The Sun.
London, England, 1856-04-02 00:00:00

C•)RPORATION OF LONDON REFORM

BILL.

. .
Last night, in the House of Commons, • Sir G.
Grey brought in the long-expected, bill for the re-
form
.of the corporate system of the City of London.
: The provisions of the measure are; for the most
part, founded cu the reports of two commissions,
made respectively in 1837 and 1853, but occasion-
ally differ from the recommendations of botli
The number of wards in the City will be redueed
froth 26; as at preiCut, to 16, and the number of
aldermen will 'of course undergo the same diminu-
tion. The 16 aldermen to be elected for *ix years,
instead of. for life, and one-half • of the body to .re-
Aire.every three years. Tiie police functions of the
aldermen to cease, and to•be vested in stipendiary'
Magistrates ; but the civil duties of the magistra,:y
to remain with the aldermen. •The Court of-Al-
dermen, except iu reference to these duties, to be.
abolished, arid the busiiiess of it transferred to the
Com Mon Council.

. . With respect to this latter body, it„ is proposed.
That they should contiuue to be elected annually,
hut in consequence of the reduction in the number
f wands, the nuoWer of common councilmen will
be reduced from 232 to 96. Tue qualification for
a member to
.be the possession of real or personal
Property to the amount of 1,0001., or a rAtlng of
30/,di year. The Common Giuncil to be entrtt,ted
with. the election of the superior and paid officers
of the corporation, such as the lord mayor,, 'sheriffs,
,ind other offiee,ts now al--e,ed by theCouit of Al-
dermen. R nee within certain limits, a-.d the
pos'session of the freedom of the. City to he no longer
necessary for the constituents of theCommonCoun -
oil. The latter to. elect, as auditors, three persons
poi.; members of their own body.
Any individual competent to be chosen a com-
mon Cotincilman is to be eligible.as lord mayor,
without the .existing necessity of being previously
an alderman, or of having served the office of sheriff.
The present qualification of slieri4. to'beabolishcd.
The City police is still to remain under the Ma:
nagement of the corporation.
The right of 'inetage of all grain and other arti-
cles, landed within what is technically called ." the
port of. London," as well as the street tolls, to be
abolished. Tue coal duties are to be allowed 'to
expire as the mortgages on theta shall be paid off,
'a circutustancl which, iu the case of the eightpenny
duty,--the largest—is calculated to take place about
the year 1862.

Tile Lord Mayor's Court and the Sheriffs' Court
are to be amalgamated, and the Recorder to be the
judge, instead of being only assessor to the Lord
Mayor, as at present.
The Conservancy of the Thames will be taken
from the corporation, and vested in a board com-
posed of the First Lord of the. Admiralty, the
President of the Board of Trade, one of the Com-
missioners of Woods and Forests, and the Deputy
-Master of the Trinity House.
Such are the principal enactments of this import-
ant bill, which was last night read a 'first tim(.,
'and the second reading fixed fur Monday, the 21st
instant, •

FRIGHTFUL SUICIDE OF A GENTLEHAN—Last night,
Aiortly before 11 o'clock, the quiet trrha...itaats of
ehl-road, St :Prrey, were thrrwn into a tate of painful
qcitein- nt in cinsequeece of the frightful suicide. of a
(who is present unknowr).-
soif-destruction 4.
truction tinder the irdowing
wrehsop,ec etu brii}ilyi,:itirteesed, ! l r
4hocking-circunastrne s :—Last night pohee-constarle"
201 K, while on duty in St. Peter's.rcad, Mile end,
heart' the report of firearm=, and saw a flash of fira 'Too-
site the entrant to St. Peter's Churchan,l-clo ha tell-
ing! to' the•spet he '-fritrrid the deceased lying upon the
giound again.t the iron railing. :The head of the plan.
enti/e6 blown-to pitc-s by a pistol, which &ceased
tilt) in his ttigo t hand..,
,Several portions of the skull,
with the hair attached, were lying in the chlitchlyard,.
while ther.trlater portion of the .brain and lower jaw are
db: flea: auutioa:tt three feet from the holy. Ihe sight wa, of
character,- for pi-ces of flash and b'eA were
Peattsred
on the trees and foot-pavement where the
wa, pertretr tted. The deceased !Awed the
wllo°ll sill„rghieBibonth•f The co.ri.-tahle sprnog his rattle,.
to nt Curtts and polic,,,,ificAr 14) r-oou
the spot, when dee -a:.e.l was placed on a itrete er and
conveyed to the
wf:rkhouee, where Dr..S'or,y
the etherped t,l);tibor)nslyc.,f the police collected the brain a-id
tb In to We dead-ho h
.inn plate
waslateandd,ore= ii
tld
a nine clout coat, tdazk The deceased
ve,t, lav, ndencoloured checked
trousers,- h_lack satin t
boot e; Tilre'ilecease'd ha. I).ack -ilk hat, and blucher
()imp it will be held eti "
vll e _
dr
to morso~.