Star.
London, England, 1830-04-23 00:00:00

REMARKS ON THE NEW LAWS OF DEBTOR

AND CREDITOR.

ADDRESSED 10 ALL TRADESMEN AND SHOPKEEPERS.

The Solicitor-General having introduced a Bill to con-
tinue the present Insolvent Debtors' Act (which expires
the last day of this Sessien,) and the Attorney-General
having previously introduced another Bill to limit arrests
fur debt on inesne process to sums exceeding 1001. it be-
comes a matter of the highest importance with the trades-
men and shopkeepers of London and the country to con-
sider how they will be circumstanced should these two
Bills pass into laws, of which there is little doubt.
That the power of arresting before judgment is unwise,
and inhumane—that it has not lessened the losses
of creditors, nor promoted the honesty of debtors—is now
pretty well admitted on all hands. It was also founded
en a fiction and usurpation of law, and, like other fic-
tions and usurpations attacked by the reforming spirit of
the age, is very properly sent to keep company with sham
Fleas. inconsistent declarations, and ridiculous writs of I
:cctment.
But while arrests on mesne process are on their way
to ultimate, and—it is to be hoped—speedy abolition;
and while the Insolvent Debtors' Act is to be renewed,
opening the prison doors to the vast mass of those who
seek its benefit within six or seven weeks after their im-
prisonment ; it is highly necessary that a proper and
useful protection should be afforded to the tradesman,
who, by the operation of the above measures, will
stand a less chance than he previously (lid of reco-
vering his just claims from dishonest or unwilling
debtors.

When these Bills become laws, the situation of the
creditor will be as follows :

1. For all debts between 21. (in some places between 51.) and
1001. his remedy will be by serviceable process--generally called a
copy of a writ ; and that remedy, if the claim be contested, for the
sake of delay or otherwise, will create costs on both sides to the ex-
tent of from 201. to 501. It has long been an observation among ho-
nest professional men, that it is generally better to give up claims
from 51. to 151. than to contest such claims against unprincipled or
obstinate defenlants.

2. Unprincipled debtors may cause themselves to be arrested for
1001. in the same way as they formerly could for 201. in order to
enable themselves to take the benefit of the Insolvent Debtors' Act.
Such collusive arrests have been frequent ; and when they did occur
the Insolvent Court had no power to punish either the fraudulent
defendant or the perjured plaintiff, the former being merely re-
manded to prison, from which he was instantly liberated by the
latter.

3. There will be no increased power over property, making up for
the loss of the power over the person, which the creditor, till these
BiUs become law, possesses. Many different sorts of property can-
not be taken under an execution; and other property, while the
matter is pending, may be easily converted into thi► untouchable
description.
There are several other evils to which the creditor will
be exposed by the state of the laws ; but the above are
the chief ; and if they can be remedied, which it is pro-
posed to be proved can be very easily effected, the trades-
man and the shopkeeper will have very little reason to
complain.
Before these remedies are pointed out, it may be as
well to observe, that the alteration in the law taking
away the power of arrest on mesne process (excepting
special circumstances) will do much more good than
harm to tradesmen generally. Hitherto they have been
in the habit of placing too much dependence on their
possession of this power, which has, in a great proportion
of cases, been found to be illusory ; hence, now that they
will be deprived of it, they will place their dependence,
rot on their power of inflicting pain, but on their pros-
pect of obtaining payment.
Every tradesman, however, will not think so ; and, to
those who do not, the deprivation of the power of imme-
diate arrest w ill be viewed with great alarm. To allay
the apprehensions of this class—and it will be a numerous
one—the Legislature will, doubtless, be invoked to pause
and consider well what it is doing, and how the law of
debtor and creditor will stand when the pending measures
are carried ; while to the more enlightened tradesman it
will be no less due that his voice should be heard, which,
while it acknowledges the propriety of the proposed alte-
rations on the ground of justice and humanity, will sug-
gest others for the general protection of the class to which
he belongs.
The remedies for the three great evils enumerated above
are the following:

1. Thai the Commissioners of the Courts of " Conscience,' or
Hcquetts," or of " County Courts," shall have jurisdiction over
all simple contract debts to the amount of 201. with power to exa-
mine witnesses on oath, and to examine the debtor as to the amount
and nature of his income or property, and to award payment by
instalments, and to postpone any such instalments previous to
granting execution against the person, provided inability be clearly
proved.

2. That the law of perjury should be rendered more plain,
and more certain in the punishment ; so that there shall be no
legal or other difficulty in causing both the parties to a collu-
sive arrest, fur the purpose of going through the Insolvent Court,
to be convicted—the one for perjury, and the other for subornation
of perjury—and be seveially transported, either for a term of years
or fur life.
3. That all property, of every description, belonging to a debtor
shall be available to the payment of his debts, and be attachable, in
whose hands soever it may happen to be, similar to the practice in
Scotland, and to a power existing in the city of London. To which
might be added an enactment fur the more certain punishment of
those who fraudulently convey or conceal their property • and
of all attorneys, agents, or clerks practising in the Insolvent property;
or elsewhere, who aid them in so doing, or who have a guilty know,
ledge, either as accessories before or after the tact.

An Archdeacon of the Indian Church has published a
book called " The Last Days of Bishop Heber ;" which
contains a smart, but, doubtless, an undesigned rap at
" Lord Bishops" in general. Having related an act of pas-
toral attention on the part of the great and good man who
is the subject of the Memoir, in going down to pray with
sonic invalid soldiers who sailed in the same vessel with
him from Calcutta to Madras, the wondering Archdeacon
propounds this startling question :-- Who would expect
to find the Bishop of India, the acearnplished Heber, pray-
ing by the cots of a few disabled soldiers between the decks
of a merchant vessel ?" Mark that, reader. If it had been
a man-of-tear it might be a different affair ; but a
merchant vessel, redolent, for aught thou knowest, of
Buffalo hides, tobacco, sugar casks, and other abomina-
tions, " Who would expect it?" That is a poser which
might almost cut the Bench. The accomplished Heber
would, perchance, have answered it thus: " Your MAS-
TER and mine, Mr. Archdeacon —He who thought it not
beneath Hist to sit at table with one Simon, a tanner,'
and to admonish and console the wretched woman who
washed His feet with her tears—HE would expect this
and more, much more, from every Bishop and Arch-
bishop in Christendom."
An important discovery has recently been made in the
manufacture of iron, which accelerates the process of
converting the cast into bar iron, and at the same time
bas a material influence upon the quality by decom-
posing the carbon and injurious substances combined
with the iron, and which, in the ordinary method of
manufacturing, cannot be destroyed. It likewise has the
effect of separating and completely vitrifying the alu-
ininous and siliceous earths, which destroy the tenacity
and malleabili yof the iron. It is now ascertained that
by means of this simple and economical application,
many ores and materials may be used for the production
of iron which could not formerly be worked.