The Sun.
London, England, 1846-12-09 00:00:00

4,44/
.441 t ken= $1 2:7' Ma.

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER I, 1846.

French influence is not only maintained in Madrid
it is more than ever predominant. The harvest of
the Montpensier marriage is already being garnered.
The pear is not only ripe, it is gathered. With the
termination of November a variety of Ministerial
changes have set the Spanish capital in a ferment,
and have revealed at the same moment the
contintted supremacy of Lous PHILIPPE'S Am.
bassadol% The Afrancesados have in all likeli-
hood bees! striving to conceal the unconstitutional
scaffolding upon which their power has been
erected. They have, doubtless, been endeavouring
most sedulously to screen themselves from the ob-
loquy which their latent subserviency to the Count
DE BRESON would excite against them on its distinct
revelation. They have been trying to shroud in
obscurity their ignoble connexion with the Gallic
Cabinet. In these contemptible endeavours they
have been miserably un,uccessful. The very earnest-
ness of their desire for concealment has con-
duced to a most unfortunate, and a most
complete exposure, just as SHAKSPERE speaks of
The dread of guilt,
Spilling itself from fearing to be spilt."
The circumstances of this eclaircissetnent are peculiar
and interesting.
A.t ten o'clock on the night of the 29th ultimo the
Ministry tendered their resignation. That resigna-
tion was accepted with apparent alacrity by I4ABELLA
11. At eleven o'clock the Marquis of VILUMA
was, at the instigation of CHRISTINA, invited to
....fottrui an ?
ut °
ministration, but immediately declined.
b se qu en , ly the Marquis of M kFL RBS the Mar-
quis CA.sx T:tuJo, and others,
received similar re-
quisitions, and thosed.
requisitions were successively
rejected with similar promptitu
Among the numerous causes to which these unex-
pected occurrences are traced, there
an
only four of
ilit -
any importance, and only two of
n rtLnd eleva
That the rumoured retirement of Gu izyoTaprobaby.
,
Lion of MOLE to the premiership in p
abrt iptly destroy a Peninsular Government whichh°hliladd
beet so artfully and so artistically constructed, is

marvellously improbable. That the refusal of AR..
MERO, the Minister of Marine, to apologise with due,
obsequiousness to the Infante Don ENRIQUE for hi;
discourteous behaviour at Cadiz, should have nipped the
new-born rose of French domination "i' 111. e burl," or
even have " fed on its d ona:k cheek " in secresy, is
equally preposterous. The two principal rumours,
however, to which we have referred are much
more rational. The first, if correct, reflects dis-
gracefully upon the Court. On the 30th of Novem-
ber the salt contract between the Government and
M. SALAMANCA terminated. M. Mos; was obdurate
in his refusal to renew this grant, and in its renewal
were said to be implicated the pecuniary interests of
the Duke DE RIANZARES. According to many cre-
dulous individuals, this obstinacy of the Minister of
Finance was the immediate cause of the resignation
of his colleagues. According to others, that resigna-
tion was attributable to a very different and an in-
finitely more creditable circumstance. Senor
PACHECO, the avowed leader of the Conservative
Opposition in Congress, and Fiscal of the Supreme
Tribunal of Justke, had applied according to an
official custom for permission to visit Cordova, for the
purpose of personally superintending his re-election
by his constituents. That permission had been re-
fused by Senor CANEJA, the Minister of Grace and
Justice, and in consequence thereof Senor PACHECO
instantly tendered his resignation. The report was
prevalent that it was the disinclination of Queen
ISABELLA, at the earnest solicitation of the King
Consort, to accept the resignation of E enor
PACHECo, which had determined the Minis-
try generally to resign. Whether these con-
jectures be literally correct or not, it is certain
that the first prejudices of the SOVEREIGN have been
conquered, that the resignation of the Fiscal
of the Supreme Tribunal has been ultimately ac-
cepted, that ISTURITZ and his colleagues have been
reinstated in office, and that all this has been
accomplished through the instrumentality of the
Count DE BRESSON. Is anything further wanting to
divulge the efficiency of the French representative in
the Iberian metropolis ? Are not the manacles
which had been concealed by the gala-dress of
the Ministers now sufficiently disclosed ? Are
not the contemptible Afrancesadcs bound
to the imperious and volatile will of a
foreign population by the ties of gratitude as well
as by the shackels of sycophancy ? Are not the
anticipations of England verified in this disgraceful
transaction ? Are not the Spanish millions under
the arbitrary control of a feudatory lord acquired
by marital chicanery ?
There is a solitary consolation in these recent
proceedings at Madrid ; it is, however, only an antici-
patory consolation. If the information received is
credible, the King Consort has evinced a disposition
for independent action, which may be developed in
the end to the redemption of the Government. Sup-
posing that the circumstances which we have
described be correct, :his Majesty has displayed
a character singularly contrasted with the
feebleness of his predecessors. It is earnestly to be
hoped that he may not emulate the partial idiotcy of
the Prince of the ASTURIAS or the weakness of
CHARLES IV., but that he may assume to himself a
moral and mental importance most calculated to re-
dound to his own honour and to the salvation
of his native land. We are not disposed,
however, to repose much upon the promises
cf improvement in the nature of a Spanish
Bourbon. This is not the moment, indeed,
to indulge in such day-dreams. When the country
of the CID is subjected so entirely to the pleasure of
a French monarch ; when the streets, which rever-
berated with the wail of that pathetic lamen-
tation, Ay di mi Alhama ! are paced by
the obsequious parasites of a Gallic Ambas-
sador ; when the whole of Spain is oppressed
with a bondage as entire as that of B•nADIL, it is not
the most fitting time to indulge in thoughts which
may possibly prove the mere hallucinations of the
fancy. The Spaniards must do something more than
wonder and conjecture.

