The Sun.
London, England, 1857-03-25 00:00:00

COURT OF ALDERIIEN.

Yesterilay a Court was held for the despatch o:
public business.
THE " MAGISTERIAL SYNOPSIS" AND THE " MA-
GISTERIAL FORMULIST."

Mr. Alderman WILSON moved that copies of the
" Magisterial Synopsis" (fifth edition), and the
itg llagisterfal Formulist," published by Mr. Oke,
assistant-clerk to the Lord Mayor, which he said
contained most useful information for the guidance
of himself and his brother aldermen in their ma-
gisterial duties, be sent to each member of the
Court. —Agreed to.
QUESTION OF PRIVILEGE.
Sir W. MAGNAY—The Court will perhaps per-
mit me to interrupt the regular business with a
short explanation and a few observations upon
my part with reference to some proceedings, in
which I am personally and deeply interested
that took place at the last Court of Common
Council. I have reason, I think, to complain
that a matter connected with the character of
any memler of the Court should be brought for-
ward in his absence, and without any intimation
having previously been given to him that such a
proceeding would take place. I felt that I had not
been treated fairly in that resy ct, but I was con-
tent, under the full impression that the reference
with which the mover ended would have given me
a lull and fair opportunity of explaining all the cir-
cumstances connected with the matter that was then
brought under the notice of the Court. My object
in rising to-day is, first, to ask the law officers to
whom the matter has been referred whether, ac-
cording to the terms of the reference, it is their in-
tention to institute a full and searching inquiry
into the whole of the facts and circumstances of the
case. I pledge myself to submit myself to any exa-
mination that the Court may think proper to in-
stitute into my conduct ; and I shall be most will-
ing to abide by their report. (Hear, hear.) The
circumstances which resulted. in this reference aro,e
out of proceedings on the part of the Belgi,n Go-
vernment in connexion with certain transactions
which took place in the Great Luxembourg Rail-
way Company. A trial took place in which the
parties were fully acquitted, but before that trial
took place a juge d'instruction, came to this coun-
try ; he examined the boiiks of the company and
the officers of the company, and, among others,
Mr. Ashwell, the managing director. Mr. Ashwell,
having occasion a few days afterwards to go to
Brussels, desired his legal adviser there to ascertain
whether there were any charges ag,in4 him, or any
circumstances to rend.r his visit to that country
inadvisable. The answer was that there was no-
thing against him, and that he was at perfect liberty
to go. Upon arriving at the first frontier town in
Belgium he was seized by two gendarmes, convey-
ed to Brussels, and kept in a felons' prison for five
months. For many weeks he was not even told
the nature of the charges against him. His luggage
was taken from him, his pockets were emptied of
their contents, he was not allowed to see his
legal adviser alone. When permitted to see his
wife or family or legal adviser he was obliged to
converse with them in the French language and in
the presence of two witnesses. He was visited day
by day by this juge &instruction' who, by threats,endeavouredin imidation, and promises, endeavoured to force
him to criminate himself. He, however, was
firm, and resisted all such illegal, ungenerous, and
tyrannical proceedings. To such an extent was
this persecution carried that a member of the
Chamber of Deputies rose in his place and stated
that every means had been employed to make that
man criminate himse'f. Five months afterwards
he was brought to trial. He wrote to this count y
for witnesses ; shareholders were prepared to go to
Brussels, but an intimation was received from his
counsel abroad th it, in (switch as they approved the
proceedings, they themselves would be seized and
put in prison. Notwithstanding all these disad-
vantages, Mr. Ashwell was acquitted of the charge
upon which he was tried. The Government there
have the power of making an appeal at any period
within three years after the decision of the first
tribanal, and they exercised this power 18 months
after the trial took place. After the experience of
Mr. Aehwell's treatment, and after the trial, which
in this country would have beea final, I did not
think it prudent to proceed thither. I was recom-
mended by my legal advisers nut to tru,t myself to
the tender mercies of the Belgian Government.
The trial, therefore, took place iu the absence of
witnesses whose testimony was most material to
the issue to be tried, and who would have been
arrested and also imprisoned hal they gone
there. These charges have been fully investi-
gated in this country ; they have been the sub-
ject of much discussion among the shareholders
at different public meetings ; and the result
has been that upon the recommendation of the
new directors of the company, full discharges were
given to the various persons, the a,cceuutswere regu-
larly passed, and the who'e matter was, we supposed,
ended. The question teat I wish now to put to
thee learned Recorder, as the heal of the law officals
of this corporation, is whether the reference that
has been made to himself and his bro her officers is
of such a searching and extensive character as will
enable them to investigate ihe whole talents of this
case, or whether the merits are simply to bedecid-A
by the facts that appeared at the trial.
Mr. Alderman WILSON.—We are all ignorant of
the proceedings ; could you give the court some
little account of them ?
Sir W. ALIGNAY. —At the suggestion of influen-
tial shareholders a sum of eio,ooo/., and afterwards
40,0001., was placed at our dispo,al for the pmt pose
of enabling us to engage parties to obtain for us,
in various ways, certain advantages which would
extricate the company f om a'l its difficul ies, and
enable us to go through with the affair. The di-
rectors undertook through the medium of Mr. Ash-
well, to do this, and they did expend 16,000/. in
rewarding parties wfo assisted in obtaining these
advantages for us. This mat er was fitly explaiad
to a committee of shareholders after the tra:isaction
had been conclude) ; it was fully explained to a
committee ofthe principal shareholde s, vrio passed
a vote of thanks to the directors for the trouble they
had taken and for time advant ages which they had
obtained fur the company, and the pipers were then
ualed up, with the distinct unilet s an hog that th
were never again to op ned. The mat' er was al.('
explained at a public ;nee, log at at Melt the accounts
were passed. The expenditu. e was under the head
of " Compensation." Tore) years after this, when
a new direction entered upon the management of
the affairs of the c mpany, the accounts of the com-
pany were sifted from the commencement to the
end ; that 16,0001. was separated from the head
under which it had been classel, and it was put
under the head of " Secret ,ervice money." This
gave offence to Solll=2parties, who charged the directors
with having falsified the account, inasmuch as they
were put under the head of compensation without
detailing the names of the patties to ei horn the
money was given. The other matter related to a
loan of 58,000/. which had been voted by a board
meeting, attended, I believe, by every member of
the board, for the purpose of obtaining advantages
that were to accrue to the company by introctic,w,
shareholders and by getting persons in Parts to in-
terest themseuves in oar affairs. 10,0100 shares were
pureeased by parties abroad, and upon these 10,000
shares the co;npauy advanced, by a formal resolu-
tion of the bone), as much as 58,000/. This be-
came the subject of di-cassion, and it was ulti-
mately passed by the board. I now ask the learned
Recorder whether the law ofiic:rs are empowered
by the terms of the reference to go into the whole
casee and whether witnesses are to be examined by
them.

