an In tbe House of Lorde, on Monday, the Lord Chancellor moved the first reading of a Bill to amalgamate tbe Lunacy Department and to transfer the power to make vesting orders to the Judge in Lunacy of the High Court.—The motion was agreed to.

In the House of Commons, Mr. Asquith made his promised, statement regarding the course pursued in the appointment of justices of the peace, several questions standing in the names of Liberal members who are dissatisfied with the Lord Chancellor's selection of magistrates appearing upon the paper. After stating, that in socordance with the recommendation of the Royal Com. mission advisory committees were to be established in all the counties, and that tbis would probably have been done by August, be observed that it deed hardly be said that the Lord Chancellor would see that the committees were fairly and properly constituted and were of a representative character. It was intended that the committees should consider any names they might think fit for the Commission of tbe Peace, the Lord Chancellor himself not proposing to recom. mend dames to them. Lord Loreburn had every expectation that when the committees got to work the results would be satisfactory. Committees were to b4 appointed in boroughs when they were required or desired. The Lord Chancellor desired greatly that a day should be given for a discussion upon the general question of the appointment of magistrates, but in view of the fact that the changes recommended by the Royal Commission bad been so recently intro. duced, a discussion, in his opinion, would be premature. Mr Asquith algo read a letter from Lord Loreburn in which he wrote : principles upon wbioh this business bas been transacted in my time were explained in my evidence before the Royal Commission last year. I believe they are sound, and I sball certainly adhere to them, as long as I remain Lord Chancellor, availing myself of the assistance I expect from the committees recommended by the Royal Commiesion."

Mr. King asked the Secretary for the Home Department when he jotended to move the second reading of the Aliens (Prevention of Crime) Bill.—Mr. Churchill: I shall look for & guitable opportunity; but meanwbile the Bill, which has already been sent to & Grand' Committee, gives full opportunities for amendment, and may perhaps be made to serve the purposes the Government have in view.-Mr. King : Is the right bon. gentleman aware that a large number of members would not have voted for the second reading of that Bill on Friday unless they thought that his Bill was also going to the Grand Committee ?–Mr. Churchill: It will make no difference.

Io the House of Commons, on Wednesday, Mr. Alden asked the Home Secretary whether he was aware that the magistrates at Nailsworth Petty Sessions bad committed Mr. Ford to prison for two months becaure he refused to pay an education rate of 18. 9d., though he offered to pay the poor rate of £1 149. 3d.; and whetber he would, under the circumstances, take steps to mitigate the severity of the sentence.-Mr. Churchill replied that the facts were as stated. “ The sentence,” he added, “is stupid and vindictive, but I am advised that I have no power to anoul it, as the prerogative of the Crown does not cover cases of civil debt. Mr. Ford must, therefore, Buffer this ill-usage, but it is to be hoped the moral will not be lost upon the public."

Sir Charles Henry asked the Prime Minister_whether, as requests were made to him soon after the report of the Royal Commission on the Selection of Justices of the Peace was published to give the House an opportunity to discuss the terms of the report, he would give an early day for the consideration of that report; and that in the meantime the appointment of the advisory committees should not be proceeded with.—Mr. Asquith : No, sir; as I said on Monday, I should regard the discussion suggested by my hon. friend as inopportune at the present moment. I cannot comply with the request contained in the last part of the question.-Mr. King asked the Prime Minister who had the power of appointing the members of Magistracy Advisory Committees ; whether appointments were made for a definite or indefinite period; whether the Lord Chancellor would receive recommendations from them directly or only through the Lords-Lieutenant; who would act as clerks of these committees; and whether the committees would be free to receive direct applications from gentlemen desiring to serve as magistrates. -Mr. Asquith : The Lord Chancellor appoints the advisory committees. In one or two cases they have been appointed for a short definite period, not exceeding two years, but in general no period is fixed, so that fresh members may be added or substituted at any time. Recommendations will doubtless usually come through the Lords, Lieutenant, with a statement that they are sent on the advice of the committee, but any member of the committee can communicate direct with the Lord Chancellor if he so desires, in regard to names or anything else. Each committee will make its own arrangements a8 to clerical assistance if required. The committees will be free to receive direct applications from any quarter as they may think fit. It is entirely a matter for themselves.

