertinent pretensions of M. ODILON
BARROT, and by the investiture of M. DE LAMAR-
TINE with the dignity and prerogatives of the Vice-
Presidentship. When this much has been accom-
plished, we shall have no more gossipping about
the planche Napoleonniene, and the National Assem-
bly may then consent with grace to its instant dis-
solution, confident in the respect of the present
generation, and in the grateful admiration of pos-
terity.

1111 E FRENCH REPUBLIC.

LOUIS NAPOLEON BONAPARTE, the President of
the French Republic is, it is said, about to do an act
which will, whatever may be his ultimate fate, for
ever honourably distinguish his Government in the
future annals of France : he is about to liberate ADD-
EL-FADER in conformity with the terms of the
capitulation entered into with General LAMORICIERE
and the Duc D'AUMALE, by the Arab Chief, and
most foully and dishonourably violated by 1.1.
GuizoT and LOUIS PHILIPPE. All honour to
the PRESIDENT of the Republic. Never has the
name of BONAPARTE been illustrated by a more
chivalrous, high-minded, or a more honourable action.
The Patric gives the following account of the din-
ner at the Elysee on Friday :
The President of the Republic, wishing to put a
stop to the rumours about a Ministerial modification, as-
sembled at a grand dinner, on Tuesday evening, all
members of the Cabinet and of the bureau of the Assem-
bly. M. Louis Napoleon Bonaparte was dressed in
black, and wore the grand cordon of the Legion of
Honour. He seated the President of the Assembly on
his right, and the President of the Council on his left.
M. Leon Faucher, Minister of the Interior, faced the
President of the Republic, having on his right General
Bedeau, and on his left M. Goudchanx, the two first
Vice-Presidents. Each member of the bureau wore the
rosette of representative. The best harmony seemed to
reign between the President of the Republic and the
Ministers. After the dinner, the saloons, which have
been recently decorated, were filled with ladies."

We announced a few days since the arrival of
General Duiroun, in Paris. The Agsernblie Nationale
has the following as the object of his ♦isit :

" The journey of General Dufour to Paris has been
much spoken of in some diplomatic salons. Some per-
sons say teat the General has come to congratulate M.
Louis Bonaparte on his recent elevation ; others, better
informed, attach much greater importance to this jour-
ney. The Helvetic Directory, whose diplomatic agents
are exceedingly well informed, have received certain in-
telligence that; from this time to spring serious military
events will take place on its frontiers. Once that the
campaign of Hungary is finished, all the forces of Aus-
tria and Germany are to be directed on Italy and Swit-
zerland, which Europe considers as the great hot-bed of
insurrection ; the neutrality of Switzerland will be re-
spected, but the powers will impose a change in the
spirit of the Diet and the Directory ; in a word, the
Sonderbund and the old aristocracy of Berne will have
the supreme direction of the Helvetic Government. It is
not that the radical party, now masters of affairs, do not
appear exceedingly submissive before Europe, to
such a point as to disperse the refugees in
the interior of Switzerland ; but that is not
sufficient, and Germany will not lay down her arms
until after a result has been obtained. Also, a very
precise note from Prussia is spoken of, which claims,
in virtue of the treaties of 1815, the principality
of Neufchatel; a note strongly supported by Russia,
which, it is known, has made herselt a severe guardian
of these great European transactions. General Dufour
therefore comes to Paris to learn what may be expected
from France, in case of a resistance on the part of Swit-
zerland. Between this time and spring, several hypo-
theses may be realised.-1. The occupation of Tessino
by the army of Radetzky ; 2. the invasion of Neufchatel
and the German cantons by the army of the German
Confederation. In that case, what will France do? That
question is mixed up also with the probable war of the
Austrians and the Piedmontese! It appears impossible
that the Republic will leave the Germans masters of the
pass of Suze and of the bridge of BilNe, and that might
happen in the double hypothesis of a war of the Austro-
Germans against Switzerland and Piedmont."
The Liberte has the following on the subject of
the " missing documents" relating to the .Boulogne
affair :
" If we are rightly informed, the documents, in vain
applied for to the Procureur de la R6publique, may be
easily found. They must have been taken from the
Registry of the late Cour Royale, and transferred to the
Court of Peers, where more or less of them must have
been produced in the previous inquiries into the affair
of Boulogne. If these documents have had the same
fate as the other papers found at the Luxembourg, they
will now be at the Ministry of the Interior, under seal.
They must, in that case, have been comprised in the in-
ventory which was then drawn up."
In the National Assembly yesterday the discus-
sion on the proposition of M. RATEAU for the disso-
lution of the Assembly on the 4th of March was
commenced. The order of the day having been read,
the PRESIDENT took occasion to observe that the only
subject then before the house was as to whether the
proposition should be taken into consideration. If it
was resolved that it should be taken into considera-
tion, it would then be necessary that it be referred
to the bureau, which should choose a committee to
examine the proposition and report.
M. DE SXZE commenced the debate, by establish-
ing that the proposition of M. RATEAU was legal and
constitutional. He then endeavoured to show that
the decree of the 11th of December, which fixes the
number of the organic laws at ten, could be revised
by another decree, without any violation of the Con-
stitution, or without any neglect on the part of the
members of their mandate. He then attacked the
report of M. GREVT in detail, during which he was
frequently interrupted by the murmurs of the Mon-
tagnards. These murmurs increased when the
speaker endeavoured to prove that the mandate of
tt.e representatives had been fulfilled, and that the
Constituent Assembly had completed its labours. He
concluded by declaring that he would vote for M.
ItATEAu's motion. • - - - •

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