The Sun.
London, England, 1805-02-20 00:00:00

BRlsrai, FEn. z 6.

ROYAL BRISTOL L,IGHT.HORSE VOtu rrEI RS
Ox Thur,sday, the 7th instant, came on for hear.
ing„.before TriomAi DANIEL. and A.'P. COLLING),
two of
.14 is Majesty's Deputy-,Lieutenants
for this City and County, an appeal (under an AF} of
the last Session of Parliament, intitled " An' Ad to
c,nsolidate and amend the-Provisions of the several
Mts relating to Corps of Yeomanry and Volunteers,
of,Great, Britain," which.declares the right of Vo. :
lunteeri to -resign) brought by Mr. OsuouNE, a
Member of the above Corps, against Levi AStes,
Jun.-Esq. the.Comrnareling Officer, for refusing to
strike his nsme off the
.muster.roll, in consequence
of his Objeding to the payment of 301, as a Penalty'
fur quitting the'Corps. •
Mr. Smnir (of Counsel for the Appellant)
opened the matter by contending that a discretionary
power was
,vested in the jurisdidion of the Court by.
the At granting the appeal. In support of his as.
sertion he read the clauses, which,- in his opinion,
cleerly, proved that on such appeals she ll,:puty.
Lieutenants were empowered to,enter into the me-
rits ofthe case, and to 'enforce or remit the Penal.
'ties as in their discretion should seem just.' He
then proceeded to state .she reasons which had in.
,duced his Client to wish to resign ; these were prin.
cipaly the proceedings that bed been adopted by the
Committee of the COrps, on the resignation of Major
Dueowr, especially, the Meetings convened for
choosing a Commanding Officer, and filling up other
vacancies. These Meetings the Appellant did not
attend, considering them to be in diced opposition
to His IVlajeriy!''s commands, expressed in Mr. Se.
' cretary Yoatta's .letter to Colonel TtetiNaTi
which it might remembered was in answer to the
Colonel's'complaint of the disbbedience of some
'Members of hia Corps (the Southwark Volunteers)
who hid perAisted in eleding Officers in opposition:
to the choice elready made by him. This Letter
exprezoted His IVlAjesty's strong disapprobatinn of
such conduct, and declared the appointment of in,
fe.:
riot ()theirs to rest with the Commanding Officer
alone. Here the Learned Counsel went on to•stare,
that it was proposed at the Meetings sdin:!ecl to, to
,advanCe Lieutenant Ilmtvay Over' the hail of Lieu.
tenant VAuGHAN, his Senior Ofliter, which, not.
with Standing the disapprohation-ofs.everal Mel . ees,-
Was at last Carried by a large.mliority, This pro-
ceeding' indiseed Lieutenant VAUGHAx 'ln resign,
and was so stated by him, in a Letter he Adresse('
to the Commantlieg Offiter, on the occasion. • Mr.
Osai)xna sent in hi, reiignation at 'llt.same time,
and on the same grounds. The resignation of • the
former Gentlemen was' imotedietely accepted, and
the Penalty not exaded upnwthe:latter only it was
now attempted to be enforced., The 'Learned Coun.
scl then Mentioned several instances in.which Memo
of the corps had been permitted to resign,
without payment of the Fine, opon reasons' awh
less valid
,and satisfactory; and some cases even,
where no rcason whatever had been assigned,' and
yet no Pandit.), demanded. On these grounds, the
Learned ,Counsel was persuaded that the Coder,
which he comendud was established' for the purposa
cf curetting irregularities
,its
,Volunteer 'Corps,
would use the discretion given them by Law, it
granting relief to the Appellant.
Mr. Glue/17:4, for the-Respondent, contended
on the other hand, that the Court had ,no, power
whatever to enter into the
.merits of the, case, for
that the Ad of Parliament was peremptory, and
gave them no disCretion to remit or Mitigate "the
!penalty. Under, these _circumstances, the Learned
counsel conaidered that it waktotally irrelevapt and
unnecessary to reply to the arguments on the ether
side,grounded on the presumed merits of piticeedings
Over' which that COO: possessed no jurisdiction.
The Counsel foe the Appellant, in reply, combated
this-doetrine, by stating, that as the Mt of Parlia.
anent gave the Magistrates authority to enforce the
Penalty, and even'tn doable it, if they saw fit, it
wasimpassible to conceive that such a power Was
intended to be exercised- without, a previous ex-a.
ruination of the merits of kile case.
The arguments o'f'.C?unsel being ended, the
Court .adit,urned, in order td consider farther on the
subject. On Saturday the parties being sasembled
at the G 4114414 the slecieion,.of the Court 'W23'
given, in substance as follows ::--" Upon a view of
the Ad of Parliament under which this Appeal
'brought, and under all the circumstances of the.
case, this Conti is of opinion that ihecornrnan'tiirig
'l3 not hound to,aeCept the •resignation or the
Appellant, until lie hes paid :-the I. s. e or Penaity
of 391."