Toe Gouea of Lords, on Tuesday, went into committee on the Movable Dwellings Bill—a measure of wbich Lord Clifford of Chud. leigh is in charge-Lord Balfour of Burleigh, Chairman of Committees, presiding. The Bill gives power to a county council to probibit the encampment of movable dwelliogs in any place where their presence might be dangerous to the public health. Clause 2, however, enables the council to create camping grounds “under such conditions as to area, situation, water supply, aod otherwise, as may be approved by the Local Government Board," and it is declared to be the duty of the police to remove offenders.--Lord Clifford of Chudleigh moved a series of amendments wbich were the result of an understanding arrived at with the Local Government Board, the Home Office, and the Board of Agriculture. One of them proposed the omission of the proviso that it “shall be the duty of the police to remove offenders.” -Lord Hylton and the Duke of Northumberland protested against the omission of these words which would cast on the servants of private owners a duty which belonged properly to the police.Lord Allendale said tbe Home Office insisted on the amendment.--The amendment was agreed to by forty-eight against thirty-three. In the clause empowering a county council to pro hibit or limit the* number of movable dwellings wbich may be brought to any specified plade. a further amendment was adopted on the motion of Lord Clifford of Chudleigh to provide that the county council “ shall have due regard to the interests of the travelling showmen. so as to secure that they shall not be hampered in the exercise of legitimate business of their calling. .”—The Bill was reported to the House, with amendments.

In the House of Commons, Mr. Watt asked the Home Secretary wbetber the Commission set up to inquire inio the statements of the London police in a recent murder trial was remunerated for its services; if so, what was the amount of that remuneration and the other costs connected therewith ; whether the Commission in quiring into the question of taxi-cabs will be similarly recompensed ; and, if not, would be say why this distinction between the two was made. -Mr. Churchill : Mr. Cave, who was good enough to bold the inquiry into the statement of a police witness at the trial of Stipie Morrison has not received any remuneration for his valuable and laborious services to the public. The members of the committee on London taximeter cabs are also giving their time and labour gratuitously. The other questious asked, therefore, do not arise.

Mr. Lapsbury asked the Home Secretary for particulars as to the forcible feeding of prisoners during the past year.—Mr. Churchill : During the year ended the 31st March last, the cases of artificial feeding in the prisons in England and Wales were as follows: Suffragists, two males and three females ; weak-minded persons, seven males and four females ; medical cases in which there was physical inability to take food, three males and one female; cases of other prisoners in which food wag refused from motives of perver.ity or misconduct, eleven males and five females. The total numbers are: twenty-three males and thirteen females. Medical officers were present at all cases except in the cases of one male under the third head and two females under the fourth head. The only extra cost was a fee of one guinea to an outside practitioner in one case.

The consideration of the Copyright Bill was begun on the 27th ult. by a Standing Committee of the House of Commons. A long discussion took place on an amendment to exclude lectures from the advantages of copyright, which was ultimately rejected by thirty-three to eleven votes. Ăn 'amendment exempting architectural designs from the scope of the Bill was also rejected. The committee adjourned till Tuesday, when Clause I was added to the Bill. On clause 2 there was considerable discussion on questions of newspaper summaries of copyright matter, pictorial reproductions, and reports of lectures, and varicus amendments dealing with these matters were adopted.

The Standing Committee of the House of Commons on Scottish Bills met for the first time tbis session on Wednesday, Mr. A. Henderson presiding, and dealt with the Public Health (Sootland) Act (1897) Amendment Bill and the Intestate Husbands' Estate (Scotland) Bill. The first-mentioned Bill extends to statutory bodies of trustees or commissioners the same powers a3 are possessed by local authorities under the Public Health Act with regard to water supply. The second has for its object to secure for widows in Scotland the same rights as were secured to widows in England by the Intestates' Estates Act 1890. Both Bille, after drafting amendments had been introduced at the instance of the Lord Advocate, were passed through committee and ordered to be reported to the House.

The meeting of Liberal members held on Wednesday to protest against the appointments of justices was largely attended. Mr. Silvester Horne presided, and among those present were Mr. Neil Primrose, Mr. Agar-Robartes, Mr. Cecil Beck, Sir G. White, Mr. W. McLaren, Mr. H. McLaren, Mr. Ellis Davies, Mr. Phipson Beale, bír. A, Rowntree, Mr. Morrell, Mr. Winfrey, Mr. Essex, Sir M. Lovy, Sir C. Henry, Mr: Wedgwood, Sir H. Verney, Mr. Markham, Mr. Higham, Mr. G. France, Mr. A. W. Black, Mr. Logan, and Mr. Webb. Profound dissatisfaction was expressed with regard to the constitution of the proposed advisory committees and the position of the LordsLieutenant in relation thereto. A small committee was formed to collect further information and to prepare a statement to be presented to the Prime Minister at an early date, when it is intended to ask for a day to discuss the report of the Royal Commission,

Captain Craig asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord.Lieutenant whether he is now in a position to give the House full information as to the steps taken by the law officer of the Crown to trace the wbereabouts of Mr. McCann and the children, who were taken away from their Protestant mother in Belfast without her sanction.-Mr. Birrell, in reply, states the police have made careful inquiry, and as the result believe that these children and their father have gone to the United States.