On Friday we alluded to the statement made by a
Contemporary as to the steps that have recently been
taken for the purpose of foreclosing many mortgages
affecting estates in Ireland. We pointed out the ex-

traordinary sufferings that would be theieby oc-
casioned to many families, the great and unnecessary
expenditure that would be thrown away in useless
litigation, the evils that would ensue in consequence
of so large a part of the rental of the country being
locked up in the coffers of the Court of Chancery, and
the impossibility of any considerable portion thereof
being, in the present state of the law, made applicable
to the effecting of permanent and valuable improve-
ments, the employment of labour, or to those acts of
charity that are now so imperatively demanded. The
abatements of rent, which every well-disposed land-
lord is disposed to make at the present crisis, in order
to bear his portion and participate in the losses of his
tenantry, would be thereby effectually prevented. In
fact, it is scarcely possible to conceive a greater
national calamity than would be produced by such a
panic becoming general amongst the holders of charges
affecting Irish property, and pressing with undue
rigour, or taking active steps to compel the imme-
diate payment of the principal of their debts. There
is no just reason why such a panic should be originated,
and yet the number of cases in which proceedings
have been actually instituted, so far beyond the
usual average, would indicate that such a feeling is in
existence and spreading rapidly throughout the land.
Its further extension, its continuance, must be in the
highest degree injurious to all parties; and it becomes
the duty of every one anxious for the national
prosperity, and the welfare of individuals, to expose
the groundlessness of such fears and the impossibility
of their realisation.

We have asserted that the actual payment of their
capital would be injurious to the creditors themselves,
and at the same time fatal to the debtors. The lattar
part of this proposition requires little proof to
establish. When it is considered that the whole, or
at least, by far the greater portion, of the costs,
charges, and expenses of all parties during the entire
progress of the suit would fall on the residue that
would remain for the unfortunate inheritor after pay-
ment of every encumbrance affecting his property;
that an increased number of such unreserved and

Pureed sales would greatly deteriorate the value 01

landed property; that it would become a drug in the
market, the supply greatly exceeding the demand,
thefear ful consequences to the unwilling and reluc •
tant vendor may be easily understood. Those who
are old enough to remember the year 1798, and the
period immediately following, when, by reason of a
panic, an extraordinary quantity of real property was
thrown upon the market and disposed of at any prices
that could be obtained therefor, can state the amount
of such diminution of value, which went to a degree

