Star.
London, England, 1828-04-25 00:00:00

a
id
it.

And whew was this sum taken from ? Either from the
wretches she were lying 'in prison; or from cre-
ditors,r %fin, perhaps, did not get three shillings in
the pogo.: on their just debts. Why should not .the
,Lord Chan eller be made merely a Judge of Appeal,
turd the cu,,ier of 'the Woolsack in the House of
Lois? that case appeals -would no. longer be .the
fictitious mockeries that 'they were at. present. ,ap-
pealing from the Chancellor in a tie wig, to the Chan-
- neThier in a full bottom, with a snoring Bishop on
ont ,ide of him, and a Scotch Peer on the other, and
both him and the Appeal at the Devil —(laugh-
tgq. To mike an alteration in this, he was sure that
the public would not grudge a few. thousands a year
more expense, as it would be the means of getting
deeisi•ns to causes which were now lingering in sus-
lo making the long statement that he had felt
tipserf caned upon to make, he trusted that he had
bet intruded himself in vain on the. House: and he
again begged to assure them that he had made no attack
upon any individual, whether Judge or other; he had
attacked the system, because there lay the mischief, and
he hoped that his efforts might contribute in scime de-
gree to produce such an inquiry as might finally lead
to reform.
Lord RANCLIFFE seconded the motion. He said
that he had long been awaie of the many mischiefs that
the delays in the Court of Chancery entailed on its
suitors; and though he had a very high respect for the
present Lord Chancellor, and did not in the least con-
ceive that the fault rested with him, he nevertheless
ttusted that such an alteration would be made as to
rectify some of those heavy abuses which made that
Court a serious evil to all who were so unfortunate as
to have business-to transact there.
Taltrevtgo.tiiihig been put,
Mi. MESS 'tope. thought the chief causes of
the delays in Chancery-were not well understood. The
delay in the decision of a suit began from the instant it
wirxt down for hearing. 'He did not think it would
besdvisable, evert, if it were practicable, to hear a cause
the very day it was- put down on. the paper, as was
directed by a Statute of. Cromwell's; but he saw no
kesson why they should not be heard within two or
tkrie or taking the holidays into cOnicideration,
opo,an average within two months. Instead of that,
believer, a cause had to wait nearly two years before
a could be heard, after it was first put in the paper—
(Hear, !marl. He did not mean to say that the Judge
toctton years in making up his mind upon the merits
of the use, but it was impossible it could come before
hio for that period,. on accountof the great accumula-
te!, of business he had on his band. If all the parties
besot fairly, the cause would then go this course :,•,.4t
would go before the MasterX then come on for further
directions; go again into the.tvlaster's office; come out
of the Master's office a second time, and again come
an the paper. Between every one of those stages there
boyld be a lapse of a year and thtee.quarters. This
;was stipposing bUiti parties equally willing to bring the
matter toissue; for if they were not, the cause would
IX much more embarrassed with delays. Seven years,
hewever, would be thus consumed, two thirds of which
were wasted in standing 'still, and this not from any
fault_ of the parties, any want of diligence in their So-
licitors; nor item any hesitation or doubt in the Judges.
bet purely on account of the want of means to get rid
of the publk btuiness•—(Heir, .hear.) If the decision
tii appealed
.from, several years more would be
tiken up. This evil of delay bad also tbe.bad pro-
puny of sellersultiplication; for if in 'one. of the
iseftwals he had mentioned any of the partite died.
ttr suit abated,' ;And •a supplementary bull had. to' be
ftied. Be himself was.concerned in.a case ageing air
&tamer Comiany, where a gentleman nearly,ninety
ran ol age wanted to compel .the payment of an -an.
naiti: Dispatch was of. the utmost iMportance, but in'
coitacqueocer4 these delayslhegentleniandiedinpovirry
before she annuity -was paid.-t Hear ly In the Cameo.