Mr. Burns, in reply to Mr. Essex, says the total number of loans sanctioned for small holdings and allotments since the 1st Jan. 1908 (the date on wbich the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1907 came into force) is 1235, amounting to £2,028,430. Of these 1136 loans, amounting to £1,941,329, were sanctioned for small holdings, and ninety-nine loans, amounting to £87,101, for allotments.

The following is the text of Sir C. Henry's Bill to regulate the employment of motor-cars at elections : “1. A person shall not lend or employ for the purpoge of the conveyance of electors to or from

act

the poll any motor.car, and it be lends or employs such motor.car, knowing that it is intended to be used for such purpose, be shall be guilty of an illegal biring within the meaning of the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act 1883. 2. A person shall not borrow or use for the purpose of the conveyance of electors to or from the poll any motor-car, and if he does so be shall be guilty of an illegal biring within the meaning of the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act 1883. 3. The expression motor.car’ shall have the same meaning as in the Motor Car Act of 1903. 4. The Act shall be read as one with the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act 1833.” The Bill is backed by a number of Liberal members.

The Lunacy Bill introduced into the House of Lords by the Lord Chancellor has now been printed [Bill 64). The memorandum states that the Bill is proposed in pursuance of the recommendation of the Royal Commission on the Feeble.mioded, and leaves wholly naprejudiced the large settlement of the care of the insane and feeble-minded which the Royal Commission dealt with in its report. The Bill asks statutory sanction to a scheme set forth in the schedule for amal;amating the Masters in Lunacy, the Lord Chancellor's Visitors, and the Commissioners in Lunacy, with their respective officers, into one body. Another proposal of the Bill is to add two more medical men to the commissioners. The salary of the chairman is to be £2000 and that of each paid commissioner £1500 a year. Women are made eligible for appointment as un paid commissioners.

CRIMINAL LAW AND THE JURIS

DICTION OF MAGISTRATES.

BOROUGH QUARTER SESSIONS. Banbury, Tuesday. May 9

Nottingham, Friday, May 12 Bristol, Tuesday, May 23, at 10

Tenterden, Friday, May 12 Lichfield, Thursday, May 11

Tiverton, Wednesday, May 10.

A very considerable factor in the extraordinary interest created by the trial of the man Stinio Morrison and the commutation in his case of the sentence of death to that of penal servitude for liso is undoubtedly tbe very growing disfavour to the infliction of capita punishment. It is not generally known that among the advocates of the abolition of the death penalty can be numbered a jurist of the great experience and comprehensive intellect of the late Sir William Harcourt, who regretted that public opinion in his time was not sufficiently ripe for the achievement of this change in the criminal law. The reply of Mr. Winston Churchill, the Home Secretary, to a question addressed to bim the other day shows the wonderful progress in criminal law reform on humanitarian principles from the time when the multiplication of capital offences made the criminal code a mere sanguinary chaos. Mr. Churcbill stated, with reference to the numbers of men and women respectively sentenced 10 death and the numbers executed in England and Wales in the years 1908, 1909, and 1910, that seventy-four males were sentenced to death in these years, of whom forty seven were executed, and ten females were sentenced to death, of whom pot one was executed. In 1786 Sir Samuel Romilly observed that the number of capital offences was not less than 160. At that time it was an ordinary occurrence for ten or twelve culprits to be hanged on a single occasion, and for forty or fifty to be condemned to death at a single aseize. In 1732 no less than seventy persons received sentence of death at the Old Bailey, and in the same year eighteen were banged in one day in the city of Cork. Sir Stephen Janssen, who was Chamberlain for London, preserved a full list of capital convictions at the Old Bailey during the three and twenty years from 1749 till 1772. The number of persons condemned to death in these years was 1121. The number of executions was 678. In 1765 no fewer than ninety-six persons were hanged at the Old Bailey.

Royal (Wormwood Scrubbs), the Surrey and South London (Wandsworth), and thig society (Pentonville) - formed a joint committee to

as the Borstal Committee at Wormwood Scrubbs, with the permanent officials of that prison. Each society agreed to provide 78. 6d. in respect of each juvenile adolt pris per committed from their respective districts, and the Home Office consented to add 10s. per head of the juvenile adults discharged from the prison. It was too early yet to prediot wbether the soheme would become permanent. It had been successful in bringing together the delegates of the three societies and in affording them an opportunity of comparing methods of dealing with the work. The societies which had undertaken the duty of looking after discharged prisoners had not paid Bufficient attention in the past to co-operation. The committee had on several occasions called attention to the question of sbort sentences, especially in their relation ,to juvenile offenders, and bad expressed the opinion that a few days' imprisonment was not only useless but mischievous in the case of a young man under twenty.nne. Such a sentence merely familiarised bim with the inside of a gaol, which he fouod to be no bad place. Every year some hundreds of lada were committed to Pentonville for very trifling offences — disorderly conduct, begging, gaming, and the like. The term "begging.” included “glimming,” which consisted in calling cabs when the West End theatrus closed. The police were bound to keep good order in the streets and the magistrates were bound to punish offenders ; but the remedy was at least as bad as the disease. It was now suggested by the authorities tbat no juvenile offender should enter a prison unless he was to stay there at least a month For offences meriting a lighter penalty he was to be sentenced to

