The Sun.
London, England, 1829-06-16 00:00:00

MOUNTERS BAIL ANI BUFFING BAIL.

. One Of the great evils against which it is the
intention to attempt some security to the public
hi the course of the next session of Parliament,
is that of hired bail. • This evil has been hitherto
considered as inseparably connected with arrest
for debt, and is constantly occurring in our
courts of law. It is indeed, of such Constant
practice, and the oaths administered are
lowed with such ease and rapidity, although
sufficient to choke any ordinary men's -cOn;
science, that the courts are sometimes convulse°
with laughter at the boldness with which perjuri
is committed. The persons who hire themselves
out to give bail obtain a per ventage according -
to the amount of the debt., They arc styled bY
the profession " mounters," or " queer hearth' •
former name having been given to them 100
the circumstance of the Judges formerly order-
ing practitioners in that way to mount the table, •
in order to be viewed from top to toe. TheY
are in general men who have been the inmates
of the several prisons of the trietropolisSand,ltave
visaed .the ordeal of a commission of bankrupPY'
or of the Insolvent Court. They are the Coll
leagues of the several pettifogging attornieti ivh°A
infest the prisons to get business of any sort's"'
who share with them in the profits of. the per
jury. The Judges in the bail courts at Westi
minster, during . the terms, are occupied part °I
each day in hearing the opposition of cons°
against these fellows, who appear day after 'do
as bail, and swear that they are worth in Prc"
perty double the amount they are security fer'
Mr. justice, Bayley has a strong instinct in de'
tecting the mounters. " Prav," said hey the
other day to an impudent pauper, who swore
he was wolth upwards of 5001. in goods, where
is your warehouse, and what do your goods eon
Fist of?" "My warehouse is in Wood-street,
Cheapside, and my goods are calicoes and otbe,t,
printed goods," said the mounter. " Oh, then,
observed Mr. Justice Bayley, " you can have,
no objection to show your. calicoes and printed
goods to the plaintiff's attorney ?" Not, at I
all," replied the mounter aloud, " show thero
to lice whole
c‘leys
o soon
leisas I finish the bu•s~l
Lordship, `~
let it stand over till Tuesday." The defen4nt
retired in custody, in a desp-onding contlitiool
and the mounter, who had neither warehouse,
nor goods, forgot in this instance his accustomed
punctuality. Persons of this description kn"ti
that their chances of escape from punishment'
and indeed of success, are rendered. veiy.great
,0
consequence of the expellee and trouble attend'
mg the inquiry after character and responsibilitq
and the vigilance necessary to the detection °le
their schemes. A day or two ago a respeetabo
solicitor was served with notice that . bail Non
be justified for a debt of 501., fur which-he bel
issued process.. One of the party offered as•b
s°all
had been an inmate in Whitecross-street-pril
at two different periods. Upon the first oeer
sion lie was confined 12 months, and upon the
second 18 months. Upon the second heir:elf
ceived his liberation upon charity, the -
receiving a small compromise.. made'lll
appearance in the bail court suddenly in ao°
character, that of bail. lie was ready to b.O $.B;
curity to the amount of 100/. " Why," .Pl,l``
the Judge, " 1 have been told that it is- 13'
long since you were discharged from White,
cross-street prison ?" Never, my Lord ; uP°l„.
my honour I never was there in my life." " the
you are very grossly calumniated," said the Judge:
' we must see what the keeper has to say ta,vt,
himself, for pretending to your acquaintance 'v(l
full two years and a half. Be so good as to star ,
down ,until he conies." The bail was obedient b°'
when the keeper appeared his name. was called ill
vain. On a preceding day this bail justified je
the same chambers fur a debt of 400/. Cayes
of this kind are so numerous, that the Judgeil
keep books, in which they enter the names Ni
addresses of suspected persons who tender.theeli
selves as bail. Connected with this practice an
giving queer bail is that of what is called "101:
nig" bail. One of the company of pettifogger,
finds it easy to produce a witness, who, althoug'
he never had the notice in his hands, is read)
to swear that he has served notice of justificati°ll,l
of bail. This fellow is called the " Buffer" anw
no opposition appearing upon the case, in col!'
sequence of the absence of -notice, the partYl
disehasged from custody. In Consequence 0
the trio splayed in buffing notices of hail fel
merle, the old 'notice has been done away ; be
as direct perjury is so easily procured, that pre
tice might as well still exist, as give place to Eh.'
more flat and palpable falsehood. The real
foggers, against whom the respectable portion
the profession are now up in arms in earnest
used to employ the " buffers" to serve a -retun
by sticking a tishing-hook in it, tied to a pie('
of thread, and shoving it under the hall-door
no sooner was this done than up walked anotb'
bufkr to the door and fished. out the - notice,,
that the defendant escaped without the necesstt
of justification. The Judge's clerks, the riti
spectable lawyers' clerks, : and the -keepers of
:;everal debtors' prisons,•are many of them rob
to assert that u. person could in .an instaot,
had from this gang of " buffers" to swear Oil
a man be never saw or heard of before 0
him 1,000/., and that the same " buffer" goof
the next moment offer to justify bail in the f>atli
case, by swearing that he was worth 2,0001.

On Wednesday a fine sturgeon, ineasurill
ieven feet six inches in length, and weighing eight AI
was caught in the stake-nets at Musselbu4,h.
rut up and. Mold yesterday, by MARGARET Ban" N'
Market, at 3d. and 4d. per pound.---Caiedonian/Iferczir
•
The apples in the orchards. in Somersetsh:
arc generally well set, and present a flittering prosrc
an abundant crop. Prime cider of list year's tusk°.
which there is a fair quantity yet on hand, still malt
a gond price, and is selling from 50s. to 635. per v,
ahead ; old ditto of inferior.quality, from 255. to 4014.,
hogshead.— Cambrian.