of =Gortrinon bitwohere -being generally but one-bare
tette itied, the'Ciate Was 'decided on the first hearingi
bAlS.isaqttiey suits, there .were generally
.several-pOints
tojte- deCided, hotelmen...leach of .which the enormous
&ley hebad -a:rationed otcuritd. The great; the' over-
whchtliog evil, then, the -Legislature ;had te.•:reprels;
IV" Mar Jth.st. occurred .betweeis:ihe setting dolts
ef a cause, and its coming on for argnment.—(Hearl)
Tionsysho would ascribe it to the.dstisorineu of par-
tinder Judges, or any 'other cause than that be had
meitiisqd; Must be ignorant both of the present state
erj:l ,past. history of these tribunals. The cpsaplaint
of the inadequacy of the Court of Chancery to get-
Through their business was of very ancient dat
fle far back as the time of Henry VIII. Fuller men.
tioned it as the great praise of Sir T. Moore, that he
succeeded in keeping the business down, and be re—
greeted that there was uo prospect of it ever being
regain. &strongly was this felt, that Fuller, after allot&
mg to the mecessfel net tions of Sir Thomas More to get.
Omagh the arrears in the time of his Chancellorship,
ear:eased his astenithi.ent in his own quaint way—.
*have PAPethle tarot time td Chancery
eitieret saki dre ire see ,•
• me Vie stssft Wee Aare be set e • - •
t; • Tiff SA Ile de** reale. (A laugh). •
No atifettftdr hirdly since that tine had succeeded
ieeping the" at rears under. Tice Lord Keeper
Williams, who soeceeded Lord Bacon, used to go into
()get tee heart before day-light,'aftd continue sitting
*tithe of nine at night, and that barely sufficed to
kits tform the arrears even in those days. After-
they atimmsulated to an enormous amount, and
r"refir :rho taw whet* the evil arose, directed
met every rinse aided be heard the sane day on
"WI it was set ashen in the paper. This of course
1041 found impracticable. Neither the Lord Keeper
G4ifla'd' Lord Sodiers" nor Lord Hardwicke, had
abletusocceed in keeping the business
It 'as;
but.

' number of reported cates_hartincieased to such an enor-
mous extent Nithinthtlincift`r years. that the ergo-,
'mews of Coisnsel on Oleos; end the:review of. them. by
the Judge, occupied mote-time than it was passible (Os
2 stranger to conceive. ;The'ireltieof theptejskilyhCre.
now decided upon, ought le be taken into Condderit.
lion, when they compared the present basitieta Of.the
Court with what it was heretofore: There was in the
hands of-the Accountant in the year 1740. the suns. of
1;2800001. In 18264 increased to 34,000,0001. What '
there was at present in the Accountant's hands he had
no official documents by which to judge, but it could
not be estimated-at less than 40,000,0001. This gradual
accumulation was not to be- attributed to any want of
zeal or ability in the Judges.--(Cheers). The predecessors
of the present Judges had not been able to keep the
business under. How then could.it be expected, in the
present more complicated interests of society, that it
should be done now? The present Master of the
the oldest Equity Judge, was celebrated In. his diligenCe.
The Vice Chancellor had only occupied his seat half a
year; but he had shown no want of dispatch. The
Lord Chancellor had now occdpied his eleeited station
a year, and he would take the liberty 'of `saying, and
he knew it from personal observation, that he had
devoted himself to the business of the-Court with the
utmost diligence and assiduity, not profiting by the
unsettled state of political affairs at any time
.to absent
hinsselt from it. And when Lord Lyndhurst was in Court
no time was wasted, his attention being most intensely
devoted to the business before him. He hest indeed,
shown that he possessed, in an eminent degree, that,
faculty of mind mentioned last Seision, by the 'Hon:
Member for Wintheisea, most essential to the attainment
of forensic eminence, the faculty of separating _the esseni
tial from the mere trash of a case. Yet-what was the shuns:
don of those Judges? Oat of Court they:Were assailed by
the vulgar for delays which 'were OCciiidde'd by, the Sibs
tern, and .not by them.-In Court they had.riC sooner takes
their seat, thana crowd ofsuitors pressed deco;-upon chid
urgency of their cased Someippliediallient thtoteghthe
' bar, others, rendered bold by desPetition, piliforted
suit in person, inh'ulses. or Wringing something from;
the pity of the Court, and obtaining a hearing outi
of their turn. Numerous, however, as were the suitors,i
and .injured ids -they -were by the delay, far: greater was
the amount of-injury .done to • those who 'were 'deterseS
kilns coming into Court by the fate of those:they-clic
there. He was 'proud of the reputation the EnglishContia,
of Lavi.• had obtained for their impartiality; but,.hei
feared, if something- were not- soon- done, -41 their ins!
partiality would consist in' slotting the door of justice
against both parties. this was not what a man firing
in civilized iociety had a right to expect. fle, gase:up-
a portion of his liberty in order to be secured in his'
properts, and if justice were denied or delayed bins, the
oorupaat was broken with him. ,In the dawn, of legis-,
lation; at the hernias of MagoaChartas thecloseanalogy
between delay and denial of justice was seen. Milli meta.'
