Star.
London, England, 1802-02-01 00:00:00

PRIVATE CORRESPONDENCE.

Pays, JAN. 26.—The FillST CONSUL will return
to Paris in a few days, and, as it is Paid, ratify the
definitive treaty. 'lt is with furprife and regret I
fee, that with regard to the inftitutions of jurifpru-
dence, the French are at lead three centuries be-
hind us. It has been very often and very juftly
remarked, that the bell and fafcll method of dif-
tributing juftice, is by ellabliflting judges of know-
ledge ankintegrity, and by making them as inde-
pendent as poflible. Neither of there objeas are
obtained in France for the following reafons :
if}, There are 3400 Judges, whore falary is Gol.
Reding per annum ! ! By thefe Judges, Ido not
mean juges du Paix, thefe are very different, tnd
their number is about 20,0n0. The Judges of the
Criminal Courts receive t ccl. Doling per annum,
and the Prefident of the Criminal Tribunal 2831.
fterling per annum. The Judges who cornpole
the Tribunal of Calllttion or Appeal, of which there
are forty, receive a falary of 3001. flerling each.
Withfi:thAlaries, if Judges arc pure and upright,
they are more than human beings f I am afraid
vre are not entitled to expea fuch integrity in the
prefent Rate of fociety. The Courts of Juftice are
as follows :

Ift, Tribunal du Premier Inflance, and which is
the firil Court where civil a&ions are brought ;
from thefe you can appeal to the Triturad du ilppa,
and from thence; if any doubt arifes in point of
law, an appeal lies to the Tribunal of Caffation,
whole decifion is conclufive.

In each Court there are three Judges, who fit
daily from nine in the morning, whether there is
arty thing before them or not. The Judges of
th:: Tribunal of Collation fit every other day, ten
for criminal, and ten for civil cafes. The Ex-Di-
re,slor, MERLIN, of Douay, is the Attorney Gene-
ral of this Court ; he receives a falary of about
2001. Reding per annum. There is no Jury in
civil cafes, and the principal matters are decided
by the Roman law. All the Courts are held in
the Palais du Juftice. In the Court where the
Judges of the Tribunal of Caffation fit, the Re-
volutionary Tribunal formerly held its fittings ;
and before the Revolution the Pat liament of Paris
met.

In the Criminal Court there are fix Judges and
a Jury ; the prifoner receives a lift of his Jury
eight days previous to trial, which is not the cafe
in England, excepting in cafes of Treafon. The
jury are fummoned for four months, and a pri-
foner can challenge twenty times each Juror.—
From this Tribunal there is alfo an appeal to that
of Cafration.

The knowledge of the Judges is not, as may be
firppofed, very profound. They are of courfe fe-
leaed from Advocates, and no advocate of any
practice will accept a Judge's place.
The Judges of the Criminal Tribunal of Paris
very frequently are called on to prefide at a neigh-
bouring Court in one of the adjoining diftrias.—
Even the travelling expenses allowed them are
but fcanty, and a Judge told me a few days fince,
that once nn his return in a public diligence fiorn
Havre, whither he was fent to try sautes, he had
for his travelling companion a perfon whom he
had juft tried for felony and who had been ac-
quitted. They alfo dined At the fame table on the
road.

There is only one Tribunal of Caffation, and
that is at Paris. There are alfo Courts for fmall
debts like our Courts of Confcience.

The juges dts eaix are very numerous, as already
Rated. In Paris they are all manly ignorant;
their province is to grant warrants of arreft, to
fettle difputes, &c. and finally to commit to prifon
for trial.

I (hall now Rate to yon the laws of divorce which
•
exit at prefent in Trance :
If either the man or woman with to be divorced,
they muff give notice of it to the Prefea, and fit
months time is nec.etfary before it takes place ; in
the interim the necetrary arrangements for the
maintenance of the children are made, which are
,as follovist—The girls are generally configned
I to the care of the mother, and the boys to the
father ; a very minute invelligation takes place of
the father's or mother's fortune, fo that the children
are certain of being provided for. If a man is rich,
and is the party that fues for the divorce, he
muff return half of his wife's jointure, and fettle a
maintenance on her for life. If a woman fucs for
the divorce, the wife muff return every article of
prefent the has received from her hufband, even
before marriage. The woman is not compelled,
however, to maintain her hatband after divorce,
hut muff her children. If the father remarries and
has heir by his laft marriage, the children by the
former marriage have the Cam claims to the pa-
trimony as the other's. On thii ftatement you may
rely, as I have been very affiduout in obtaining
thele particulars.