The Sun.
London, England, 1842-05-06 00:00:00

on the public grounds that it was nott.e ttlie satisfaction of the
public mind, that the Magistracy should be appei:i.':teet.
sively from men of one political opinion. It wins not to reison-
cile the people to political appointments, but it would reconcile
them to the administration of justice, to see that it was not
placed exclusively in the hands of one party. Ile had listened
to this (Ideate with great interest, and with some surprise;
laic Ri~t.t Honostrable Friend had been charged with
shaking the confidence of the people in the administration of
justice, by giving a predominance to Crinservatiles 63 the
Beech. He quoted tile numbers at Guildford and North-
ampton, to show that the numbers had only been equalised,
and stated, that in Manchester, the Liberal Magistrates had
themselves, very justly, expressed a wish to have some w ntle-
men of opposite opinions placed in the Commission. He denied
that the appointment of Conservative Magistrates had any
tendency to shake the public confidence in the administration
of justice. Looking at the state of the Magistracy when the
present Government came into power, he asked them whe-
ther, on their own showing, or their own principles,
for the purpose of removing erroneous impressions. something
ought not to be done ? He would take the towns of Manches-
ter, Liverpool, Birmingham, and Leeds. In these towns there
were 118 Magistrates, and their proportions were striking in
the greatest degree. Out of the 118, twenty were Conserva-
tives, anti nine. y-eight were Liberals. In Liverpool the num-
bers were twenty-five to six ; in Manchester, twenty-nine to
four; in Birminglim, twenty-seven to six ; in Leeds, seven-
teen to four. Under these circumstances, what matter was it
who recommended them? If they knew the proportion to be
unjust, and that, if, on account of that disproportion, there
was a tendency to weaken the confidence of the people in the
administration of justice, it was no answer to say that they were
recommended by the town councils. The minority, cn the
choice, had a perfect right to say to the Crown, it is true we
are in the minority, and though it is right that we should lie
represented in Parliament by men of different politics from
ourselves, yet it is no reason why we should be handed over,
in the adininist ration of justice, to an exclusively political bench.
And it was also the interest of the Crown to interfere and se-
cure proper men for the bench, rather than, in order to pay a
deference to popular principles, to take the recommendations of
men after a heated contest, when violent dissensions were
sure to prevail. If they took the great ports of Bristol,
Hull, Yarmouth, and Portsmeuth, they would find
that in Hull the proportion was 18 to 3, in Yarmouth
18 to 1, and in Portsmouth 18 to nothing ! (Cheers. )
There were 63 Magistrates, 53 of one opinion, and 10 of
another.—( Hear, hear.) Now looking at the list, he would
take some of the counties. He would refer to the county of
Durham ; in that county there were three corporations—Sun-
derland, Stockton, and Gateshead ; and in those three corpora-
tioim there were 19 Magistrates, 18 of whom were of one
opinion, and one of another. Now, he would take Chester ; its
that c:Junty, there were four corporations, and in all those four
corporations there was not one Conservative Magistrate.—
( Hear, hear. ) In Congleten there were five Magistrates, all
of the same opinion. In Macelesferd there were six Magis-
trates, all of the same opinion. In Stockport there were twelve
Magistrates, all of the same opinion.—( Hear, hear.) he
would now turn to the boroughs, and, looking at the list
that was now before him, would take the towns under
the letters C and D. He there found six boroughs in succes-
sion following each ether, Coventry, Dartmouth, Deal, Den-
bigh, Derby, and Devizes; those towns returned Members to
Pat liament ; they were subject to excitement which other
towns were not ; thme towns party feeling ran high, and the
blues and the yellows spent their time in abusing each other.—
(Laughter.) If the corporation got the majority they were all
purity, and those to whom they were opposed were marked
men. In this manner the sources of justice were bound hand
and foot by the recommendations of the town councils. In
Coventry there were twelve Magistrates, all of the same opinion.
In Dartmouth there were six, all of the same opinion. In Deal
four, all of the same opinion. In Denbigh four, all
of the same opinion. Ia Derby eight, all of the
same opinion. In Devizes ten ; and here, he was happy to say,
there was a little distinction, for there was one Conservative ;
so that in those six towns, all of them returning Members tor'arl:amens,
rarliament, torn by the dissensiens of party, there were forty-
four municipal Magistrates administering justice, and out of
that number forty-three were of one opinion, and one of
another. He would now come to the smaller boroughs, and it was
very likely that the smaller the circle the more hitter was the
animosity. laridport, Hyde, Kendal, Maiden, Pomfret,
Tiverton, Totnes, and Truro. In those eight small boroughs
there were thirty-one Magistrates, all of the name opinion.