6intus,eulli eVrrefausiustukni, were the iirkirds used by
its frame: s.Hefeared that the delay of justice now almost
amounted to a-denial of it—(Hear.) Thetide of
was now pressing_ upon them faster 'than -it • could
'be got under, and Must shortliOietWhbloi therm* Th.
quesiioo- 'then 'remained, how .was-it to begot rid, of?
Some seemed to think that it would be: sufficient- to,
disburden • the great seal- of the bankrupt, eases rifor-
those who suggested that; forgot ttiai the great Mg.
jority of. these . cases now came -.before the Vice-
Chancellor, so . that :iny- measure of that--kind would
afford the Chancellor but little relief. • llesidekin
of What was said
.by. the.HonOuiable Member; whO bad
made this motion.be thought it _would kiemo &eat, a
Constitutional change to take the bankrupt cases form
under the jurisdiction-. of. the Chancellor. • ' The 'pro-
per remedy seemed to -himlMt. tisfOr. not to be
and what he was about
.tO mint on sealed
to be the prevalent opioion. • 'Let the equitable juris-
diction of the Court of Exchequer be transferred to
the Court of Chancery, and the. Court generallhrown
.open to the assistance of. -the others Courts of Common.
'Law. The -Chief Baron could be -made an -entire
Equity Judge, and as-it would- be needsaryto tilt*
the Court of Etchequer; another Judge Must be created.
•If, its addition. to that, the Master of the . Rolls ,were
:to sit in the day instead of the evening, and,winy.day
-iostead ofociasidnally. they would; have threeraqeity
Judges sitting simelitheohsly, Withodt liaeiset anything
.but the
,blisiness of the :your t
.todstamitt tpet,. One gooa
:effect of this would bito divide. the Bar, -who now seemed'
.eager to grasp at everything. sacrificing relaxations*.
*end information, and teen needful resty.ifl 'order
tend all the Courts.;.'Then.alsti. there an:laid:he. dine to
.do things well, instead of quick. ead•the•public would
loot, as now, ask-which' dispatches Swat beineSsi:but
'which decides m 614 justly?' 'll4' 4601440 i vefiltOte
-positively to say that the twine's-mould 'dins all lie got
'through, but at any rate it was:Worth-Vie trial. Wahl
regard to the expense of the new fudge, he thought a!
means might be adopted-to-make it-a-tieing instead ofl
loss to the public. . The Commissioners of Bankluptilal
the coontry,_ on the present system, were .a great- ea.;
pense. At least one half of it might be saved by appoint.'
litsk Commissioners with a salary of three• hundred
!pounds each. Out of the saving that might be effected
by a Change of systeth on this point, the additional.
Equity Judge might• be paid. It•might be made Isis
'duty to attend to all the bankrupt business, of coarse
'leaving appeal open to the Chancellor as no*, arictany
spare time be might have could be devoted to the gene-
ral business of the great seal. That seemed to him the
best plan that could be adopted ; but whatever course the
House took, he trusted it would not sanction the opinion
that had been spread abroad, pardiularly by the public
press, that a great deal of time would be saved by the
separation of what was called the legal character from
the political character of the Lord Chancellor—(Heat).
Even if ,id he di/ ok -Ott

idle, then, to talk of ihe—arrear of isiness now iven if it wou, . save time, he did not think it ougt,
pendingr upon the incapacity of the Judges, when to be done, upon Constitutional grounds. They would
It as evident that they were not numerous enough net relieve him from the charge of hearing appeals in
fa the labour they had to perform. We had now foul, the House of Lords: but if they did, would they like
"Ibity Judges—the Chancellor, the Mastefof the Rolls, to have some other, ao inferior lawyer, as permanent
..