• deprivation of liberty” in a police station on successive Saturday afternoons and Sundays, or, as at present, to a few days' imprison ment. In the latter event the operation of the sentence would be suspended, and if the offender behaved bimself be would not be called upon to undergo any punisbment; it be offended again, the came process would be followed until his sentences amounted in the aggregate to a month. He would then go to prison for that period. If tbis plan could be established on workable lines tbe resulting benefit to the community would be very great. The manufacture of young criminals by the State would cease. It would only be workable if the identity of the offender could be established on each oocasion when be appeared in the dock, and in London this would be very difficult. A further proposal was to allow the payment of fines by instalmente. Whenever the society was convioced that the immediate release of a juvenile offender from Penton ville was to bis real advantage they paid the fine, but ihıs did not very often happen. Most of the youths who came there picked up a precarious living on the streets, and they were better off, both physically and morally, in prison than they would be outside.

Mr. Justice Chandell, in moving the adoption of the report, said that the Lord Chief Justice, their president, was always anxious to attend this meeting, but uofortunately be had an engagement on public business and therefore could not be present. The report sp ke of a difficulty that was ever present in the minds of the judges, which arose from the fact that continement in prison had somebow grown to bo of such a character that it was not altogether up popular with those who were subjected to it. The report referred to one case wbero a youth bad said that " in the work house you had to work bard and got bad food, wbile they treated you like a gentleman in prison." His own personal experience as a judge was that the cases where persons committed offences because they wanted to get back to prison were somewhat on the increase, and in many cases such persons who had come before him bad said that gaol was a much better place than the work house. That being 80, there clearly must be something wrong either in the workbouse treatment, or in the prison treatment, or in both. Naturally, the counties were not too well disposed towards the tramps who habitually went from town to town, and they did not make matters too pleasant for them in the casual wards where they were lodged for the night. The result was that some of the men who travelled about in that way came to the conclusion that they would try the prison in preference to the casual ward. One thing he noticed was that these offenders were persons who had been in prison already, and they were quite willing to go back there. As far as his experience went, the dread of going to prison for the first time was very keenly feit, and it acted as a strong deterrent to committing crime. But the person who had once been in prison had no such dread, and he would commit some small offence-generally baving conscience enough not to do any very great amount of harm-merely for the purpose of being sent there again. Sometimes a man would take a pair of boots, for instance, from outside a shop and would allow himself to be captured, wben he would cilmly say that his object was to get into prison for the night. Unfortunately, on the uther hand, the se pereons sometimes did brry serious mischief, such as setting fire to stacks or other valuable property, and this went on to a considerable extent. He was afraid ibat while one aspect of punishment-the reformation of the offenderwas kept in view, other aspects were rather ignored. Toe real object of punishment must be to prevent the accumulation of crime and to secuie obedience to the law. One of the best ways, undoubtedly, of doing that was to reform the offender when he had been caught; but it was necessary to consider also the deterrent effect of punishment, and he was afraid that this had come to be lost sight of to a consider: able extent. It was difficult to balance all the considerations which had to be taken into account when one was deciding what sentence should be in tlicted on a pritoner. It must be equally difficult to determine how to deal with the offender when he was in prison; but it seemed to him that it was absolutely essential that prison should

W

METROPOLITAN PRISONERS' AID SOCIETY.

ANNCAL MEETING, Mr. Justice CHANNELL (chairman of the committee) presided at the annual meeting of this society, which was held at Inner Temple Hall on Thursday, the 27th ult. Among those presint were the Rev. L. S. Hudson, the Rev R. M. Meiklejubn, Messre. E. B. Charles, E. H. S. Bligh, A. F. Somerville, H. Brodrick, and C. H. Chadwick (secretary).

The forty seventh annual report stated that the total number of cases dealt with in 1910 was 2557, in 986 of wbich the applicants received help; 238 were transferred to other societies, and 330 were met and taken care of by friends, leaving a balance of 1023 who for various reas ng were not assisted. The chief aim of tbi:, as of all similar societies, must be the provision of suitable work for ex. prisoners, and the difficulty attending efforts in that direction, always very great, tended rather to increase than to diminish. During the year, at the suggestiin of the Prison Commissioners, representatives irom the three prisoners' aid societies working in London-viz, the

COUNTY COURTS.