that could scarcely be credited at the present time.
We have been assurel that at that period eligible
estates were frequently sold at eiwlit or ten years'
purchase ; but it is necessary to establish that
payment of these demands would also be very injurious
to the creditors themselves.
The general rate of interest payable on charges
affecting land in Ireland may be set down at fire per
cent. per annum. That is the highest rate legally
chargeable on such securities in England, but in
Ireland six per pent. is sanctioned by law, and is in
many instance Factually paid on most unexceptionable
investments. The Court rate of interest in England
is fixed at four per cent., while in Ireland five per cent.
is allowed under similar circumstances. Generally
speaking, one per cent. more is obtainable there than
here on securities of equal character, and, although of

late years many loans, have been effected in Ireland
at four and a half, or, in some few instances we
believe, even at four per cent., those for which five
and a half or six per cent. are paid exceed them in
number and amount, and the average rate may fairly
be set down at five per cent. Now this is far beyond
the rate that can at the present time he obtained even
in Ireland on satisfactory security. Were it not for the
heavy expenses attendant on the transfer of the
charges, the loss of time, the delays incidental to a
full investigation of title, and the other difficulties
which the law interposes, that makes it not worth
the debtor's while, to endeavour to effect a new loan,
there is little doubt the creditors would have to accept
payment of their principal money, or to reduce the

. -
interest thereon to the extent of from one-half to one

per cent. throughout the country. If they had their
capital, and were now seeking investments, they
would be contented with less interest, and would in-

cur a certain expense to their own legal advisers, a loss
of interest, while their capital was lying idle and unpro-
ductive, pending the investigation of the title, and a
certain risk as to the validity and sufficiency of the
security they were about to accept. I, therefore, ap-
pears manifest that those who have well estabished and
sufficient encumbrances charged on land in Ireland
would be seriouly damaged by the present satisfaction
of their claims.
The only rational grounds for such a panic would
be the following, viz. :—a fear that the Legislature
might, by any enactment, compel the mortgagees or
owners of such charges to contribute or bear any
portion of the extraordinary burdens that may be
imposed upon lands by reason of the Labour-rate Act,
or such other measures as at any time hereafter may
be introduced for the purpose of enforcing adequate
employment for the labouring population of the
country ; or that the landlords, whose properties are
involved, and who are paying heavy interest en out-
standing liabilities, may not be able to meet the de-
mands for interest, in consequence of the present dis-
tressed state of the country. We hope to be enabled
to show that there is no sufficient foundation for either
of these contingencies.
The first of these fears was in some degree occa-
sioned by the insane conduct of some of the proprie-
tors themselves, who, without consideration or re-
flection, demanded that the Legislature should com-
pel the mortgagees and encumbrancers, and all per-
sons drawing any incomes derivable from, or posses-
sing charges affecting lands, to participate in their
burdens, and to bear their proportion of the new rates
that are to be levied on the real property of the
country. Those persons were only desirous of shift-
ing some portion of the extraordinary expenditure off
of their own shoulders, and thought little
of the abstract justice of transferring it to those of
any other part of the community. Neither
did they consider the consequences to themselves
as the owners of such encumbered estates,
that must inevitably be the result of such an in-
equitable transfer. In the first instance, a charge on land
is in its nature essentiallydifferent from the land itself.
However prosperous the times may become, however
greatly the value of the lands may be enhanced, the
possessor of the charge can reap no benefit therefrom ;
he can only demand the stipulated interest or pay-
ment of his principal money. The discovery of a
mine, the bringing the soil into better heart, improved
methods of cultivation by which the produce may
be quadrupled, would not increase the amount of
his demand by one single farthing. As, therefore,
he cannot be benefited by the increased value of the
land, so likewise he cannot be injured by its dete-
rioration. It is not just that such should be
the case; there is no reciprocity whatsoever.
The capitalist, who lends his money on landed
security exchanges the prospect of an increase
in the value of land for the certainty afforded
to him of receiving the original sum he has
lent without any possibility of diminution, while, on
the other hand, the proprietor of the land hopes that
it will still become more valuable, and that he will
have a larger surplus applicable to his own purposes
at a future period, after payment of the interest of his
debt. Were it otherwise, he would sell such a por-
tion of his land as would produce a sum sufficient
for his exigencies, and hold the residue unencum-
bered, in place of borrowing a sum of money on the
security of all his lands. One of those parties specu-
lates for a rise in the value of land, the other in the
value of money, and neither, against whom the
balance for the moment may happen to incline, has
any right to complain, or to call on the other to bear
any portion of the consequences of his own error of
judgment. He entered into the speculation with his
eyes open ; he must abide the result. We must con-
clude for this day, but we shall resume the con-
sideration on an early occasion.

