The Sun.
London, England, 1824-04-29 00:00:00

[From the QUARTE4LT RETIEw.I

OBSERVATIONS on the JUDGES of the COURT of
CHANCERY, and the PRACTICE and DELAYS com-
plained of in that COURT..
Continucclfrom TUE Strw of yesterday.)
The author of the pamphlet, the title of which we have pre-
fixed to this Article, has, in aJdition to a very able argument
on the general question, entered into the detail of some particu-
lar cases which contradict in the most decisive manner the ge-
neral declamations of the Chancellor's adversaries, and prove
that their particular cases are nothing but particular cases, and
that they have been grossly exaggerated.- We recommend this
little work both for its style and its facts ; it is written with
great moderation and a perfect knowledge of the subject. What
he has treated of we should nor think it necessary to handle
again; but his views and ours occupy different portions of the
matter--:be dwells Chiefly on the practice of the Court, while
our limits, as well as our inclination, prescribe to us a shorter,
simpler, and more general view of the subject : we shall look
at the Chancery business in the aggregase ; we shall suppose
that they are, in all times, pretty nearly the same propartions
of obstinacy and passion in parties, of chicanery and neglect in
practitioner: `we shall not set off against a windmill of Lord
Eldon's day, a watermill of Lord Hardwicke`s, but we shall
lay before our readers a succinct but clear and incontrovertible
statement of facts, which will prove that tile Earl of Eldon has,
an equal time, dispatched twice as much bussinem as the most
rapid of his predecessors.

His Lordship's antagonists, though they may amuse their
hearers, and indulge their tempers by the statement of an indi-
vidual case of apparent enormity, feel that they can make no
real impretsion unless they can chew that it is not the increase
of business, but the hesitation of the Lord Chasecllor that pro-
duces the Alleged delay. They are all forced to admit that he
is a judge of the most spotless integrity. The Edinburgh Re-
view introduces its attack upon him by confessing that be is a
great and karited lawyer'—..4 who possesses a most subtle and re-
fining understanding, and unite: with an extraordinary. degree
of
penetration and sagacity, a singular patience end cireanispee-
Non.' Such.is the eulogy, which the necessity, of conforming
in sane degree to public opinion, wrings from Lord Eldon's ad-
versaries ; but, then, they add that all these trantcendent quali-
ties are impaired, if not rendered quite useless, by the dubious
and undecided disposition of the Chancellor's mind, and by
-the delay and procrastination of his proceedingi. This; they
allege 4 is the true cause of the accumulation of business. This
we deny—and on this ground—a fair, clear, open, and visible
arena--we meet them.

' lies the equity business,' it is triumphantly asked, ' has
the equity business been doubled, or any thing like it ? No
' man will he so .•ild its to dream of such a thing!' and in sup-
port of this argumentative and elegant forM of itssertion, the
authorities of Sir S. homily and of the present Vice-Chancel-
lor (when Mr. Leach) are profusely quoted.
Now, although we hold it of very little importance whether
equity, ONE branch of the Lord Chancellor's business, has
doubled or not, .if we can show that themgregate business to
be performed by him has more 6an doublet; yet we will ven-
ture to confess that we are wild enough--with our eyes open
and in a day-light possession of our faculties—to assert that
even the EQUITY BUSINESS HAS NEARLY, IF NOT.ABSO.
LUTEtY, DOUBLED; and we think that we shall prove it,
not by wild declamation or visionary hypotheses, but by figures
and facts, clear in their evidence and incontrovertible in their
nature. -

-Chancery, like any other, business, must be measured by its
quantity and its quality, by its importance and difficulty, as
well as by its variety and extent; the quantity is sometimes to
be obtained without difficulty ; as the numbers of bills filed,—
of petitions presented,—of causes set down,—of motions grant-
ed, and so on. If our adversaries would be content with rest-
ing the question on the result of mere number:, it might be
speedily decided ; but in common fairness, we must admit the
other ingredient into the consideration, namely, the quality, the,
weight, the importance, the value of the business transacted.
We are not deterred from this admission by the obvious. diffi-
culty of finding data on which to establish the comparison. We
know that a direct calculation of such fugacious and ever-vary-
ing elements cannot be given,
man is so wild as to dream
of such a thing; but we think that, by. taking 'a general view
of the elements of which Chancery business is composed, and
measuring (as we are in many cases enabled to do with perfect
accuracy) their increase, we can arrive at very satisfactory in-
ferences as to the increase of that business to which they severally
conduce.

