The Sun.
London, England, 1870-05-23 00:00:00

Voters in Scotland.

AS might have been expected, Lanark and Aber-
deen bear the palm amongst the Scotch counties iii
regard to the number of voters on the register; the
former has 4,390 electors for the county in respect
of property, and 4,054 in respect of occupancy ; the
latter has 1,813 in respect of property, and 6;674
in respect of occupation. Ayrshire has a total of
6,559 voters; Perthshire, 5,327; Renfrewshire,
5,687. Cromarty, the county which is made up of
some thirty pieces, musters only 13 property and 67
occupation voters. This is the smallest number in
the list. It is remarkable how the two classes fluc-
tuate in different parts of the country. Clackman-
nan, for instance, has 826 property and 327 occupa-

- - -
tion voters.
The Abyssinian.and New Zealand Medals.
The delay in issuing the Abyssinian and New
Zealand medals, as well as the doubt which exists as
to the limitation of the distribution of the latter, is
calling forth much complaint in the services.
If, moreover, the statement is true, that the New
Zealand award is only to be given, as far as the navy
is concerned, to such officers and men• as have
actually been under the enemy's fire, much
more serious indignation will assuredly follow
the scheme. It would be unjust in the
highest degree to take this course, while, on
the other hand, all ships' companies who were in
any way connected with the Abyssinian expedition
are to be honoured with that appanage. The case
becomes extremely severe when different expeditions
are dealt with on widely different principles. There
is a rumour that every soldier of the Line who
was in New Zealand is to obtain that medal,
whether he has been before the enemy
or not. Why, then, are the sailors to be
differently treated ? The comparative amount of
danger attached to each arm of the service
was alike, and when one draws distinc-
tions between the perils at Magdala, where
not a single man was killed, and those in the
Maori conflicts, the balance, it will be seen, decidedly
fell to the share of the soldiers and sailors in New
Zealand. It is to be hoped that inconsistency and
partiality, in the question will without further contro-
versy be abandoned, and that the distinctions in both
cases will be promptly, fairly, and extensively given
to their rightful claimants.
The Independence of English Judges.
If there is one part of the English constitution
more than another which meets with universal admi-
ration, it is that which may be termed its judicial
system. The perfect working of that system
has been mainly due to' the independence
of its judges. Certain inhabitants of the
Straits Settlements who conceived they saw in
the language used by Governor Ord, in a despatch
to Earl Granville an invasion of the principles. of
English law in this respect, have presented a
petition to the House of Commons. The
language taken exception to was that the judges
are placed under the control of the executive
in the same manner as other public officers.
The. Supreme Court of the Settlements was from its
first institution in 1807 until 1867 entirely inde-
pendent of the local executive, but on the transfer
of these settlements .to the Colenial Office the
Judges became liable to suspension by the
governor, and dismissal by the governor and
the executive council. Earl Granville in reply
to the petitioners stated that the complaints had been
laid before the - judicial members of the
Privy Council, who • had framed a memo-
morandum on the subject which would, he hoped,
be sufficient to ensure the independence of the
judges. The precise terms of that memorandum did
not appear, but doubtless it has been drawn up with
a view of ensuring the dignity of the judicial office,
and at the same time of dispelling the fears or the
petitioners.
Hawking and Vagrancy.'
The Inspector of Constabulary in Scotland seems
to be apprehensive of evil consequences from abolish-
ing the hawking licence. In his report, which is
just published, he says that vagrancy continues to in-
crease in Scotland, and that a large amount of crime
is to be traced to this source. The peculiar
habits and ways of the vagrant class enable
them often to elude the police without much diffi-
culty. " Hawkers and pedlars, generally accompa-
nied by women and children, are frequently only
beggars in disguise, on pretence of selling wares,
although their whole stock-in-trade is sometimes not
sufficient to maintain the party for a day. The only
check the police have on them at present is to
demand their licences; 'but if the licence on foot hawk-
ers is abolished, the evils of vagrancy will increase.
and an act for its suppression will be more urgently
required." Some such opinion has been expressed in
various quarters. It is allowed that the hawking
licence may justly be abolished; but some means of
restricting the movements of the hawking class must
be devised.