The Sun.
London, England, 1835-07-10 00:00:00

..Bar only that. they, are now deprived, the aid of i t
legal learning in reference to all points of law, aiid Of
its dexterity and acumen in the examination of witnesses,
being fully within their reach—will, perhaps, be
found, when its operation is closely examined, to •
be upon the whole unfavourable to their inte-
rests, or to the interest of justice. Counsel, and
especially that class of Counsel who practice in the
Criminal Courts, could scarcely, when retained by a
prisoner, resist the temptation of making eloquent ap-
peals to the feelings of the Jury in his behalf. Such
appeals, if they became, as they probably would be-
come, habitual, would be met always, and anticipated
often, by the Counsel for the prosecution. The Cri-
minal Courts would thus become a focus of ingenious,
and sometimes indecorous, disputation, an arena in
which rival orators would contend for pre-eminence.
In this struggle it may reasonably be doubted whether
the cause of justice would gain any advantage. And
it seems quite certain that on all occasions when the
current of popular prejudice or of public feeling runs
strongly against any particular class of offenders, or
any particular description of crime, the occasions when
the aid of Counsel is most required, the party accused
would, under the new system, have less chance to ob-
tain justice than under the old one. The habits and the
tone of feeling which pervade English society are such
as impose upon the most injured or most angry prosecu-
tor of a criminal charge the necessity to acquire and be-
get in his own mind, and to display in the conduct of the
cause, something of the temperance and gravity of the
judicial character. If he would stand well with the
world he must prosecute as if he were only anxious
that the ends of public justice should be attained. He
must not seek any undue advantage. He must not
instruct his Counsel, and if he were he would now
seldom be obeyed, to strain any point, to render avail-
able any temporary excitement of the public mind to
appeal to the passions instead of the understandings of
the Jury, in order to procure a conviction. The
general feelings of society thus conduce to the pure
administration of justice. They are feelings which, so
l'ifig as they predominate in society, cannot fail to in-
fluence the Bar, the Jury, and the Bench. The Judges
are said to be Counsel for the prisoner. This is a popu-
lar if not a legal maxim. It emanates directly from those
liabits and feelings of the community, which we have just
Lientioned. And if this maxim be sometimes stated
too broadly and generally, it is an unquestionable part
of the duty of a criminal Judge to rebuke and con-
trol any appearance of excessive zeal on the part of
the prosecuting Counsel to procure a verdict against
the prisoner. These principles, feelings, and habits,
which have long been interwoven most closely with the
administration of criminal justice in England, are liable
to be shaken by that change in the system of our ju-
risprudence which the Bill of Mr. Ewart would effect;
and if they should be disturbed, in the slightest de-
oree by that measure, it will have occasioned a mis-
cllief to society for which we should look in vain to
• Mr. Ewart and his colleagues in legislation for repara-
tion or atonement. It is at least doubtful, as we have
seen, whether the projected alteration may not pro-
duce, instead of the advantages its authors expect
from it, great and irreparable injury to the admi-
nistration of criminal justice. There is one evil, in-
deed, which it would certainly produce. It could not
fail to render the administration of criminal justice
much more expensive than it is at present. It
will be necessary, if speeches are to be made in
favour of prisoners in any case, that they should
be made in every case. It is a matter in which the
country would certainly not tolerate any distinction be-
tween the rich and the poor. To those who have not
the means to retain Counsel, Counsel must be assigned.
The employment of Counsel by prosecutors will also
become general. And, since the advantages of the
project as a means of rendering the administration of
justice more infallible are questionable, it may be per-
mitted to calculate to what extent it will render the
administration of justice more expensive. It is not,
we believe, an exaggeration to say that if Counsel
were employed in every case tried at the Old Bailey
an absolute necessity would speedily arise for three or
four additional Courts, with their array of Judges, or
that every Assize in the country would occupy three
days for one. The additional expense to the counties
would, there is no doubt, be in the same proportion.
This would be no valid objection to a change which
afforded a satisfactory promise of improvement. But
it is certainly worthy of consideration, when the pro-
posed change seems quite as likely to be productive of
evil as of good.—Morning Post.