sideration, and, fag was said] by Coleridge, J. in Reg, v. London Brighton, and South Coast Railway Company (15 Q. B. 313, at p. 367). * the sessions ought to avail themselves of every light that can be afforded them down to the latest period antecedent to the actual making of the rate, ia order to bring it to the greatest possible accuraoy. The overseers, in making a prospective rate, are to make it on the supposed prospective value ascertained by them, as well as they can, from the latest evidence in their power as to antecedent value." The rent and the consequent rateable value, therefore, ought to have been fixed with reference to what the tenant thought was going to happen, which naturally would influence him in determining what he would give as rent for his premises. The person who had to make the caloulation of the rateable value ought to have taken tha is into consideration. The case oited by Mr. Ryde-Bullja and Merthyr Dare Sieam Collieries (1891) Limited v. Pontypridd Waterworks Company (89 4. T. Rep. 280 ; (1903) A. C. 426) seems to be somewhat analogous to the present case, and the remarks of Lord Halsbury give support to the proposition I have laid down. Mr. Maomorran argued that, under the provisions of the Voion Assessment Committee Act 1862 (25 & 26 Vict. c. 103), 89. 25 and 26, and the Voion Assessment Committee Amendment Act 1864 (27 & 28 Vict. c. 39), 8. 1, the objection which a person is entitled to make in respect to the valuation of his property must be an objection which would have held good on the day upon which the rate was made. This, indeed, may be so, but in any event I think that the effect of the Finance (1909.10) Act 1910 was to make the valuation on the 1st April 1910 in fact 80 wrong that an objection taken at the time would have been a good objection, although apart from that Act the valuation would have ween correct. The appellants, it is true, might have taken steps to compel the overseers to bring in a supplemental valuation list under the provisions of the Union Assessment Com. mittee Act 1862, but such a list would have had no retrospective effect and would not bave affected the correctness of the valuation as from the lst April 1910. For the reasons given, therefore, I am of opinion that the fact of the Finance (1909-10) Act 1910, containing provisions for the imposition of the increased duties, being before Parliament ought to have been taken into account by the over seers when they made the rate on the 1st April 1910, because that fact clearly operated on the minds of the appellants and other licence. holders in such a way as to make them unwilling to give the rent for their licensed premises, which they would otherwise bave given. This being the case, the only remaining question is as to boy far the proposed imposition of new duties did in fact diminish the value of the licensed premises, and this point is not without difficulty, because the value of the premises, may not have been reduced to the full amount of the increased duty, inasmuch as the tenant might possibly have thought he would gain some compensating advantage in that the new heavy duties might cause some competing or rival licensed house to be shut down owing to the tenant's inabili y or unwillingness to meet the increased demand upon bim in the way of duty. As to this, however, it is not necessary to go further into details, for the evidence given by Mr. Waidwright upon the matter was not seriously contradicted, and Mr. Macmorran to all intents and purposes accepted his figures as correct. It would appear, moreover, from the very recent decision in Wrigglesworth v. The King (27 Times L. Rep. 154) that the new duty is to be calculated upon the old assessment, and the judgment of Channell, J. would seem to justify Mr. Wainwright's method of calculation and the tigures he arives at. Taking into consideration the Revenue Act 1911, the parties have now agreed that the rate must be amended accordingly by substituting for the figures £200 gross and £180 rate. able, £161 103. groes and £145 103. rateable.

SITTINGS OF THE COURTS.

FOR THE WEEK ENDING SATURDAY, MAY 13. Aberayron, Thursday, at 10

Machynlleth, Tuesday, at 10 Aberystwyth, Wednesday, at 10 Madeley, Wednesday, at 10 Abingdon. Wednesday (Reg.', at Manchester, Monday, Tuesday. 11

Wednesday, Thursday, and Frie Ashborne, Wednesday, at 10

day, at 10 Ashford, Monday, at 11.30

Mansfield, Friday, at 10 Axminster, Wednesday, at 10 Margate, Thursday, at 10 Barry, Tuesday, at 10

Market Harborough, Monday, at Bath, Thursday (By at 11), at 10

1 Bedford, Thursday, at 10

Matlock, Monday, at 10 Birkenhead,* Wednesday

Newark, Monday, at 10 Birmingham, Monday (L.). Tues. Newcastle-in-Emlyn, Saturday, at day (L.), Wednesday (L.),

10 Thursday (L.), and Friday (L.).

Newcastle-on-Tyne, Tuesday. Wed. at 10

nesday,

Thursday (By), and Bishop Auckland, Tuesday and

Friday (Adm.), at 10 Weunesday, at 10

Northampton, Tuesday (Reg.) and Blackburn, Monday, at 9.30

Wednesday, at 10 Blandford, Tuesday, at 10

Nottiughuin, Wednesday and Bloomsbury, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, at 10 Wednesday, Thursday, and Fri.