The Recorder—Of course, in answering that
question, I can only expre,s my own individual
opinion as oue of the law officers. The law offi-
cers, as a body, have not yet had an opportunity
of meeting up in the subject, and I do n,t think it
is a matter upon which any doubt can be enter-
tained. It appears that a certain stetemclit ap-
peared in the Morning Chronicle, to the ff .t that
there had been a
charge against one of te tne enibt•rs
of the Court of having appropriated certain money,
belonging to
the shareho ders of tae company, and
that upon that he,
was convicted. Tod refereace
to the law officers is this,__.
eh
"Resolved, that it be
referred to the law officers t) '
mike all due inquiry as tor ecorrecteess or otherwise
of the statement contained in the' Morning
Chronicle"
a the 2th inst. reepectiog a member
of this corporation,
and as to how far such a member has
disqualified him-
g lif from hoHiug a seat in this Court.'
Therefore, all that the law officers, under that re-
ference, have to do is to ascertain whether the sate=tlyi
Inuit made in this newspaper be correct—vi,
t
up in a char,,,re of li-tving appropriat d money b,_
longing to the shareholde-rs a ti ember of the Lou t
his b, en convicted ; and then, if they ascertain
th it Vim is correct, they have to con-ides whether
the conviction by a foreign Court for that offence
under an Act of Pat liament reau'a%ing the affair,.,
of this corporation, clisqu.difie;''him from holding a
scat in the Court. We should have no authority,

therefore, I apprehend, to inquire whether the
cha'ge made in a foreign Court was or was not
true.

Sir W. MAGNAY---Tht- n I think that I shall not
appeal in vain to the members of thid Cone, if I
implore them to carry that reference a great deal
father, aad to refer the matt.r t) the General
Purpose's Committee of the whola Cone, with
rower to institute a thorough and searching inves-
tigaion into this transaAion, aLd to examine me
and to h-ar what I have to say, in order that I
may not be judged without having a full and far
opportunity of explaining everything, which I am
sure I shall ba enabled to do to the perfect satisfac-
tion of every member of the. Court,
After a short discumion, Mr. Alderman CHALLIS

moved, and Sir J. MUSGROVE seconded, the fol-
lowing resolution, which was carried unanimously.
" Sir W. Magnay having called the attention of the
Court to a statement appearing in the Morning Citroricle
of the 9th inst., and having requested that an ,rquiry
should at once be made into the facts to which that
statement referred, resolved that it be referred to the
Committee of Privileges to inquire into all the :3ircum-
stan'es to which that statement referred, and to report
thereon to this Court."

Sir W. MAGNA.Y—My Lord Mayor and gentle-
men, I have only to thank you most sincerely for
the kindness and indulgence which you have shown
me.

The Court, after swearing in and admitting seve-
ral brokers, and disposing of some busines3 not of
any interest to the public, adjourned.

METROPOLITAN BOARD OF WORKS.

A meeting of this board was held yesterday, in
the Council Chamber, Guildhall. The chairman,
J. Thwaites. Esq., assumed his seat at 12 o'clock.
The report of the committee of the whole board
on bye laws was brought up, submitting for ap-
proval proposed bye-laws for regulating the busi-
ness and proceedings at meetings of th. 3 board, for
regulating the business and prozeedings at commit-
tees, and for regulating the communications with
main and other sewers.

The revision of the laws proposed, wh'cli were
very nutnerous, occupied the whole day, and had
not concluded when the board adjourned.
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