The Sun.
London, England, 1859-02-09 00:00:00

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Exchange on London, at sight, paper, 25f. 12.10. ; money,
25f. 10c.; three months, paper, 25f.; money, 25f. 971 c.

LITERATURE.

The Three Clerks. A Novel. By Anthony Trol-
lope, author of " Barchester Towers," &c.
Bentley.
This new and cheap edition of Mr. Trollope's
clever novel will be very acceptable to readers of
fiction. It is vigorous and original as all his
writings are ; many of the characters are skil-
fully drawn, and many passages of the story
vividly interesting. If the reader is occasionally
inclined to think that a little taming down and
condensation would have improved it, suchfaults are
easily overlooked in a work which displays so much
ability and right feeling. We are glad to see it
again in this new and popular form.

Unica, a Story for Sundays. By the author of
" found the Fire," &c. Smith and Elaer.
This is another of the series for very young
children which are so pleasantly and profitably
told by the author of" Willie's Rest," and " Uncle
Jack." It is simple in style and suitable to chil-
dren's understandings, but there is a good deal of
variety in the story, and the little trials and
troubles of childish life are very interesting. The
moral is excellent and thoroughly practical in cha-
racter. It will enable many little readers to spend
a Sunday afternoon with pleasure and advantage.

The Irish Quarterly Review. No. XXXII. Simp-

kin- and Marshall.

A singular paper, entitled'' Eating and Feeding,"
opens this number, It gives us a good deal of curia
ous information about food and drink, and will pro-
bably make the casual reader smile with its eccen-
tric discussions, and puzzle the physiologist with
its anecdotes and examples. A paper about sculp-
ture will repay perusal, and invites the attention
of all lovers of the fine arts. An article entitled
" Begin at the Beginning," pleads in forcible terms
the condition of the neglected and uneducated
masses. The questions referring to reformatory
and educational institutions are fully discussed ;
and several other articles, some of them on subjects
of general interest, others less attractive to the
Protestant reader are met with in the number.

The Partnts' Cabinet. No. 111. Smith and Elder.

This abl% and attractive series, which combines
amusement and instruction, has several very attrac-
tive papers in this part. An account of the Dis-
covery of America, and of " A Visit to Manches-
ter," will be especially fascinating to boys, while a.
description of the habits of martins. and a conver-
sation about the old Castle at Hastings will be
equally adapted to younger readers. A pretty story
about a girl's school occupies a prominent position.

The Art Journal. No. L. Hall and Virtue.

A fine engraving of Mr. Foley's statue of Vis-
count .Hardinge occupies the first plate in this
number. • The second is from one of Claude's beau-
tiful pictures, and represents a sea-port. The other
plate shows us Guercino's " Woman of Samaria,"
engraved by Mr. Meunier, both the originals being
in the Royal . Collection. The prose contents of
the magazine are, as usual, full of artistic interest.
Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall's Excursions in South
Wales are continued, and give us some charming
little sketches. The series of papers on British
Artists gives us this month an account of the works
of Paul Falconer Poole,:the accomplished associate
of the Royal Academy. Mr. Fairholt's interesting
history of " Rubens and his Scholars" is continued ;
and another attractive illustrated paper gives us
numerous woodcuts from the beautiful volume
recently published by Messrs. Longman, " The
White Doe of Rylstone." Many of the remaining
essays, as those on Colour, on the Florentine
Painters, and on Stained Glass, are especially
worthy of perusal. The iornal fully maintains
its reputation as a cultiv of the public taste,
and is full of fascination for all who admire the
artistic and. refined.

THE .RESPONSIBILITY OF BANK

DIRECTORS.

(From the Honetary Times.)
. In the recent trial of Scott and another v. Dixon,
in the case of the Liverpool Borough Bank, to
which we briefly referred last week, there are some
important lessons conveyed, which should not be
lost sight of by those who occupy the responsifile
position of bank directors, or directors generally in
public companies, if they would desire to escape
from the penalties of the present law. It appears,
indeed, a hard case that a man occupying Mr.
Dixon's position, and who was desirous of actin
upon his own convictions, should have been forced
into a course which was condemned by his own
judgment. At the same time the law could take
no cognisance of such motives, when they were
opposed •by the deliberate act of an individual.
We are glad, therefore, to find that the judg-
ment originally given by Baron Martin has been
confirmed by the Court of Queen's Bench. If
a body of men acting as directors to a bank are
allowed to meet and deliberate, and put before
the public a flourishing state of their accounts,
at the time they know that the company is
insolvent, without being amenable to the law, why
there can be no security against frauds of every
shade and character; and that such has been the
case, has been fully established by the failure of
several other banks. If a false statement is deli-
berately put into print, and circulated publicly, it
can be for no other purpose than to deceive those
who have not the means of testing its correctness.
`The law, therefore, has very properly made such
parties liable to severe punishment, by the recent
Act 20 and 21 Vic., cap. 54. Without such a law,
there would be no end to the latitude taken by
'unscrupulous men. In the case of Mr. Dixon we
see how- even men, otherwise unimpeachable is ,
their integrity, are induced to lean to a false and
dangerous policy. It has been the same with other
banks, where the directors have been of the most ,
unquestionable character ; they have been wrecked
under a false system : they have taken things • for
granted. that they knew nothing about ; and they
have lent the influence of their names as a substi•
tute for personal knowledge. While on this sub-
ject, we may refer to thd growing necessity for a .
more simple and satisfactory mode of dealing with
Joint Stock Companies' accounts and reports. As
Lord Campbell very pertinently remarked, in con-
firming the judgment of Baron Martin, " was it
fair that it should require a microscopic eye to
examine such documents P"
Mr Dixon's case may be a hard one, in not being
able to reverse the decision against him, so far as he
is concerned; but any other decision would have
failed to correct the evils of joint-stock banking
which have grown up to such magnitude. And it
should be generally known amongst directors of
public companies, that the recent law will deal
with such cases far more severely, by rendering
them liable to criminal proceedings for making any
false statement of accounts, or by making a false
report of the position of a public company. Here
are the words of the act which related to this sub-
ject, clause 8 :—" If any director, manager, or pub-
lic officer of any body corporate or public company,
shall make, circulate, or publish, or concur in
making, circulating, or publishing, any written,
statement or account which he shall know to be
false in any material particular, with intent to de-
ceive or defraud any member, or shareholder, or
creditor, of any
such body corporate, or public
company, or with intent to induce any person to
become a shareholder or partner therein, or to
entrust or advance any money or property to such •
body corporate or public company, or to enter into
security for the benefit thereof, shall be guilty of
a misdemeanour." •

ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS.—The following
gentlemen, having undergone the necessary examinations
for the diploma, were admitted members of the college at a
meeting of the court of examiners on the 7th inst., viz. :---
Messrs. William Sutton, Smethwick, near Birmingham ;
Daniel Barker, Macclesfield; Charles Cameron, Calcutta;
Robert Cottam, Leeds; Richard Tyrrel Pope, Bristol;
Cayley, Stamford, Lincolnshire; John William
Kay, Huddersfield ; John T. Milburn, Ryton, near New..
castle-on-Tyne ; Adolphus J. Hughes, Dartford, Kent;
Robert E. Edward Barkway, Bungay, Suffolk; William
Alexander Provis, Holyhead, and Pryce Jones, Llaarivot,
North Wales.