Oakham, Thursday, at 11.30 day

Oldham, Thursday and Friday, Blyth, Monday, at 10.30

at 9.30 Bolton, Wednesday, and Satur. Oswestry, Friday, at 10 day (J.S.), at 9.30

Otley.* Wednesday, at 9.45 Bow, Monday. Wednesday. and

Oxford, Monday, at 10 Friday

Pershore, Thursday. at 10 Bradford (Yorks), Tuesday, Wed. Peterborough, Tuesday, at 9.30 nesday (J.S.), and Friday, at 10

Petworth. Thursday, at 11.30 Brentford, Friday, at 10

Pontefract, Tuesday and Wednes. Brentwood. Tuesday, at 11

day, at 10 Brighton, Thursday (R. By) and

Pontypridd, Wednesday, ThursFriday (J.S. at 11.30), at 10

day, and Friday Bristol, Monday, Tuesday, Wed.

Poole, Monday, at 10 nesday, and Thursday. at 10;

Porth, Monday Friday (By), at 11

Portsmouth, Thursday (By at 12), Bungay, Tuesday

at 10.30 Bury,* Monday (J.S.), at 9

Ramsgate, Wednesday, at 10 Caistor, Saturday, at 10

Rawtenstall, Tuesday, at 9 Canterbury, Tuesday, at 10

Rhayader. Monday, at 10 Cardift. Monday, at ll; Wednes.

Ripon, Saturday, at 9.30 day, Thursday. Friday. and

Runcorn,* Tuesday Saturday, at 10

Saddleworth, Friday Cardigan, Friday, at 10

Salford, * Thursday Chard, Tuesday, at 11

Salisbury, Thursday, at 10 Cheadle, Thursday, at 10

Sevenoaks, Monday, at 9.30 Chelmsford, Monday, at 10

Shaftesbury, Wednesday, at 10 Chester, Thursday and Friday

Sheffield, Thursday (By at 2) and Chesterfield. Friday, at 9.30

Friday, at 10 Chichester, Wednesday

Shipaton-on-Stour, Tuesday, at 10 Chippenham, Tuesday, at 10.15

Shoreditch, Tuesday and Thursday Chipping Norton, Thursday

Shrewsbury, Monday and Friday, Chorley, Wednesday, at 9.30

at 10 Clerkenwell, Monday, Tuesday,

Southampton, Tuesday (By at 11), Wednesday, Thursday, and Fri.

at 10 day

Southend, Thursday, Friday, and Clitheroe, Thursday, at 9.45

Saturday, at 10.30 Cockermouth, Thursday, at 9.30

South Shields, Thursday, at 10 Coventry,* Monday (R. By), at

Southwark, Monday, Tuesday, and 2.30: Tuesday and Wednesday, Thursday, at 10.30 at 9.30

Spalding, Wednesday, at 10 Deal, Friday, at 10.45

Spilsby, Thursday, at 10 Derby, Tuesday, at 10

Stafford, Friday, at 9.30 Dewebury, Thursday (J.S. at 9.30)

Stalybridge,* Thursday, at 10 Durham, Tuesday (R. Byi

Stockport, Friday, at io Dursley, Friday

Sunderland, Thursday (R. By) Easingwold, Thursday, at 10

Swindon. Wednesday (By at 11), East Retford, Tuesday, at 11

at 10.30 Epsom, Wednesday, at 9.30

Tadcaster, Wednesday, at 10 Faringdon, Saturday, at 10

Todmorden. Wednesday Garstang, Friday, at 11

Tunstall, Wednesday, at 9.30 Gloucester, Monday, Tuesday, and

Uxbridge, Wednesday, at 10 Wednesday

Wakefield, Tuesday. at 10 Grays Thurrock, Wednesday, at 11

Wallingford, Thursday, at 10 Greenwich, Friday, at 10.30

Walsall, Tuesday, and Thursday Guildford, Thursday

(J.S.) Halifax, Monday and Tuesday, at Wandsworth. Monday and Tues. 9.30

day Hastings, Monday

Wantage, Friday, at 12 Hitchin, Monday, at 10

Watford. Monday, at 9.30 Holbeach, Friday, at 10

Wellington (Salop),' Tuesday, at

10 Honiton, Monday. at 10.30 Hull, Monday, Thursday, and Fri. Welshpool. Thursday, at 10 day

Wem, * Thursday, at 10 Hungerford, Monday, at 11.15

Westbromwich, Wednesday Huntingdon, Wednesday, at 10

West Hartlepool, Friday, at 9.30 Kingston-on-Thames, Friday

West London (Brompton), Mon. Knaresbrough, Friday, at 10

dav, Tuesday, Wednesday, Lambeth, Tuesday (Reg. at 9.30), Thursday, and Friday, at 10.30 Wednesday, Thursday (Reg. at

Westminster, Monday, Tuesday, 9.30), Friday, and Saturday, at

Wednesday, Thursday, and Fri. 10

day Lampeter, Wednesday, at 10

Whitchurch, Saturday, at 10 Leeds, Monday (J. S. & A.0.), Whitechapel, Monday, Tuesday,

Wednesday, Thursday, and Fri- Wednesday, and Thursday day, at 10

Whitehaven. Friday, at 9.30 Leicester, Friday (R. By), at 11 Wigan, Tuesday (J.S.), at 9 Lewes, Tuesday

Wirborne, Saturday, at 10 Liverpool, Monday (By at 111, Wolverhampton, Monday (J.S.)

