The Sun.
London, England, 1846-12-22 00:00:00

should be then and there developed to the Court and
jury. What t
h eopening would
of be thought
a
trial t
omo
of
rLr
oowr d D E aif,
morning,
N of
the merits of which he might have happened
to have become casually informed, he were to brow-
beat the counsel, telling him that both he and his
client were mad for attempting to submit their case
to a jury ? Such conduct could not be suffered for
one moment without producing severe remonstrance ;
and how childish would it not be thought for the
Chief Justice to contend that such monstrous extra-
judicial remarks could not have any weight with the
jury ! Men are but men; and it is notorious what
an influence is likely to be imparted to the minds
of jurymen by judicial, or extra-judicial dicta.
It was very honourable in the foreman to reject the
belief that the verdict of himself and his colleagues
would be in any degree swayed by what the Chief
Baron had let drop. Still, the foreman could only
answer for himself; and the very vehemence with
which he expressed himself argues the probability
that he was not in a frame of mind dispassionately to
discharge the impsrtant duties the law had imposed
upon him. The fault lay with the judge. That his
Lordship meant well is not to be doubted; but that
a greater legal indiscretion was ever manifested on
the bench, it is almost impossible to surmise. What
makes the matter worse is, that a letter has since
been published by the solicitor to the
defendant, alleging that, but for the extraordinary
conduct of the judge, they meant to have
called witnesses who had never appeared at the
first trial, and whose testimony would have given a
different complexion to the entire case. But, of
course, they naturally enough considered that any
evidence would be of no avail for the purposes of a
fair trial when they had been stigmatised in the
outset, in open court, by the presiding judge, as being
little short of insane. Even without this evidence,
the report runs, that the judge summed up emphatically
in favour of the insane parties. This, of itself, was a
piece of judicial conduct highly inconsistent, to say
the least of it. If it were meant as a sort of " aniende,"
it signally failed ; the mischief had been irreparably
committed; the jury heeded not the judge, but im-
mediately gave increased damages.
We resign this subject with feelings of deep regret
that the Chief Baron should have suffered himself to
lapse into so serious an error. Distinguished an
advocate as Sir FREDERICK POLLOCK proved himself
at the bar, it is much to be lamented that he has
shown himself, at times, to be grievously deficient in
the high qualifications indispensably necessary to con-
stitute an efficient judge, particularly where he is
appointed to be the chief of his court. If Sir
FREDERICK PoLLOCK be desirous of standing well in
public opinion, we recommend him to dispense largely
with that dogmatical loquacity for which he has
already acquired an unenviable distinction. A
grave and dignified deportment is of no mean
account in a judge; but the habit of fre-
quently interrupting the counsel, by bawling
out in stentorian tones, will never conduce to the
desired demeanour. If Sir FREDERICK POLLOCK be
ambitious of improving himself, let him turn his eyes
to the Chief Justice of the Queen's Bench, and he
will be readily supplied with a model he would do
well to imitate.

It appears that the ambassadors from the Northern
Powers to the Swiss Republic have determined to
quit Berne for Zurich as soon as the Government of
the former enters on its directive duties. This is re-
garded as a protest against the new Bernese constitu-
tion, and as a prelude to intervention in the internal
affairs of Switzerland. The English Ambassador
will, we are happy to say, remain at Berne, but the
French Ambassador accompanies the northern diplo-
matists to Zurich. Under these circumstances, the
following passage from a letter written by the Neuf-
chatel correspondent of the Journal des Debats, is
somewhat suggestive :—" An enzeute of a somewhat
grave character has recently broken out in the Ber-
nese Jura, on the occasion of the installation of a new
prefet. The general desire of the inhabitants of this
portion of the country, particularly in the Catholic
localities, and where French is the language spoken, is
to be separated from the canton of Berne." Is S wit-
zerlvnd to be treated like Poland, and partitioned
among her more powerful neighbours ? Is France to
take, as her share of the spoil, the Jura provinces,
where French is the language spoken ? If so, we can
understand why it is with only " bated breath and
whispering humbleness " that M. GUIZOT protests
against the annexation of Cracow.

Madrid papers of the 14th have arrived.

