The Sun.
London, England, 1869-03-24 00:00:00

LAW AND POLICE.

THE INCOME fAX. ASSOCIATION.— On March 22nd,
John Whorlow, the secretary of the Petitions Association
for the Repeal of the Income Tax, was brought up at the
York Assizes to receive sentence. Mr. Justice Hayes
taking into consideration the previous good character of
the prisoner, and the length of time he had been in gaol,
sentenced him to four months' imprisOnment.
THE A BEEGLLE AcCWENT.—At the Ruthin Assizes,
the stoker and driver of the unlucky goods train at Aber-
gele, which caused the fearful accident last autumn, have
been tried for manslaughter. The judge summed up in
favour of acquittal, and the jury, after ten minutes' deli.
beration, returned a verdict of Not Guilty.
A PAINFUL CASE.—At the Marylebonc Police-court a
very painful case was heard on Tuesday. Hannah Lee,
a needlewoman, was charged with attempting to poison
herself and her little boy with laudanum. It seems that
she was the widow of a postman, and had supported her-
self and her child by needlework and sharing, but had
lately been unable to get employment. The child cried
for food, and as she could not give it any she gave it
the laudanum, and took some herself. She was committed
for trial.

A dinner is to be given to W. Foster White, Esq

le Ct nscrvativo candidate for Ila:dstone at the last elec-

tion, on Wednesday, .Aril 7th. Lord Holmesdale, M.P.,
will preside ; and a very large gathering is expected, Mr.
Foster White being exceedingly popular amongst the Con-
servative party in the borough.

There is against the south wall of Camberwell
Church an inscription commemorative of Bartholomew
Scott, Esq., justice of the peace in the county of Surrey, in
which he is said to have married Margaret, the widow of
the right reverend prelate and martyr, Thomas Cranmer,
Archbishop of Canterbury.—A B C Advertiser.

LENTEN SCRUPLES.—The Darentry Spectator con-
tains the following paragraph, which is commented upon
by several of the papers :—" There was a marriage by
license in the parish church in this town on Thursday last.
While the parties were in the vestry signing the register,
the Rev. J. M. Collyns, the rector, heard the bells send-
ing forth a merry peal, and he ordered them to be stopped
immediately, as no marriage bells should be rung during
Lent. After the ceremony the bridegroom was informed
that during Lent the marriage fees are double. Thinking
the charge illegal, he declined to pay the demand."
THE PUBLIC HEALTH.—Last week the rate of
.nortality in the large towns of the United Kingdom was
29 per 1,000, while in London it was 25. Birmingham
and Glasgow again exhibit two extremes, the former with
a rate of 22, and the latter with one of 47. In the metro-
polis 2,166 births and 1,549 deaths were registered. The
latter were 58 less than the estimated number for the
eleventh week in the year. The deaths of 582 children
under five years of age were recorded. The mean
temperature during the week was 36'9, or 5.1 below the
average.

A CONVENIENTLY SUGGESTED ARRANGEMENT.—
Mr. Greene got up iu the House on Monday night, and
made himself famous. His speech was far superior to any
essay on the Irish Church : he soared high above that.
He threatened that he would " moVe himself " a vote of
no tonfidence in the Ministry ; and if -the Tory leaders
have not the courage to do so, why should not the valiant
member for Bury St. Edmunds shame them by defying,
single-handed, the amyl:of the foe—the Horatius Codes of
his side? But, beyond this sublime "Greene defiance,"
the honourable member delivered himself of an opinion
that ought to be written in letters of gold: "As to
the quotations which had been made from what this or
that man had said or written years ago, he very much
objected to them, and thought it was necessary every year
to wipe out what you said in the previous year." This is
a great thought ; and Mr. Greene deserves' immortal credit
for uttering it. The question is not one cf party ;it con-
cerns all sides alike ; and if Mr. Greene would only bring
in a bill for the discstablishment and disendowment of
" Hansard," preserving the vested rights of the short-
hand writers, he would carry the country with him.
Why should the past utterances of political men be held
to bind them down in the present or the future? Are
-tot the new debates long enough, and sometimes weari-
some enough, without being swollen by quotations
from the practically dead language in which last
year, or ten years ago, or twenty years ago, states-
men encouraged their followers or fluttered their
foes? Some time since a chemist suggested that love-
letters should be written in ink that would fadi utterly

after forty-eight hours, and then we should bear nothing
,f breach of promise cases ; if Mr. Greene had his way,
there would be no enduring record to remind statesmen of
what they were. The only doubt we hare relates to the
necessity of the reform. Does " Hansard," after all,
'errify men very much? Judging from what has been
mid and done by eminent men in all ages, we should
imagine that the ghosts of past declarations did not much
listurb their dreams or waking thoughts. But even this
is an argument for Mr. Greene; if " Hansard " is virtually
an unregarded record of forgotten pledges, "it is not
worth the keeping—let it go,"-:Pai4Y Telegraph.