The Sun.
London, England, 1870-05-30 00:00:00

4. BILL ABOUT BORSERACING.

The Economist disapproves of Mr. Hughes's Bill on
several grounds, and asks what poncern the State has in
such a matter, ,All laws restricting the trade in its
management of horses, providing Queen's Plates and the
like, are laws establishing bounties, and as we know by
the experience gained in every other trade, are radically
unwise. The dealer, if let alone, will breed the horse for
which there is a demand much better than Government
can teach him, and the single law we shouid propose upon
the subject is one abrogating all that exist, and leaving
the trade as free alike from restriction and from encour-
agement as the trade in cats. Mr. Hughes, among other
things, wants to stop three-year-olds running for Queen's
Plates ; but suppose five-year-olds only run, why should
Parliament pay for the racing of five-year-olds any more
than for the raking of donkeys on Hampstead Heath ?
What is it to the State whether horses are swift or only
sure ? With the second half of' Mr. Hughes's Bill we have
a little more sympathy, though even on this side we are
unable to go as far as he does. The temptation offered
by lotteries, and therefore by betting-shops, which are,
after all, nothing but lotteries in a new form,
is a temptation tq primp of a very exceptional kind.
The shopman who would net stern thinks he may borrow,
and as he looks upon winning as apertainty, soothes his
conscience as he empties flip till With the idea that he is
benefiting himself without injuring his' master."" It was
proved by the inquiry into the effect of letteries that this
was their invariable consequenee—that an artificial
temptation to theft was by this means placed before a
community largely entrusted with other persons' money,
and it was therefore, as we think, justifiably removed,
It would be quite justifiable and very wise to prohibit
horse-lotteries also, if we can only do it, but it is very
hard to imagine a law which would fully accomplish the
end, and which would have a chance of being carried'out.
We can and do make it an offence to keep a betting-shop.
We can and do refuse legal assistance towards the
recovery of a bet. We might possibly, by a little more
severity, and by punishing all newspaper proprietors and
bill-stickers for advertising such places make the law more
effective, but how we are to go farther we do not see.
The evil of the existing system is undoubted, but it is one
of those evils which we can at best only hope to restrict
to those who are determined to indulge their taste. We
can by prohibiting agencies and their advertisements
make it difficult for a gambler to bet without personally
seeking a person to bet with, and that would be something
pined, perhaps much gained ; but to go further than that
is only to add on;, pore to the long list of our inoperative
laws. We can, as It warp, put up a hedge, which it will
take the majority some trouble to break through ; but the
few who will take the trouble must of necessity be let
alone. Make betting in itself tin offence, and every bet
will be rath4 more a matter of honeUr than it is at pre-
sent, yet short this we can 49 nothing, except close
betting shops, as we aredoing now:

The Vice-Chancellor of Ireland has sanctioned the
sale of the Dublin Exhibition buildings to Sir Arthur
Guinness and his brother for £51,000, to pay off the
debts.

THE ARMY AND NAVY.—The Broad Arrow says,
there is no likelihood of any official gazette conferring
Bath appointments being published at this season. The
Army and Navy Gazette, say that Sir Spencer Robinson,
K.C.B. one of the Lords of the Admiralty, and the
controller of the Navy, has arrived in London, and has
given satisfactory accounts of the performances of the two
turret-ships Captain and Monarch, but especially of those
of the latter. The successor to Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas
Symonds, K.C.8., commanding the Channel Squadron
has not been as yet decidedly fixed upon. but Vice-
Admiral E. G. Fanshawe is still the favourite at the pro-
fessional clubs.—Having in view the present state of
Canadian affairs, it is hardly probable that the Ist Batta-
lion 60th Rifles will be withdrawn from Canada for the
present. Rear-A clmiral Lorin,Y C. B. , has been nominated to
succeed Rear-Admiral Xey, °C.B., as Superintendent of
Portsmouth Dockyard,—The appointment of District In-
spector of Musketry at Aldershot is vacant by the promo-
tion of Captain D. Thompson, 67th Foot, to a majority
in his rcgiment.—The United Service Gazette says Captain
E. D. Thelwail hag been appointed Gunnery Instructor to
the Royal Marine Artillery vice M'Arthur, appointed
Paymaster. .

LAW AND POLICE.

A CHURCH-RATE CASE.—In the Arches Court a
Church-rate case has has been tried in respect of the

parish church of Edgmond, Salop, in the diocese of Lich-
field. The suit was brought to pay off an advance by the
Public Loan Commissioners for the repair of the church,
and the sum in dispute was 10s. 9ad. at the rate of 2d. in
the pound on the property of the defendant, a parishioner.
The question in dispute was the validity of a poll taken
at the vestry meeting, at which the application of the
Loan Commissioners was resolved upon. It was con-
tended it should have been the poll of the parish, not of
the vestry meeting. The Dean of Arches decided that
the poll was regular, and left the rest of the case to be
subsequently decided.
THE UNITED SERVICE COMPANY.—The question whether
it is competent for a company, by special resolution, to
release persons who have subscribed the memorandum of
association from the obligation of taking the number of shares
set opposite to their names has been raised in the Rolls
Court. The United Service Company (Limited) was
started in 1865, when General Hall became one of the
directors, and subscribed the memorandum of association
for 500 shares, only 250 of which were allotted to him.
Three years later the Board released him and other sub-
scribers from their liability in respect of shares subscribed
for, but not allotted. The company has since been wound
' up, and the official liqudator has applied for the addition
of :General Hall's name to the list of contributories, in
respect of the 250 shares not allotted. Several other cases
depended on this one. The Master of the Rolls decided
that General Hall's name must be settled on the list
in respect of the 250 shares subscribed for by him but not
allotted.

A PATENT CASE. —A case arising out of a dispute about
a patent has been brought before Vice-Chancellor
Manna. A person named Wright, who was the holder
of a patent for making kitchen ranges, entered into an
agreement with Mr. Hassall by which the latter was to
be the sole manufacturer of the patented article. Wright
afterwards entered into agreements with three iron manu-
facturers at Sheffield. Hassall having filed a bill to re-
strain them from manufacturing the ranges the defendants
objected that the agreement with him had not been
registered under the Patent Amendment Act.—The Vice-
Chancellor was of opinion that the agreement did not
require to be registered, and the defendants having had
notice of it were bound by its. provisions. The objection
was unsustainable in any case, as the agreement had now
been registered, and the registration would date back to
the time of filing.
THE BOARD OF WORKS.—An application has been
made in the Court of Exchequer to set aside an award of
compensation made by an arbitrator between the owner
of a house in Parliament-street, and the Board of Works.
The claimant was a tailor who had been in business
for many years and the arbitrator had awarded
him a large sum as compensation for his house, and a
further sum for the goodwill of his business. A rule was
obtained last term on the ground that no compensation
ought to have been given for goodwill, but the court held
the compensation was properly awarded and discharged
the rule.

THE PROSECUTION OF Mn. BENNETT.—The Dean of
Arches stated in'court that he gave Mr. Bennett, of Frome,
leave to appeal on his decision, and he had received a
letter from the Registrar of the Judicial Committee, telling
him the case had been remitted to his Court. He had
been informed that the promoter had taken no further
proceedings, and accordingly notice must be given that
the case should be at once proceeded with, or struck off
the books of the Court.