The Sun.
London, England, 1857-08-25 00:00:00

THE DIVORCE BILL.

(F'om the Times.)
The all-important controversy which, at this crisis
of England's fortunes, has been agitating and al-
most engrossing successively both Souses of Parlia-
m. nt for a quarter of a year, rcturned to its origi-
nal battlefield in the Lords last night. The ques-
►ion was the adoption of a certain number c.f
amendments which have teen amply discussed in
the Commons, many of them previouslyin the Lords,
we take the liberty to add, out of doors also.
f he3e amendment., though running in'o a conside-
rable number of clauses from the verbal alterations

entailed, are yet reducible into a few distinct and
particular alterations. Not only have they been
settled in an everting, but, as appears by the sequel,
here was not a Peer who had not already arrived
at a decided judgment upon them. However, this
is not the way in which religious'and conscientious
noblemen, professing a monopoly of high feelings
and sound principles, undertake the c :use of tru!li,
morality, religion, and Heaven. These things, it
appears, are not streng enough to stand on their
own ground, or to make way ou their own merits.
Truth can only be advanced under false pretence's,
the behests of Omnipotence can only be smuggled
into this vulgar realm, and common sense wrigolyd
in some indirect way into,an Englishman's under-
standing. Accordingly the lights of the Briti h
nobility, to whom we are to look for the preserva-
tion of our faith and our morals, set about
ing the Divorce Bill with the aitific;s more usually
observed in the witness Lox, when suspicious-look-
mg personages ale wardingcff too curious inquiries
into their proceedings. They had not time, they
said, to consider the amendments of the Commons.
They must not be hurried in so serious a matter.
The sincerity of this objection was proved by the
deliberate occupation of two hours before the de-
bate in a mere wrangle as to the persons most to
blame for a previous wrangle on Friday last.
When this was over, instead of then proceeding
to a quiet examination of each amendment with a
view to economise the hours said to be
numbered, there ensued a vehement res7stance
to the discussion of the amendments at all this
year, on the ground that if they were abused long
enough collectively there would not be time left for
taking them one by one. The Lords, it was said,
knew nothing about them, as was subsequeully
proved by a clos3 scrutiny of their merits and an
evident decision upon them. Now, all this we ex-
pect in some places, on s, me subj'cts, and from
some persons. Iu the profane politics of the world
it is common enough for second-rate politicians, not
the first class, to make it their object to damage,
to obstruct, and to disable. They kill time and

drive business into a corner to get something out
of the confusion. But this sacrifice of time said to
be much needed, and this confusion so pathetically
deplored, were in this 'case the work of noblemen,
the lights of their.age • of men who deplore the de-
cay of manners, the blight of faith, the neglect of
high principles, and the dishonour of religion, and
who have an unfailing stock of solemn tones and
_ _

pious grimaces at command fir the abuse of this
journal. Of course, every speech that was made in
favour of more time did in fact consume it, and,
had their lordships not made up their minds already,
might have prevented them from doing so.
When half the evening Lad been lost in this way,
and Lord Redesdale's motion for throwing the bill
into the next year had been defeated, their lord-
ships proceeded, at last, with diminished time and
strength, to the several amendments of the Lower
blouse. They now quickly showed themselves quite
equal to the work, though it is possible they might
have done better if they had begun a few hours
earlier. The jurisdiction given by the Commons
to the Quarter Sessions has been rejected without
a division ; so on this point they have not re-
quired a twelvemonth to make up their minds. It
mint be admitted that the Lords are gOod judges
as to the capacity of Quarter Sessions for this
purpose. The plea for a divorce by a wife against
the husband on the ground of " adultery com-
mitted in the conjugal residence" bas been re-
jected chiefly on account of the looseness of the
phraseology. No doubt, many. acts might come
equally under this legal description and yet be of
very Unequal guilt, according to the circumstances,
the del;beration, and the habit. The other pleas
of the wife against the husband have been retained.
The words destroying the case of the husband
against the wife, on pima of adultery at any time
committed by himself, struck out by the commons,
have been reinserted by a small majority. We ate
disposed to think the Commons will stand out for
this omission, as it certainly is not according to
common sense and common feeling that a man
should be tied all his days to an intolerably bad
wife, in consequence of some tingle and long-past
act of infidelity. It may be very proper in the
Bishop of Oxford to take this way of inculcating
upon men that they are as much bound to the moral
law as women, but other con,ithrations come in,
and we question whether there is a bishop in Chrii-
tendons', or has been for centuries, who would re-
fuse to sit down in the company of a gentleman
who had been once unfaithful to his marriage vuw ;
while there are few bishops in these days, at least
in thiscountry, who would not object to this degree
of familiarity with a woman so guilty. It is a point,
we conceive, in which the law must conform to the
feeling, and otherwise will so far become a dead
letter.