The due administration of justice is one of the first
objects of a civilised community. To the just and
efficient operation of the criminal branch of it, the
public naturally look with greater jealousy than to
that of any other portion. Life and liberty are
affected by our criminal code. The privilege of
liberty is undoubtedly subject to serious curtailment
under the influence of the civil law ; but this is
trifling in comparison with the powers conferred by
the criminal law for depriving the subject of
his liberty. Where transp9rtation for life, with
all the dreadful incidents of slavery—rendering
the punishment to many it worse than the loss of
life itself—may be the sentence, following conviction
of a criminal offence, the public would be wanting
to themselves if they did not scrutinize, with the
utmost jealousy, and in all its bearings, the entire
structure of our criminal jurisprudence from the
foundation to its very apex. It is but just that man
should act in this wise. As a member of a social
community, he is called upon, and is considered, by
implication, to have abandoned his natural rights in
exchange for the conventional ones, secured by
the State. By virtue of this requisite ex-
change, the first law of nature, that of self-defence,
the most primitive of all rights, is placed under most
rigid restrictions. Man is prohibited from taking the
law into his own hands. It is ruled, that any injuries he
may receive shall be redressed through the appointed
tribunals of the country ; and, it is presumed, that the
wrongs he has suffered will be beneficently repaired.
When, then, so much of natural prerogative is, as it
were, per force completely resigned, mankind at large,
wherever civilization prevails, will sternly require
from their respective rulers, that all laws, where life
and liberty are concerned, shall be both justly framed
and equitably administered. Righteous laws are
plants of the slowest growth. They must, to be
effective, necessarily vary with the artificial develop-
ment of different communities. To modify and ad-
just them, so as to correspond with the ever-changing
phases of society, is a work of the nicest art, and
demands the influence of the highest order of in-
tellect. It is by reason of the difficulty of accom-
plishing this task, enhanced as it has been in every
age, by, at one time, the turbid passions of powerful
and selfish subjects; at another, by the tyrannical
disposition or insatiable ambition of a monarch, and
the other innumerable deranging accidents of the social
system, that justice has been frequently precipitated
from her seat, and the keenest miseries entailed upon
the human race.

In our land, the criminal law is first officially set in
motion by the fiat of the magistrate. It rests with
him to commit or discharge the prisoner. In this
way, his powers are enormous • far greater, indeed,
than his responsibility, which is, in fact, next to
nothing. For years, however, has our magisterial
bench been left in a most inefficient condition. Even
our metropolitan magistrates, who are well paid for
their labours, are constantly committing egregious
blunders, as evidenced by the repeated censures which
they get from the Secretary of State for the
Home Department So much has this been felt,
that we believe the Government have resolved
upon filling up every vacancy by the appoint-
ment of a person who shall be qualified, by study and
practice, to discharge these grave functions. But, if
this be determined on, and, as we think, wisely, why
not adopt the same system with the provinces, and
sweep off the legally-unenlightened Dogberries, who
so uselessly and perniciously crowd our quarter-ses-
sions ? An unpaid body of men never answer—that
is, they never fully act up to what is required of
them. Previous habits of life, and special ignorance
of the judicial vocation, prevent their doing so. No
one can enter a country justice-room but what
he is sure to see the justice completely led by
the nose by the clerk of the court. Is not this
enough, where matters of imminent import to the
subject are hourly handled, to bring the blush to the
patriot's cheek ? Would not common sense dictate,
that, if no better substitute could be found, the clerk
and the magistrate should change places ? The
present system cannot last ; we are literally dis-
graced by it. Motives of economy cannot be suffered,
for a moment, to war against our recommendation.
Justice should be pure and undefiled. Too high a
price cannot be paid for the acquisition of such a
blessing; and whether the stream of justice be
diverted by corruption, negligence, or ignorance, the
effect is not the less baneful to the citizen. Better to
have one sound lawyer on the bench than fifty
leaden-witted squires.

We have perused the report of yesterday's pro-
ceedings at the Surrey Sessions with great dis-
satisfaction. First, on account of the magis-
trates having sentenced several prisoners to be
privately whipped, and next, on account of the
inexplicable disproportion of the different sentences.