New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-01-13

~. Macmillan Company
.--s,v. lectures comprising this book were
- sy the author before the students
CO. harvard Law School in 1898. It is
- Ear uougratulation that they are now
,cosssible IN permanent form. Professor
n n his preface. is careful TO state that
D0s!' a.. q history of English law; still less
,,storv Of English opinion It is an at
., follow out the connection between
H.p - English legislation and successive
se''- =, opiu.on" at cannot claim TO be
ees :, -sssarch.' he adds: cit is rather a WORK
,a..-.noa or reflection Il is, in fact, one OF
y N- ,oolrs which are. as It were, windows cut
p-e as. walls OF history to let In light 1or lhe
u '..-.s Of historical facts and developments
--,,,,ahie not SO much for the history II
a..,.tbs story OF English legislation IN inc
-, ssnartnents OF The nations life CURING
~,-stsenth century has been more fully tolu
s .h.-a a. any attempt to tell Ii mere II -
-. sur the order and correlation which d
-s,,.as into the already familiar history
- - understanding which the reaoer may
Wv ., occurrences stin going on around hiiii'
~ a. modern developments In pOhucsA 90
--.,,c,nel life. both in England ana Ii '1-1
country. -. ,,,,.-,ss laws are
Adherence OeSAAN@0--f
n41' .s.-eso-s reflect the public opinion OF Inc
tae! -.-.,,-- accented without question Pro-
ess e -, shows however IN his first chap
issNo. a. No country does the legislative power
'a' - ,,,c,,Iv 70 the will of the people as u
als"e =, england since the Reform act Oh
has -, Ia,al system OF France has SUFFERED
Io0- x,,1as since the publication OF the Cou0
is" a. 1904. and in this country the CoL-
Hsp0,-- - The United States and the SV@'o
tH'O.s are slow TO permit funaaIrleliI@-
o'- changes. such as have characlei4N
80. ,syv since the opening Of the niIle'eettA
Ent A. Professor Dicey later SHOWS Ina
.,,,+,, ~ me law also tends 70 pFeNeiis
-,s rh,nqes IN public opinion; LOT laws
'Ns and a law passed perhaps
q - - its full implications may hsiF
tn0"s- revulson IN public opinion a.
pi'.s - .,rtt,er results in legislation "iio''s
. 80 Of when the law was passed
-~.,sb rubIic opinion in the nine --,-.+
i'Hs ,a--.,s.or Dcev divides into PERIODS
= ,a,ls with the Tory, BLACKS loH"--'
:. - ortirnistio period, which, hAe o.
-, tended to stagnation- ms -.
-.-,..,ya ouiescence Professor Olces
s-eo 70 1880 Public opinion ho"eSei'
80 .,rnA ran ahead of ParIaneIIA1S go
-. This vas due largely 10 inc ~. 4
--~..,,xs character of the British Z d =,
=. -, the barrier against the popui0.
-. soyvn with the Reform act OF Leo z 49,
a .o.,vs change set In, which represelueu 49,
,-,ton that had been gradually 1oFlliii1e' coz
-,,,h had been actually dominant slll0e
M. .aoond period Professor Dlcey Cans -
u,-os ot Bsthamism or indtvlduaIlSnl-- -
:, ~, Manchester school Of poAtcGl eco1'
a.. srs of reforms all tending 10 me ieliiuN :"
:, restraints on liberty OF thought olscu7siOi'
examination and action-the reign % t"-
ss,rs IN government and les1slauoh- ~ So
trorn 1880 to 1865 as the period OF the aSoeii
dsnry Of Benthanlism in hIeilsh Op----o-
ls,,sls.aon AT the end OF this time individualism
r.. ,n, 20 co,,eo+tyigm. phase through which
gnxlsns Is still passing. and which as yet. &C
cordinE to Professor Dicey, shows no sign OF
waning.
rrbs ssb. which England owes to Jeremy Ben
than Professor Dicey considers hard to overes-
,,,,s,s .e7-ha name of one man." he writes, 1T
is true, can never adequately summarize
whole school OF thought; but from 1926 onward
the teaching Of Bentham exercised SO potent
an influence that to him is fairly ascribed that
thoroughgoing, though gradual. amendment OF
the law OF England which was one OF the main
results of the Reform act" Quoting from
49,
was who first made the mighty step Of trying
tbs whole provisions of our jurisprudence by
the test Of expediency." The acceptance Of Ben
fham's teaching was all but universal. The eff
fects were seen first in the great Reform act Of
1882. and then, in rapid succession. in the re
form Of the Poor law IN 1884, in the reform Of
the unspeakably corrupt and inefficient munio
!pal explorations in 1885. in the long series Of
giving relief "a Noncnu forrnis+S and putting
them on q civic equality with the members Of
the Established Church, and 81 the scores Of
enactments which have reformed legal procedure
IL England. Summing up this legal reform in
1881, Bowen asserted that It IS not possible
for an honest litigant in Her Majesty's Supreme
Court to be defeated by any mere technicality.
any slip, any mistaken step in his litigation"
The expenses Of the law he added. ARE still
TOO heavy, and have not diminished pari passu
with the other abuses. But law has ceased to
be scientific game. that may be won or lost
By playing some particular move"
The change from individualism to coIectivism
vas gradual and was helped by legislation
passed IN order to mitigate acknowledged suf-
tering, but with no idea OF initiating new era
snch was the earlier factory legislation-the
acts passed previous to 1855 The first OF these.
he Health and Morals act Of 1902. can scarcely
Be taken as being IN contravention Of the prin-
cipe Of individualisn. 1t was passed purely in
NE interests Of the apprentice children, and
even the most rigid individualist allowed that
children were not capable Of caring for their own
interests and must be defended from oppression.
In the later fight over the Ten Hours act Of 1850
the trial Of strength was more definitely be-
tween the indiYiduaIists. represented by Bright,
Peel. Brougham and Gladstone; and Lord
shaftesbury and his followers. who almost I'M
consciously were introducing collectivism-the
FIRST tendencies toward sOcialism-into English
legislation
Among the earlier thinkers who began to sway
public nnininr, tnr.ard cnllactI,.isrr, Isotnrsa-