The last account of the elections gives, out of 171
elections, the results of which were known, 127 to the
Moderados and 44 to the Opposition. Among the
Moderados returned were M. Donoso Cortes, ex-
Secretary to the Queen; M. Gonzales Bravo, ex-
President of the Council, and now Spanish Envoy at
Lisbon ; M. Mayans, ex-Minister of Justice ; M.
I3enavides, ex-Political Chief of Madrid ; and General
Jose de la Concha, Captain-General of the Basque
provinces. The Progressistas had returned at Seville
their principal leader, M. Cortina; and M. Antonio
Gonzales, who was President of the Council
under Regent Espartero, had also secured a
seat in the Cortes. M. Salamanca had been
returned in the province of Alicante. The election
of M. Olozaga, whose conduct towards the Queen
in 1843 seemed to be most resentfully remembered
by the Court, had given rise to the meeting of a
Cabinet Council. According to the _Espanol, no-
thing would be decided as to the admission of M.
Olozaga into the Chamber of Deputies " until the
dispositions of the new Moderado majority were
better ascertained."

It is rumoured that the Ministry, alarmed at the
unexpected successes of the Progressistas in several
districts, notwithstanding the persecutions and op-
pressions directed against them, is meditating a coup
d 7:tat against MENDIZAI3AL, OLOZAGA, ANTONIO
GONZALES, and several other Progressista leaders.

The following, the only intelligence from Portugal
contained in these papers, appears in the Clamor
Publico :
" We have seen a Lisbon letter which records one of
the most atrocious crimes that can be attempted, but one
which is, fortunately, of rare occurrence in the annals of
nations. It appears that the Cabralists, unable to con-
quer their enemies by the sword, have determined upon
committing a fearful crime in order to get rid of them.
Secret agents have been sent to Count Das Antas's head-
quarters, with the mission of blowing up the powder
magazine and poisoning his troops.. Count Das Aatas
happily detected their project in time to save the lives
of his unfortunate soldiers, to whom 5,000 poisoned
loaves had already been distributed. What a horrible
deed !"

We have received the Paris papers of Sunday.

The Moniteur Parisien of Saturday evening, which
has succeeded the defunct Messager as the autho-
rised and acknowledged Ministerial organ, has
the following, respecting the circular note of M.
GuizoT on the subject of Cracow, a translation of
tftc
Opposition,
from
mpei cxohs
statect i,hitte efornnoai
it
nemc
uawe Lssnhsadaiinteeyhrpersonalaohfhe France,
ha
giving
sw eb
rgaoanuvyge h yet este r d a y : " The
journal La France publishes, this morning, a note,
entitled ' Circular Note of M. GUIZOT on the affairs
of Cracow.' We are authorised to declare that this
note is altogether inaccurate and incomplete."
The Natonal has a furious article against M.
GUIZOT, for having removed M. BARBET from
fhaefyrA olli Nationalnist t
escapeheo
erf
the Mauritius, and accuses the Government of
having cowered before " the insolent menace of Lord
PALMERSTON."
In commenting ot
cover
nvttethparteckoso seizure i
urtwpuh
ohre
nei
which
haohrf
it
hmt
oel
oafsthteo
Friday, by the Government, the Constitutionnel cha-
racterizesxtphl
eanaa
affairs
ss
himself
country. "He agitates himself," says
the Constitu-
tionnel—

" He declaims, he assumes an air of arrogance and of
violence. He makes a great noise to deceive his friends,
to deceive himself, as WI the gravity of the situation in
which he has placed France. Unfortunately for him
facts speak plainly, and have no need even of a com-
mentary. France is isolated, and will, most probably, so
remain for a long period of time. The Cabinet which
represents France has quarrelled with all the great
rowers of Europe. The Liberal cause, which is the
cause of France, has experienced an immense check at
Cracow, and all the addresses of our Chambers have
been flagrantly and cruelly belied. The policy of our
Government,based upon the English alliance, has been de-
stroyed in 24 hours by a coup de tete. The system of peace,
of the peace of minds, as M. Guizot defined it, is destroyed.
The only hope of our Cabinet is, that at some future
period, more or less distant, the Absolutists may conde-
scend to accept of its assistance to perpetrate inlsome
country or other, in Switzerland, for example, some.new