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
and Friday (B., A., & W.C.', at Wooustock. Friday, at 12
10

Woolwich, Wednesday, at 10.30 Llandilo, Tuesday, at 10

Worcester, Wednesday and Friday, Llanidloes, Monday, at ?

at 10 Long Eaton, Thursday, at 11 Wrexham, Tuesday, Wednesday, Louth, Friday, at 10

and Thursday (B;) Lowestoft, Wednesday

Yarınouth, Thursday and Friday Lymington, Friday, at 10.30

York. Tuesday, at 9.30
Lynn, Thursday, at 10

Ystrad, Tuesday.
• Other sittings are specially fixed if necessary.

COUNTY COURTS, EQUITY, AND BANKRUPTCY CASES.—Published quarterly, price · 49.-HORACE Cox, County Courts Chronicle Udfire, Windsor Hours, Bream's-buildings, E C.AdVt.)

WHERE TO FIND Your Law.-Being a Discursive Bibliographical Essay upon the various Divisions and Sub-Divisions of the Law of England, and the Statutes, Reports of Cases, and Text Books containing such Law, with Appendixes for Facilitating Reference to all Statutes and Reports of Cases, and with a Full Index. By ERNEST ARTHUR JELF, M.A., of New College, Oxford, Barrister-at-Law of the Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, and of the SouthEastern Circuit. Third Edition, greatly, Enlarged, price 10s. 6d., post free. ---HORACE Cox, “Law Times” Office, Windsor House, Bream's-buildings, E.C.Advt.)

THE COUNTY Courts CHRONICLE AND GAZETTE OF BANKRUPTCY.To enable it to treat more completely of the many matters on which the Judges, Officers, and Practitioners require to be kept regularly informed and to give to it the importance which, as the Journal of the County Courts, and their long-established official organ, it is entitled to assume, it has been greatly improved and enlarged in accordance with the extension of the Jurisdiction of the County Courts under 30 & 31 Vict. c. 142, 46 & 47 Vict. c. 52, 51 & 52 Vict. c. 43, and 53 & 54 Vict. c. 63. The Reports of Cases relating to County Courts Law decided by the Superior Courts are in octavo form, as more convenient for citation in Court. Communications are specially invited to the department of “Queries,” which is designed to do for the County Courts what the “Justice of the Peace" does for the Magistrates' Courts. N.B. –The “ County Courts Chronicle” was commenced with the County Courts. It is recognised as the official organ of the Courts. Monthly, price 1s. 60. --HORACE Cox,

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GENERAL INTELLIGENCE.

composed of various foreign judges of great distinction, and under circumstances of considerable difficulty. But the records of the Bar showed that its members were always ready to do their duty whether they were addressing the courts of this country or of a foreign country. This seemed to be a matter which was likely to develop, because, owing to treaties which were now under negotiation, the leaders of the Bar might have to go forward and perform the function of advocates in the courts of foreign countries. But there were plenty of the younger men who were coming on who would maintain the prestige of the Bar and would conduct their cases with just as much assurance, vigour, and eloquenoe in the future as those who had gone before them

had done in the past. Lord Justice Vaughan Williams proposed the health of “The Prime Warden." He said that the City companies had in the course of their career of centuries done wonderful work for the nation. They had done so centuries ago and they did so now, but he thought there never was a time when they had done so much for the country as during the last huodred years, partioularly with regard to education, both in founding schools and in assisting the acquirement of knowledge in other ways. He gathered from the speech of the Master of the Rolls that some people were beginning to think that a time had arrived when even the Courts of Justice might be superseded, at all events to a certain extent, by another and a very different tribunal. He had no fear upon that subject. He was an optimist, and he believed that in the long run people would recognise to the full the value of such great institutions as the ancient City companies, and they would be satisfied of the great benefit of the administration of justice by the judges alone. He had not the slightest fear of the substitution of departmental clerks for the administration of justice by the justiciary.

The Prime Warden, having returned thanks, proposed the health of “The Visitors, including in the toast the many solicitors who were present

Sir Nathaniel J. Highmore returned thanks, and the proceedinge terminated.

An excellent selection of music was provided at dessert, under the direction of Mr. Harry Stubbs, by Miss Ursula Ray, Miss Adelaide Rind, Mr. Harry Stubbs, Mr. Greovee Johnson, Miss Florence Jenniogs (violinist), and Mr. H. Hearo (accompanist).

