The Sun.
London, England, 1823-06-06 00:00:00

motion's led hint to-think thatit -was ithnostimpossible to resist`
the present motion.. lie was decidedly against the opinion that
'that House ought to wait till Something on the subject had been
originated in the other. If proof were wanting that they ought
not to do this, he could not desire a better than that furnished.
by the measure of. 1813, which, while it created a new officer,
had. given additional patronage to the Government without ef:.
fecting any good. The Court had, indeed, been in some de-
arree relieved by the extraordinary dispatch of the Judge who
sat as Vice-Chancellor. But for this the arrear at present
would have been immense. Under these circumstances he did
not see how• the proposed inqUiry could be resisted. Ile should
therefore most cordially give his vote for the motion, and that
too.with a view of clearing the lend Chancellor from any im-
putation, which the 'powerful •and voluminous speech of his
lton. and Learned Friend might he considered to have cast
upon hint.- • •
Mr. W. 'COU lITENAY laboured under some disadvan-
••tages• in rising on the present occasion, from the circumstance of
his being,ono of the officers of the Court of Chancery, who had
been implicated nhnost by name in the alleged abuses in that

tionrt.
Mr..M. A. TAYLOR begged to say, that in what had fallen
'from him on.the preceding night he had made no allusion to
'the Hon. and - Learned Gentleman, who was not a Master in
Chancery at the period to which he had referred.
Me. AV. -COUIetTENAY resumed. It had been stated that
the public complained of all the Officers of that Court, and
-consequently he was comprehended in the charge. The clues-
-tion on which they had now to decide was this-ehad a case been
'made out which called on the House to institute, the proposed
'inquiry. It had been said no personal attack had been ni-
` tended on the Lord Chancellor; but whatever the Hon. and'
Learned Gentleman Who had just sat down had-found it,since it
• came into his hands it had been converted into a moat direct and
,personal attack on that Noble Lord. It was worthy of remark •
that • the attack was not confined to'dilatoriness, but that distin-
guished-individual was accused of erroneous judgment, . and
want ofknowledge.--4 Heaths—The I ,airned Gentleman seemed
-to dissent from this, but if such charges were not intended to be
preferred, what was meant by. the remarks on the Portsmouth
case, and these on the ()pinions entertained by the Lord Chancel-
lor 'on the subject of literary property The Attorney-(funeral
had been said to have ingeniously imagine& that a personal at.
'tack had been Made on the Noble Lord. But what were the
expression§ used by the Hon. and Learned Gentleman who hats.
brought fOrward the - present motion ? Had he not called the
decree mentioned in a particular -case, a surreptitious decree,
and had it not been said with respect to the Lord Chancellor,
that cc such was the way in which that decree was pronouncal?"
If these assertions were warranted, was it tit that a Conimittee
should be appointed to inquire into facts which, if true, ought
to he niade the subject of an impeachment ? The [lon. i\lover
said he had biought thrward this • proposition as the , grievance
complained of had been admitted, and the rented}, attempted
to be supplied in 1813 had completely failed. He should have
• thought when the object was to stew that the evil/was as great
now as in 1813, that the Learned Gentlemen would have had
recourse to sonic authentic document, to skew what amount
of business was now before 'the Court. lie begged to state
' what the amount of business was in June, 1823. At pre-
sent there were standing to be heard-before the Lord Chancel-
lor and ViceaChancellor 360 causes. The Learned Gentleman
had, he thought, need rather - a hard expression when he de-
scribed the view taken by the Attorney-General of business
• in arrear, to be a quibble. Ile felt himself compelled to take
the smile course. He thought it necessary to know what was
in arrear to consider the total number .of causes to be heard
and bills filed, and that with reference to the time. when they
were put down for a hearing. The hills filed altogether in the
course of 1822 had amounted to 2,-189. In 1820 the number
was 2,220. In 1821,- -2,071. In- the present year the number
'already filed was 1,038. These. added to the 2,489 filed last
year, _gave a total of 3,527 since January, 1022. He did net
consider it was correct to say because such a number of cases
• were befere the Court on a given day that there was an arrear
to that amount. But if on any given day, say.the sth of .4.-
minty, 1022, it should appear that such a number of causes
had been 'set down to be heard three years ago,. that business
be should call an arrear. This might be fallacious reasoning:,
• 'but it was no quibble. The bulk of the cases which now stood
..for hearing hail been set down since Michaelmas TerM, last
• year. The number of eases, under the head of " Further Di.
.rections," how before the Court, sitar 125. • Two nfonths re-
mained before the long vacation to dispose of. these. Wishing
to Wee a fair view of the arrear, lie had yesterday inquired what
-it had been before the conunencement of the last long vacation,
and had found that the number of cases under.this head which
were among the most important as suitors,- which had not
iaa in finally disposed. of nt that time, did not exceed sixty.