Vice-Citancellot, and the Chief Baron of the Ex. Speaker, to take his place there? • If not that, would
which last; however, had rarely aide to devote they makethopost an. object of political interest, or •of
%Ike equity part of his duty. As these Judges were family influence? Nothing so much as that would tend
'Man average sixty fears of age, and had most of to Underminithe rasped' felt for the Nobility, and the
'lea passed a life of intense study, therefae it could reverence-for the authority oftbe Crown. Whatwas the
that they should always all be is sound 'can,' of the reverence the people entertained for the
rat if they were, and exertatbetaselves ,aristocracy, but theconsciottmar that it sprung from
was impossible for theen to keep the themselves, and that it was possible for any one of
under. Sir John Leadh,trith all his them, by industry and talent, not only to be equilvdtb
talents and industry, was not ible to do ,any Noble of the land, but to be prated at the head of
t of ;his might be, that multitudes, who the whole dotty? ' Vieeld gbh' fed*/ coiitinue to be
ty the delays and vexation* of a Chen. ,eritektaintit,lf tYCdigait fevestarwifed withdrawn front:
from asserting their just rights, when the reach of the people ar large,. sad put within ell
there was a Judge who earned himself power' of beredi eat? • :
to dispatch the business whifil was • The ATTt eNNSItAIi seek, the objeer el
him, rushed in with their claimi) and , this citation Wpi, sugergaciVidt, 'die constitution mid
im. k might bestrid, drat since the timer appointment o 1 n foutth Judge, in equity. five or az
led, the Chancellor had heed relieved of 'different seder hod- bete propos& for effecting the
ies by the appointnient of a-Vice•Oharn. species of relief Mthlt-int by ftlf Hot: and bentato
relief thus afforded him wax far noon- 'Wend who aitilifillirraftrilfd $4llOl.
the interested qaontityof•haokio_pt hasi knardat, that. thi.4644l,4tiinew beenfor
cormailsaionii; Ude oder mbisttlimeeslionis• tititottidettehfir itditildetheissetGorernment. Hill,
dtiiir ewe Stale ROM miter* the HoltadValift elltlieldaPiiiisd was not prepared to,

say ho**this !Meth Judge wet* be altpOintals anal dig
Were 'now 'tailed upon. *Moot -further inquiry,
,tot,
'affirm' an:abstract tesoltition- ofago Lind' ethic! 'Ito!,
hesitation in delivering his opinion ftielyi'. glie • cab-;
ject was met new to the House. Twilit 4stent bid;
el-ipsed since.a third Judge was appointed;ill,E.::.uitYr:
void it was then warmly contended that Ribird Judge
was' not necessary, and• that the delAys complained of-
wereto be attributed to theChanceltrw. •Now.howeeer,
it war -propos-cl to appoint a fourth Judge. He had nol
hesitation in. admitting that some relief must be given
M the Great Seal—(Hear), but no feasible plan had'
been yet proposed. He was not. prepared to say con-
scientiously that the appointment of'a fourth Judge was
the most eligible mode of affording that relief. As the
Government and the Bar were at present applying their
attention to this subject, why was the House now to be..
precipitated into a decision ? They should first agree
upon the necessity of the case, before they determined
on a rettiecly. If any Honourable Gentleman proposed
a distinct plan. he should"be ready to give it the most
serious consideration. He thought expedients might be
devised to prevent the accumulation of arrears, and that
ith the aid of such expedient • three Judges would be
quite sufficient to get through all, the business in equity.'
The Hoirie, however, should first of all establish the
preliminary question of necessity;
MI. D. W. HARVEY said, the Hon. and Learned
Gentleman who spoke last, as well as the other Members
of the Government, could not rescue themselves from
the imputation of most serious blame for allowing abuses
to continue so long without proposing any remedy—
abuses. the existence of which they now fully adenttted.