T amendment
damages—one which f
tsheee mgerde a
ttob restorelots o the
actionhe
for
existing practice—was warmly debated, and on a
division, in which proxies were used, was retained.
The obstacle to the entire abandonment of the
action for damages is the notorious fact that the
wife's fortune has been sometimes the chicf attrac-
tion in the eyes of the adulterer, and without some
cheek or other might become so even more than
now. Moreover, the c )mmonest sense of justice
will hardly endure to see the guilty enriched by
their crime at the expense of the injured, including,
perhaps, helpless children. The species of action
instituted by the Commons' amendment, and the
half civil, half criminal character of the damages,
may give rise to difficulties requiring fresh legisla-
latiou ; but that does not impair the principle of
preventing, if possible, the guilty from obtaining a
mercenary profit ou their guilt, and saving the
innocent from ruin, in addition to misery and dis-

honour.
The next discussion arose on the concession made
in the Commons to the feelings of those clergymen
who, for one reason or another, do not wish t be
obliged to perform the marriage for those who have
been divorced. For our part, we think the conces-
sion a weakness. There are, however, very few
clergy who, after the consideration forced upon
them during the progress of this measure, are pre-
pared to maintain that marriage is indissoluble.
They mere:y allege, as the Bishop of London very
truly states, the disagreeableness of reading the ser-
vice for persons comparatively unworthy of it. This
is a natural and honourable repugnance, but it is
not one that the Legislature need take bal.° account,
as unworthiness is only a question of degree. We
are aware that some half-dozen zealots have shut
their ears to reasoning and their eyes to the Bible,
and maintain that no crime, no form of law, can
dissolve the mysterious marriage tic. But they
have been generally repudiated, even by the 9,000
sul-scribers of the Declaration. It is, then, only a
matter of feeling. Well, the clergy are to be allowed
the indulgence. But the Lords in allowing it
have not also given them the power of closing their
churches, in which they have but a very subor-
dinate authority. They may rt fuse to perform
the service and absent themselves, but the
churches will still be open for the performance
of the service and the obtaining of a blessing' for
those who, having sinned, now
to do the best that is pos-ible under their unhappy
repent,. and wish
man and wife. This amendment, then, was left:
live together as Chnstiau
circumstances—that is,
untouched. So also were the rema
enendvier,
lad thus
far the bill has fp:cape(' its threat per

THE td
rioRNI sa FISHERIES.—The drift boats at
have been taking during the past week from
000 pilchards per boat. A few days ago
011‘in'T°07h°aogatits:light in nearly 40,000 fish. On Wednesday,
aot
fine fish,twoLooe an
sdeinthsebdrroaulgthbtoainta'rboamve7obeteonBOtahkoingg from
sheads
10,000 to 15,000 each boat. Large shoals of fish have
been seen by the boats returning from Ireland, about
14 miles from the coast. Large quantities of mackerel
have been taken on the South Devon coast, and sold at
very moderate prices, during the past week.
THE BANK OF FRANCE.—The letters from Paris state
that the Bank of France will shortly commence issuing
notes of 50f., or 2/. each, in accordance with the ar-
rangements entered into at the time of the recent
exten-
sion of their charter. The lowest amount
having been 41., this step is likely to economize
uten tity to
specie circulation and to cause a considerable, ho:ever have
flow into the coffers of the Br.nk.
it
candrain, but will
no effect in checking the exist!:
gissued the Bank
accelerate it, unless for every.i hitherto
the
retaintinhest
specie
e cf aoi 0
a issuendtlo.oo,
oo correspondingoobor. sumoit f
ni
c.n 2 sriti t vni neet,eo
sr
the goad.e e against
'tS. 5uw01:0701:0i 4blge.
rt 60
indsthteo -bre sent to Frtnle in increased
topo
ratdi
odi)
would cause Poling augment the balances against her,
quantities, and t
,roiso.3ol. to the
pciriecceeu!,
fi o
all ac
on
raind to c edri et
jaetse. a
Tprhois.
untilditionaltaomitosunt formerof
level. specie,
sufficient
case
Th
reduceshtae rndEl additional
circulation
as blows :—lf the Bank
merely issue the notes to draw in a corresponding
amount of specie they may strengthen their position,. but
al of course make no profit from the operation. It, on
the other band, they seek to make a profit by increasing
shel
t)
: therefored
their amount of securities, they must be prepared,aT
proportion as they do so, to find themselves drifting.h el,
to the condition which has so long occabioned
uniMlllolo4