Not one single Conservative to break the uniformity__
( Laughter. ) Need he go any further—need he say that the
Government that attempted to redress those glaring dispropor-
tions was not justifying itself by the evil conduct of its
predecessors, but was taking a course which all Governments
ought to take that had the interests of their country at heart ?
It they had pursued such a course for political purposes they
would be wrong, but such was not the case. Now what, he
would ask, was the total result?—those that he had referred to
were individual cases. Why his Hon Friend found that out
of 1,026 Magistrates, there were 745 of one opinion and 226 of
another. But then it was said that the town councils had re-
commended them. It was unfair to say that the town councils
were tainted with political opinion ; but if they were conscious
that they were so far tainted, that they would recommend
men of the same opinion as themselves, then the Ministry
had a right to claim that the injustice should
be removed.—(Hear, hear, hear.) He had heard it
said that almost all men with 500/. a-year were Conservatives.
Now, he could not maintain such a doctrine; but he would say,
that any system of judicial selection, whether popular or not,
which gave a proportion of 226 Conservatives to to 745 Libe-
rals, was a defective system ; but it was said that his Right
lion. Friend had attempted to abuse the power he possessed,
by swamping the existing Magistrates. He would fearlessly
assert that he had done no such thing, for so farfrom his Right
lion. Friend having abused the power his office conferred upon
him, by transferring judicial power to the hen& of the Con-
servatives, he had left the balance in the hands he found it.
He had left the municipal Magistrates of Liberal principles
in the majority—there were still 745 of them ; bat
he had increased the number of Conservatives to 629.
—( Hear, hear.) But the Honourable Gentleman, the
Member for Finsbury had said that they were setting a terrible
example ; that when the Radicals came into power they would
follow that example. He ( Sir Robert Peel) hoped that they
would, and that they would also show equal moderation.—
( Hear.) He hoped their object would be net to gain as-
cendancy or power, but to put an end to an unequal balance.
If the lion. Gentleman speaking for the Radical party, would
engage, on coming into power, to follow that precedent, he
(Sir R. Peel) would net fear the consequences, because, con-
tenting himself with redressing any partial inequalities which
might exist, he would then leave the power on the average in
the hands in which he he had found it. He was not in the
least degree apprehensive as to the opinion the public
would form of those appoietments.—( Hear, hear, and cheers. )
The Honourable Gentleman fairly admitted that, with
respect to the character of the persons appointed, he had
net a single complaint to make. 'The Hon. Gentleman, of
course, could only speak tram his personal knowledge of the
parties ; but as iar as his personal knowledge extended, the
Hon. Gclithenan said the men appointed were ser‘iceable ad-
ditions to the Magistracy, and perfectly qualified in every re-
spect.—( Hear, hear.) All that disturbed the Hon. Gentle-
man, was that Dr. Alderson had been put at the head of the
Magistracy, in the town which he represented in that House.
But if the Hon. Gentleman had had some sleepless nights on
account. of that undue preference, he would relieve him altoge-
ther from future anxiety, by assuring him that Dr. Alderson
was indebted for if:is enviabie preference to the accidental eir-
cumsttnco that his name began with the letter A.—
(Laughter.) If the Hon. Gentleman would turn to the paper
tan e la he would find Dr. Alderson at
Mr. Bartlett second, and Mr.