The Hon.. and Learned Gentleman spoke as if these
abuses and grievances were now in their infancy. But
the Hon. and Learned Gentleman was bimself'a living
memorial of the grievances of the Court in which he
practiced- for so-many years, and shad largely thriven
by-their existence. The great obstacle to improvement
most, be attributed to the lawyers themselves. He
did not mean to include in this censure the Member
for Wootton Bassett (Mr. H. Twiss), from whom they
.had that night heard so able a speech. He should be
:better pleased, however, if that speech had come from
:an Honourable, and not a Learned Member, because
then it • could not be supposed that it proceeded from
:any view to possible advantage
.from the appointment
?cif another Judge. It was a mistake to suppose 'that
delay wasthe'mily grievance in the administration of
their jarisprudence. The law ooght to be simple,
'easily intelligible, its. application easy, and cheap in
price. 'Did their laws and the administration of them
combine these advantages? If they did, certain he
was that there Would be no occasion for the appointment
:of another Judge. The manner in which justice was
'‘administerest in this country, amounted in effect to a
de,nial,of.it. Take a Chancery suit from the very com-
mencementa and from that td the crinclusion, it was a
soirtce .of the most extravagant expenditure. These
' were the'procemfings by ethic-Hastier: flourished and
suitors decayed.—aflear,.hear.)- It would be very easy,
if Government set themselees seriously to the work, to
semove.that.reproach under which the country so long.
laboured. that law WO i Ibiiir77viithin the reach only
:of the rich. lie hid "hadthat day put into his hands a
cite viticii• showed the enormous expenses of an appli-
eation tothe Court of Chancery. It.- was a • suit insti-
tuted to ascertain whether the original object of the
HighgateCharity was consistent with the present ap-
plication of the funds ? The costs on one side were-be-
tween 3,0001. and 4,oool.—(Hear.) The great source of
these enormous expenses were the lawyer's fees. • What
went iato the solicitor's..pocket did not bear a :greater
proportion than 13s. 4d. to twenty guineas. An_ office
copy of the information filed by. the Attorney General
in.this tale cost 801.:a(Hear.).—This copy, in the shape
oflt• lallefywas handed over to the Leading Counsel
.with a fee.of 881. 6s. and the fee of the second Counsel
was 664. The whole of the expenses exceed 3,0001.
.Dispatch was, certainly desirable, but there were other
improveMents equally necessary. Had-any attempt
n hitherto made to supply the law ? The Hon. and
earned-Gentleman (the Attorney-General) called for
some distinct. and specific plan to remedy the incon-
teniencei complained of. But why did not the Hon.
and Learned Gentleman himself or his colleagues pie-
pose it? For what purpose had they a Government, if
not to consult- for the good of the cotidtry in this °tit-
ter as well as every other? For his parr, he could see
nu necessity-for having bankruptcy connected with
the Great Seal, or for the .experisive and nseleas
apparatus
.0. Commissioners. , Merchants , could do
the business as well Or better- than CoMmiisioneri,.ex.
cc- pt perhaps with 'WOO. JO a :few ;legal difficulties
voce-They arise,..arid-then It !would .be easy to tan
son-lawyer: .The dike of Commissioner. was taken'
aptly hay -young. bnefiess Barristers, . with little hope
irtadvancing in the profession, or, by old ones, who
hiving no other hope, were glad to have an income of
Mir 'and' file 1 mid red a year iO the decline Of life.* Was
not bankruptcy, insolvency—and could it not be mad
longed upon the same principles and at as moderate a
charge. as:insolvency? , The Hon. and Learned Gentle-
man -concealed the real objection to the separation of
bankruptcy "from the Great Seal. The "objection was,
that it formed-a complete Colony of ,dependency for
"the Chancellor. It would be better at once to divide
among the claims the fifty millions now in the Court,
and shut-its doors for ever, than that it should go on
in a wayso ruinous to every person who had occasion
CO apply for justice—(Heat, hear). They had for many
years report after report, attesting these abuses; and jet
nothing was done. A code of orders had been lately
issued, three Of fotni of which Appeared to possess some
merit; hat, taken as a whole, .one would be disposed to
conclude that it was a mere stratagem to throw busi.
mesa into the hands of junior Banisters, for every.order
was connected-with a motion, and every motion with a
fee. The Court of Charkery, in the- slownesiof its pro-
Medings, and the vast amount of the expense, presented
a spectacle enormously hideous--(beat )—and the sooner
some remedy was applied the better. . . .
Mr. SUGDEN said, be heard with much surprise the
Court of Equity spoken of as a public curie, but heard
with still eater SurprisOHOnotirable Gentlemen who
Must-have a large stake in the country cheering the ob.
serration—(Loud cheering from the Opposition). -If he
thought such a deseription.applied justly to the Court
he would instantly quit it—(cheers). The Court was not
open to such imputations, and when such Went forth to
the public, it was impossible that 'they should not be
productive of the Most serious niischief—(Hear, hear).