'Withoutinahasty
of the extensive nature
ty
and popular essay of this
nature, to
intoan
examinationand objects of the Chancellor's jurisdiction, we shall only re-
mind our readers, generally, that the increase of population,
and the growth of riches, must always produce a corresponding
increase of business in all the Courts of civil law - and we must
add, that our population has grown, and our wealth has increas-
ed, under circumstances which have in a peculiar and surprising
degree augmented the duties of the Chancellor. Let us now pro-
ceed to examine those several circumstances which may affect the
increase of business in Chancery, and let us compare their
amount at the present day with their amount in the time of
Lord Ilardwicke—we need hardly say, that we choose Lord
Hardwicke's administration as being, what our adversaries
would call, the best times of the Court of Chancery.
The first of these elements is, no doubt, the population ;
in a certain proportion to which all the law and other business
of a nation must necessarily be increased.
In 1750, England contained 6,017,000 souls ;
In 1821, - 11,500,000;
and lest it should be replied that population increases chiefly
on those classes which give least occupation to a Chancellor,
we shall show, that—(the wealth of the country increasing in a
still greater proportion)—those classes which are likely to oc-
cupy the time of a Chancellor, have increased in very consi-
derable proportions. In 1750, there were about 180 Peers ; in
1022, there were 304.

Of the class of persons ranking as private gssdknten, we
have no means of ascertaining the precise numbers at either
period, but we have some collateral evidence to show that it has
increased in a still greater ratio. The Una of the gentry of
England are to be fbund, in the first instance, at the Univer-
sities, and subsequently in the learned professions and the mi.
litary and naval services. Now the number of students matri-
culated in Oxford, was,
In 1750, - 190 ;
In 1820, - - 366.
In Cambridge, the numbers matriculated were,
In 1748, - - 138 ;
In 1823, - - 397-
The field and general officers of the army were
In 1775, . - - 277 ;
In 1822, - - - 2,65t1.
The commissioned officers of the navy were
In 1749, - - - IMO.;
In 1820, about - - 10,000.
_ _

It is not easy for us, at this moment, to ascertain the com-
parative numbers of the clerical and medical professions, but
those of the barristers we have obtained, and they are doubly
important not merely as assisting in the point of view we are
now taking, but as demonstrating the proportional increase of
business in the courts of law. The calls to the bar were
In 1750, - - - 37 ;
In 1820, - - fit!
and we can state that forty years ago the number of practis-
ing barristers behind the bar in Chancery did not ranch ex-
ceed a dozen, and that there are at this hour fifty gentlemen
of that rank and avocation. The merchants, traders and
manufacturers have increased, almost beyond calculation, in
numbers, in the direct value • of their commercial transac-
tions, and in the variety and extent of their operations__
this is so notorious that it would be a waste of time to
stop to prove it by details. Thus then we have the • po-
pulation at large, doubled—the peerage nearly doubled—
the gentry, as far as can be ascertained from the numbers
educated in the Universities and attached to the professions
trebled—the commercial classes probably more than trebled—
and the barristers, who are to conduct the affairs of all these
classes in the courts, at least doubled. No one, we think, can
doubt that these increases indicate a corresponding increase in

• We select from the Second Report from the Committee of
the Commons appointed to inquire into the Causes that retard
the decision of suits in the High Court of Chancery, part of the
examination of Jacob Crofts, Esq. Senior Deputy Register of
the High Court of Chancery, on this point :--
The time of actually hearing causes does not commence till
the termination. of the seal, whatever number of days that may
take up ?'—' Certainly so.'
State, from your own knowledge and experience, what is the
reason that that interval, which used to be passed in hearing the
causes, is exhausted by the continuance of the seal?'—' It arises
from motions being of that high consequence, that the point ,
in the cause is frequently determined, and takes up a great,
time.'

.....
Does it sometimes happen that the points which would arise.
in the hearing the cause, being presented to the notice and de-
cision of the Court on the motion, the cause is never afterwards
heard of?'—' That frequently happens.'
That point is now frequentlydetermined upon motion,which!
formerly used to he determined upon the hearing of the cause ?
—‘ Yes ; and the cause is put an end to by the decision upon
the motion.'—Report, p. 45.