thienagds to n
of - upo
then - I
list,
Crudle third. Now, the Right Honourable Gentleman, the
Member for Northampton stated that he too had uothing to
allege against the recent appointments on the ground of elm-
racter.—( Hear, hear.) He said the parties were highly re-
spectable. They naturally enough tried their hands upon the
capture of an effigy before proceeding to graver business.—
(Laughter.) All that the lion. Gentleman had to charge
against these Magistrates was, that apprehending a serious riot,
such as hail taken place in other towns, they exhibited a little
more anxiety than the occasion called for; " and I think"
(said the Right lion. Baronet, addressing, the Hon. Member for
Northampton) "I think they did succeed, did they not, in
rescuing this effigy from the hands of the mob?" Now he
must say that it the Magistrates who had been recently ap-
pointed deserved the character which had been pi% en to them,
that went far to vindicate his Right Hon. Frigid from the
imputation of partiality in making his selection. He
begged that it might he distinctly understood upon
what around the defence rested. He did not place
the vindication of their conduct upon the shabby plea
that their opponents had done something worse. They had the
admission of a warm partisan that the windows of their oppo-
nents had been completely broken. What they had attempted
was to repair the damage which had been done ; they utterly
denied that their windows,—larger, more spacious, and hand-
some, had sustained any similar -larger,
—(Laughter. ) They
had only attempted to repair the breaches which had
been made. They rested the vindication of these addi-
tions to the Magistracy upon this ground, that there
had been so great a preponderance of persons holding one
class of political opinions that, although they might be honest,
although they might be just, yet that there was a natural im-
pression upon the minds of those who were to have justice ad-
ministered to them, that party would influence the magiste-
rial decisions. They found in certain communities men ex-
clusively of one class of political opinions. They had in no
case, or in rare instances, given a preponderance to opposite opi-
nions. The course which they had taken was not to favour
political partisanship, but to repress inequality. For this pur-
pose they had selected men of opposite opinions, who were emi-
nently fitted and in themselves ornaments to the Bench
which they occupied.—(Cheers.)
Lord J. RUSSELL said he quite admitted that it would not
be right for the House to interfere with -the prerogative of the
Crown on this occasion; but he did think at right to ask for
explanation of what had been done. Now he would first state
briefly what was the fact, and secondly, the principle
upon which the Right Honourable Gentleman defended
what had been done. There had been a Magistracy, as far
as they knew, sufficient in number to administer justice in the
boroughs, and those who most criticised their appointment on
political grounds admitted the respectability of their characters.
Immediately after the change of Administration 400 new Ma-
gistrates were appointed. Was not that of itself a most extra--
ordinary fact? Did it not require explanation why there had
been this addition to a Magistracy which, as far as they were
neLtfor the Home Department,
ofrodr the performanceNormanby,
ofthen its
ah:eafilsdn
duties. The Right Hon.
aateihngetueaodi
innwtese
diet hof
ttSecretaryit,s
6of
uaf rffis act
ais
et
Gentleman, the First Lord of the
The Right Hon. Gentle-
a
man the Secretary of State for the Home Department explained
Treasury, felt that it ss's necessary to make some
explanation of this r
it by refreshing his memory with the date of 1836, and repro-
ducing the charges which were then made and satisfactorily re-
futed, only with the addition that Jelin
Frost had been since
convicted of treason, he (Lord John Russell) having taken
what he thought sufficient pains to inform himself on the sub-
ject; having th,;, recommendation from a large body of his
townsmen ; and being informed by the Lord Lieutenant that
the appointment was a proper one._( Hear, hear.) Put the
roceeding.
Right Hon. Gentleman took larger ground, and one which in-
volved a dangerous principle with regard to the appointment of
municipal Magistrates. The Right Hon. Gentleman said there
was no security that the Magistrates would inspire confidence,
because a great majority of them, about 740 to 220, were of
one political party. He stated that in certain towns nearly all,
and in others all, the Magistrates were of one party, and that
that was ir.consistent with the due administration of justice.
Now if that principle were taken in its fullest extent, it would
go very far indeed. Let them inquire what had been the re-
commendations, and what the pclitical opinions of the county
Magistrates.—( Hear.) What was the state of things when
the Whig Ministry came into cee in 1830, when through many
years of power, through many years of 'Tory Lord Chancellors
and Tory Lord Lieutenants, there had been great partiality in
the selection of the Magistrates ? He would venture to say
that if Lord Grey had ordered an examination of the facts he
would have found, not 740 to 220, but 1,000 to 100
as the proportion of county Magistrates.—(Hear, hear.)
Would it then have been right for the Government of that
day to sly, that it was impossible that justice could be duly and
fairly administered; that the people could have no confidence
in the Magistracy, and that there should be appointed some 700
or 800 Magistrates of Liberal opinions to form a balance of
political feeling, in order to the fair administration of justice ?
Was that the rrinciple on which the appointments to the
judicial office ought to be made? He contended certainly net.
He contended, agreeing with the Right Her.. Gentleman as
to what he had stated, on the necessity of taking men cf politi-
cal opinions in a free country, that take them where they
alight, if they took mean of character aud well kuvwu integrity,