He understood the tendency of these cheers, but he
would repeat that it was impossible.such descriptions
should go abroad without producing the moil serious
„mischief. lt. was of the highest importance that
the jurisdiction of the Cotiri'of Chancery sbotild be
held io respect. Thine' slho- found fault with it
were rather fraudulent trustees and
.petons who
wished to evade their engagements, than persons who.
honestly and fairly sought
,for relief —( 'darks of dis-
approbation from some parts of the Houtie).-..-It could
iZkat supposed that in the observation he alluded to
r Honourable Gentleman -in that House. With is.
spat to dam the great aims of complaint, it. war

pitwifriebrunation- fibtorAtated !ha itiklect,
it beiery"nafite.bf,ihe Court prevented drat die.
patch of buslisas which was desirable, and wh ref). might
be hid in is,Ccitittid-Law. The great object of a Court
of Eqnity.wai to dicide at once, and. for ever, such
matters as might come before, it: For' this purpose.
4?t
was necessary that allparries concerned should be. sis
Court at the same time, and thii could not .be clones
in. many cases without considerable . delay. If, Eh*
Court of ,Cliancery were put down, the cease.
quence must be, thai frauds would remain unpunished;
and accounts unsettled. From the Returns laid upOrt
the table, he should conclude that there was no occasion
for the appointment of a fourth Judge in- Equity.
Here the Hon. and Learned Gentleman showed from
the Returns of the three last years, that the present
number of Equity Judges were fully adequate to the
business. - Except under peculiar circumstances, any
suitor .might have his cause heard as soon as set dose*.
Government was not to -blame. It had been for a long
time considering with anxiety, whether further assist.
ante was necessary, and he should oppose the motion
as only tending to throw impediments in the way of
Government. He should be averse to the appointment
of a fourth Judge. The consequence of it would be-to
increase the bar, and the patronage of Government, of
which the House would entertain great jealousy. In this
respect he might appear to be speaking against his own
interests as a member of the profession, but for his part,
he had never partaken of the patronage of Government,
nor ever desired it, nor should he ever seek for it except
in a fair way. The case put by his Hon. and Learned
Friend (Mr. Twiss), was no proof of delay, for he took
a creditor's account. On such a case much delay was
unavoidable, for the purpose of ascertaining who the
creditors were but in many instances, or rather in most,
a decision might be had as speedily as in a court of law,
He never could consent to separate bankruptcy: from
the Great Seal. The Hon. Gentleman considered bank.
dirty cases peculiarly within the jurisdiction of Chan.
eery. The proceedings in bankruptcy were replete with
difficulty ; and he felt satisfied, .that if cases in bank.
roptcy were referred to any judgment below the:mho.
rity of a Vice Chancellor, the injury to property would
be incalculable. There was a deal Of litigation in bank;
ruptcy which shOrald be suppressed, but how could it
be done? No Gentleman at the Bar en:ouraged the mats
of Petitions Which came in cases of bankruptcy.' He
knew that the Gentlemen at the Chancery Bar were as
honourable and as high minded as any men could Le.
If this House should make a great change in the pric•,
!ice' of the Chancery LaW, the present generation 'of
lawyers most profit by it. the charge would risateifillY
affect property. A revolution in the establ,hed laws
could never be for the benefit of the count; y..He should
oppose those scheme,, which he called revolutioniryi
and which "would shake that happy system of
der which the country had so long detivedbenefiL ~ •
Mr. BARING rose, as an unleanedperson, to-give
an opinion on this subject, 'which had- celled forW
much eloquence from Learned Peribits. SpeakirtgliWii
experience he might say,.ther ail kilesif.themilsnaeln§
-from the system of Chancery: A Cate in sehich-is *WWI
claim was at issue went into
.Cesacerr-e4t- warlotiunt.