`lie would venture to lily it down as a position, that with
the exception of appeals, there was no business in the Court
of Chancery which could be 'called in arreitr. Ile meant that a
suitor might now ;So into Court, and get his cause heard with-
oat its being set down in the list of arrears, and that In as short
it thee, or shorter, than' he ever could before. lie knew that
an opposite ()Pinion was entertained by some Gentlemen, but
be hoped they would not meet his position with a. mere con-
tradiction, but strew that such delay.was incurred by suitors.--,
Theoffice which now remained for him to notice was that' of
ethe Master of the Rolls. When Sir. William Grant retired
• eat Michaelmas -Term, 1816, the number of causes unheard was
.4110; since that period 1117 had been set down, and the num-
ber remaining td be heard was now 111. Thus 1,179 causes
had been disposed of within that period, and he stated these
independent of petitions. The petitions heard amounted to
the number of 5,008, though lie was willing to allow that these
did rot consume flinch time. flt was said that on his side of
the 1-louse they had not answered the additional facts brought.
forward by the Honourable Member for aDurham. fie would
state to the House why he had not answered them ; . because at
the time he heard them, he knew they could not possibly have
easy foundation in truth, or even in probability. There was
• • atne case in which it was said that the term fees for one yeai
amounted to 1011/. He had since applied through a different
• • channel in order to possess himself' of the documents upon
• which that statement was founded.. by the Hon. and Learned
.Member; he had ascertained that the most unaccountable
-mistake had been committed. in the eivilest language he could
use, he would say that he could not conceive how lies Hon. and
Learned Friend could think there was.the slightest truth in the
matter, and. he would therefore only conclude that there had
'been a most groaa.mistake. In the case of Beer and IlarWood,
it. had been gravely charged by his .11on, and Learned Friend
that the Lord Chancellor -had made asurreptitinus decree.
Mr. NVILLIAMSee-".Never."
Mrs COU'et.TENA.V. proceeded to read the words as he had
.heard theist-fall from his flon: and 14 u ned Friend.' The state-
inent was, that the Solicitor complaiacrl of a. sureptitioue
havineabeee given.
Mr. hear, hear ; that 1 did say."
Me. COPRTENAY said he- knew his lion. and Learned
wee too guarded to make such a charge hisneellabut
what was the impression his statement conveyed to the House,
- if it was not an accusation of such a decree having been made?
What was the meaning of' what followed ? After stating the
fact, lie left it to the consideration . of every Gentleman in the
House, and let them see how the than Gentleman who spoke
last itnderstoed it. That Hon. and Learned Gentleman, he was
sure, would not shrink from owning, in die hold and manly
manner' in which he always spoke his opinions, that to but
mind such was the charge -made.- The charges fur the alleged
attendances having been disallowed, was at least proof that the
evidence-possessed by the lion. and Learned Gentleman was of
too loose a neture to justify a charge so grave. When Lord
Eldon heard that his receiving the assistance of the party in pri_
vate had given offence to the.adverse Soliaitor, he mentioned the.
- subject publicly in- Court, and stated .that upon the best of his
ju(lginent and eaperienee lit. durtiglie it heeit to. have such pi-
" yaw aestistanee to aothe cases, for, the sahe •of accuraey and
elearness in the minutes,- and-that ie. was always his intention
to tta ss i whenneeessary. The Tien. -and 'Learned Gentleman
alien went through the caeca Which had been mentioned as exe.
ample Of delay, and *hewed that t;la (Islay was owiag either
to. the peculiar intricacies of the que:aloir,, or to the conduct tel
• the parties them selves and their Solicitors. - The number of ap-
• peals froin ail the Courts., and epon ell the ttusinesa of a
-.wealtiry population of 33 millions, now before the Lord Chins
cellar, amounted to 104. -'These, at course, he meant were: tip.
an qaeetions. ' hut, independent of. this the increase of nopu.
Tenon, and wealth,' and enterprise in • this country, lied created
a new hind of business, which formerly wee never known. This
'consisted of Motions and instructions in regard to intricate corn•
mercial trareeictiont,,the working of mines, _the interests in
Agree concerns, -such as theatrical establishlllents.—(A laugla)_es
AlCd he•woulti also remark to his -brethren of the bar, if' they
fount]- fault with the delay which existed, that they sometimes
centributed f o it by the extreme length of their arguments.
When all thew things were considered, he thought he had a
right to say thet the Amer of business was not great in pro-
portion to that which was done: It was said that the Noble
and Learned Lord took large time to consider before he gave
decieions; and from that he would not shrink. lie held
it necessary to public justice that large time should be
• taken : and' the manner in which his decisions were given
would make them the foundation of a system of Equity Law,
by ' which the property of the people of England would
hereafter be secured. Ile knew that every Lawyer would
agree with him when he said that the judgments of Lord
Eldon would go down to posterity as a guide to future
Jo (Iva, anti a direction to future Counsel. 'fie whole argu-
ment of the on. :111(1 Learned. Gentleman, whatever his motion
wee, was dir&ted against the slowness of the Lord Chancelhir.
The only object to which inquiry coal-_t lead roust consequently
-• be. tine..reeraval et firmi ile •Nctelld ask the Nowa, if
they f.-:0111d entertain the idea ter a roeinent of going
,into such
inouicv io the na.lith of Juice. n, t,,gyri upon witt Noble
.an'] Learned Lord would be I"rc3,,,,ithious; but be