Bar."

FISHMONGERS' COMPANY.

DINNER TO THE BENCH AND THE BAR. THE Fishmongers' Company gave their annual dinner to the Bench and the Bar at the Hall of the company on Wednesday. The Prime Warden (Mr. William Thomas Brand) occupied the chair, and among those present were the Master of the Rolls, Lord Justice Vaughan Williams, Lord Justice Kennedy, Lord Justice Buckley, Mr. Justice Grantham, Mr. Justice Dailing. Mr. Justice Joyce, Mr. Justice Eve, Sir Samuel Evang, Mr. Justice Pickford, Mr. Justice Scrutton, Mr. Justice Hamilton. His Honour_Judge Sir William L. Solfe, His Honour Judge Woodfall, Sir Thomas Hewitt, K.C., Messrs. T. R. Haghes, K. Č.. J. Roskill

, K.C., E. C. Clayton, K.C, English Harrison, K.C., A. Pollook, Ernest Baggallay, T. C. H. Hedderwick, C. H. Sargant, Arcbibald H. Bodkin, S. A. T. Rowlatt, G. W. Ricketts, Sir Nathaniel J. Highmore, the Hon. William Waleb, the Hon. Reginald Walsh, the Hon. Victor Russell, Messrs. Edwin H. Freshfield, Robert Humphreys, S. P. Buckpill (recretary of the Law Society), A. P. Simpson, Travers Humpbreye, George Evans (Renter Warden), W. P. Hastett Smith (Warden), and Mr. J. Wrench Towse (clerk).

Thé loyal toasts having been given from the chair, The Prime Warden proposed the health of “The Bench and the The Master of the Rolls returned thanks for the Bench. He said that the Prime Warden bad expressed his satisfaction that England had impartial judges. The judges were proud of their impartiality, but the independence of the judges was even a more vital thing for the State than their impartiality. He regarded the independence and impartiality of the judges as one of the pillars of the State. Time was when the great danger with which the judiciary bad to deal was the encroachments of the Crowd, and against these encroach. ments in defence of the rights of the public the judges of those days did much to assert, to defend and to seoore those rights. Happily that danger was no longer imminent, but he thought there was another danger wbioh was much more real in the present day than in the days that were past. It was the danger of encroachment by the executive. He had seen some signe, be thooght, of attempts by the executive to interfere with the judioiary. Against all such attempts he believed he could pledge his colleagues and himself that they would offer the extremest resistance in their power. But there was another danger, in his opinion, connected with the exeontive. Of recent years it had been the habit of Parliament to delegate their great powers to Government departments. The real legislation was not to be found in the statute-book alone. It was to be found in the statute-book plus certain rules and orders which were made by some Government departments under the authority of the statutebook itself.' He was one of those who regarded that as a very bad symptom, and as one wbich was attended with very great danger. For what did administrative action mean? Well, it very generally meant something done by a man whose name one did not know sitting at a desk in & Government office, free from all the good influence of public criticism, very apt to be a despot unless he was kept in check by that which was the only possible mode of keeping him in check—the interference of the courts of justice. It had been-he hoped it would always be the duty of the judges and their endeavour to secure as far as possible that the powers intrusted to departments of Government and to the executive generally should be exercised reasonably and judicially and not for political motives. That was really not more than a small part of their work. Those present know-and be certainly had no intention of going over the ground-very well what was the daily round of the duties of the judges. Ho was happy to say that the business of the courts had never in his memory been in such a satisfactory state as at the present time. Practically speaking there were no arrears. The Chancery Division was abso lutely abreast of its work. The block in the King's Bench Division which existed last year or the year before had been removed, mainly by reason of the two additional judges appointed last year. true that matrimonial disputes were plentiful, but, jodging by the rate at which divorces were granted, there was no reason to suppose that there would be any great difficulty in getting through the work of that branch of the law. As for the Court of Appeal, thanks to the strenuous exertions of the Lords Justices, it was impossible to make any complaint with regard to it on the ground of arrears. All this was something of which, he asserted, the members of the Bench bad some reason to be proud. But it must not be thought that the judges were 80 vain as to imagine that the kind things that were said of tbem deserved to be said because of their own individual merits. No, the judges were the inberitors of great traditions. They really thrived and lived largely upon the reputation of the great men wbo had gone before them, and he

sure it would ever be their earnest endeavour to do nothing throughout the course of their judicial life to bring discredit upon the high historic post which they filled, or to tarnish or impair the dignity and importance of their office.

Mr. English Harrison, K.C., responded for the Bar. He observed that the functions of the Bar were being a good deal extended in the present day. Its members were not only expected to address the courts of this country, but they had to go abroad, and in such places, for instance, as at the Hague tribunal they were expected to advocate the interests of the country. They were expected to address tribunals

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It was

was

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