op thirty lea* aVstiM nf .no 013X10N.,44i
lockedup until rb question could. Ise .decided, cadsits
aged persons whoniairned large portions ef -the, pope's,
were reduced to the necessity of clewing:chat:a. asliftf
Hon'. Member fist Miiltiurst "weft kite*. hiss
to his iitrul,Solleitor,on the_ suliee.4.ls:Cieis :aluk
case had been soden in Chancery that the Ciiancalbew
could not decide The documents had mitl4.liiikaisd
it was.not likily.thet-a decision would ever b 4 gar:
nie parties entitled to the property were consisketither.
were hopeless. The lion. Member then said, why do yor
not take it onto( tbehands of the la tryerso hey williWyer
decideit? They said they were most anxious 14,240.
and they asked him if. he would, be th'e arlsitiatUa-r•
The. Hon. Member did not..kilsetiadecide.upon.l;so,ooo4
himself, but said, if you .will give me the Hon. Member
for Midhurst (Mr. J. Smith), we wilt detide it. *.The
rnattet.warrefetred them; card two-dayx thermaar
their award—(Hear). They divided the 1.50,0001. among
aged and other people in a state 'of suffer ing. They did
not decide as learned persons. Lord .Ighborough,
and some oteerJudgeiWsight haie• deadest with more
law, but the money could, not have been divided with
more commercial equity. They decided upon: principles
of common sense. and common honesty. Not-I%g ago
the Lord Chancellor decreed .50.0001. as the. mennin.l4‘
coming to a conclusion whether.a .person.was,ol.Lacuses
mind and capable of disposing of property ? It was in.
vain. to /disguise thifact. The country was dissatisfied
with the system of'Cbancery Law. He admitted.,ttrat
the practitioners in Chancery were honourable tneri,idt
his opinion was, that we might look in wit) f9i;teftol.,
to come from lawyers. • • - •
Mr. Secretary PEEL said, he Moored under' the
of not having had the least -experience
with respect to cases decided in the Court of Chancery,;_
but in answer to the observations of an IlentitOble
Member on the second Bench, he could say„that the
charge of obstructing inquiry into the practice of the
Court of -Chancery' did riot apply to him. Renewer
was disinclined' to lend himself to reform in Chattier-Y.
The subject of recital in the Courts of Law had oc-
cupied his attention. He had selected Commissioners
to inquire into the practice of the Chancery, with a
view to' the separation of the bankruptcy business
from the equity bUsiness. Those Commissioners had
,been selected in the most impartial manner. He wait
told that he should not take lawyers for Commissioners,
but how he was to investigate such a subject without
,lawyers he, did not
..know,„. -The other Commission,
was to inquire into the; this and practice relating to
the transfer of real-prOperfy:•' Thine Commissions had
been appointed with'equal rtnpartiality. ' He could'not
admit.' the unqualified censure which had been throint
on the Court of Chancery, and the Judges who pre•
sided in that Court. He should, however, leave it ,to
the Members of an honourable Profession to justify
that honourable Profession. In his effort to inves-
tigate and reform the practice of the' law,' he 'hid
found' the most active and lioneutable conduct in.
Gtntlemen of the Bar, by whom he was'asskted.• ,The.
Right-Honourable Gentleman found a dispositimx.o.n
their part to sacrifice their private intesest for th*
public good. His Itonourable Friend had not 84444
the House any statement of what heinterided'lOTC—;
His 'Honourable Friend had only said. it within jaw*
don to go deeper into the• subject, and he :shpu/di,
therefore, wait for his Honourable triend's_egeekfig,
iropositioa to be bropght. forward on a future dajitt-1 %
He-recommended- his Honourable Friend to.Withera4s
'his 'nation, and bring it on more regularly. • The'crilr
proposition he had heard Was -an intention. to raejpairard
the bankrupt jurisdiction frorn-tbe Coen of eisannetts
The question was, w4ether there was an absolute nn..
cessity so aiteithe practiced the Court of Chancery in
that respect? inquiry had already taken place, laid`
the Commissioners had made their Report. in come'.
quence of the recommendation's contained in that lieV
port, thi Lord Chancellor had' dude $5 'coders. The
Government had dale all they could tb plowman est
object in view; but when the House considered what

net be expected
It" 1111. But eve
tolte utmost, ir
antits completel
at kanwledged to
One reason c
ere deterred by
Proceeding
el found there
ttlaardinarily t
Rht before h
Witted his
bad mentione
an of bin dtiti,
41°1; bin the ti
ed by tl
hisatit
(left *hitt r