HOW WE ARE GOVERNED. r l' HOW WE ARE GOVERNED:, OH, THE CROWN,...
}

HOW WE ARE GOVERNED.






r
l'


HOW WE ARE GOVERNED:,
OH,


THE CROWN, THE SENATE, AND TUE BENCH.


Jl Ju:nbhnnh
OF


THE CONSTITUTION, GOVERNMENT, LA WS, AND


POWER OF GREAT nnITAIN.


BY


FONBLANQUE AND HOLDSWORTH.


REVISED TO PRESENT DATE AND CONSIDERABLY ENLARGED BY


ALEX. O. EW ALD, F.S.A.
AUTROB. OP IC OUR CONSTITUTION,>' u A REFF.RENCE BOOK OF ENGLISH HIBTORY,"


u THE LAST CENTUBY OF UNIVERSAL HISTORY," BTC. :BTC~


LONDON:
FREDERIOK WARNE AND OO.


BEm'ORD STREET, COVENT GARDEN.


NEW YORK: SClUBNER, WELFORD AND CO.


1869.




LOliDON:


SAVILL,I EDWARDS AND CO., PRINTEHS,I CHANDOS STREET,


COV.hNT GAB.D.EN.




EDITOR'S PREF ACE.


THE extensive popularity which this little book enjoys 18 a
clear proof of the desire of the public to become acquainted
with the system of government under which they live. "How
we are Governed" sets forth in a brief and lively style the
leading features of our Constitution, and how that great
engine, the State, is put in mOÚon, and what its machinery
and power consist of. To those about to cxercise the right of
the franchise for the first time, the information contained in
these pages will prove ~either superfluous nor unwelcome.


Since the last issue oí this work various alterations have
taken place in our constitution and system of administra-
tion. In the present edition these changes have been fully
represented, Acts formerly omitted by the author have been
inserted, and the general infofmation has been greatIy en-
larged, and in al! cases revised and brought down to the
present time. A chapter on the Civil Service has also been
added.


A. C. EWALD.


THE TE1IPLE,
Sept. 1st, 1868.






CO NTENTS.


LETTER I.


Introduction-Purpose of this Work. . . . . . . . p. 1


LETTER II.


THE CONSTITUTION.


The Origin of the British Constitution-Of Parliamentary
Governmcnt-The Feudal System-Taxation of the Country
-Origin of the Houses of Lords and Commons-Parlia-
ment-Rights of Englishmen-Habeas Corpus Act-Bill of
Rights-Magna Carta-The Press . . . . . pp. 3-15


LETTER III.


THE QUEEN.


The Three Estates of the Realm-Duties of Government--
Tho Royal Office-Succession to the Throno-Tho Royal
Prerogative-'fhe Ministry-'fhe Revenue-The Civil List
-The Royal Family-Royal Marriage Act . pp. 16-21


LETTER IV.


TUE HODSE OF LORDS.


The United Parliament-Composition of the House of Lords-
Spiritual Peera-Temporal Peers-Rank of Spiritual Peers
Titles and Rank of Temporal Peers-Creation of Peerages
-Yoting by the Peers-Privileges of the Peerage-The
Supreme Oourt of Appeal . . . . . . • . pp. 22-26




VIll CONTENTS.


LETTER V.
TITE IIOUSE 01' CmnWNS.


The ReforID Bills of 1832 and 1867-Rotten Bol'oughs-Pal'ty
Spirit-An Elcction undel' the Old System-'l'he pl'esent
Composition of the House-Disqualification of Votel's-
Proceedings at a l\fodcrn Election-The Issuing of the
Wl'it-The Nomination-Show of Hands-The Retuming
Officer-Thc Polling-The Retul'n-Rights and Duties of
Members . . . . . . . . . • . . . . pp. 27---45


LETTER VI.
TIIE ADVISERS 01' TITE CROWN.


The Privy Couucil-The Judicial Committee-The Cabinet
Council-The Attorney and Solicitor General-The l\finistry,
its Composition and Policy-The Opposition . pp. 46---49


LETTER VII.


l'ROCEEDINGS IN PARLIAMENT.


Opening of Parliament-Electiou and Duties of Speaker-The
Speech from the Throne-The Business of Government-
Passing Bills, Public and Private-Divisions of the HOllse--
Voting by Peers-by the Commons-The Royal Assent-
The Rudget-Committee of" 'vVays and Means"-of Sllpply
-l\futiny Act-Prorogation . . pp. 50-56


LETTER VIII.


TIlE NATIONAL DEBT.


Its Origiu-The Funds-Fuuding System-Transfer of Stock
-Price of Money-Reduction of Debt-Sinking Fund-
Amount of Dcbt at various Pcriods of our History-Rcvenue
-Exports and Imports-Balance of Trade . . pp. 57-62


LETTER IX.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT.


Ita PrincipIe, Origin, aud Objects-High Sheriff and Lord
Licutenant of the County-Local Rates-'l'he Parish and




CONTENTS. IX


its Officers-The Consta,ble-Churchwa,rdens-Surveyor oí
Highways-The Vestry, General and Sclect-The Poor Law
-The Law of Settlement-Operation of the Old Poor Law
-The New Poor Law-Municipal Corporations- Town
Councils-Mayor and Aldermen-Boards of Health-Im-
provement Commissioners . . . . . . . . pp. 63-70


LETTER X.
THE CHURCH.


History of the Church of England-Authority of the Pope-
The Reformation-Puritans-Roman Catholics-Jews, Dis-
abilities of-Constitution and Discipline of the Church-
Bishop-Dean and Chapter-Priest-Deacon-Tithes-
Ordinations-Church Accommodation-Convocation


pp. 71-80


LETTER XI.
THE AR~lY.


Origin and History oí Standing Armies-The Feudal System-
Mercenary Soldiers-Ancient Warfare-The Mutiny Act-
The Secretary for War-The Staff-Cavalry-Infantry-
Quartering of Troops-Camps-Purchase System-Price of
Commissions-Pay of Officers-Brevet Rank-Recruiting-
Pay of Pri vates-Dragoon Regiments-N ames of Regiments
-The Royal Artillery-The Royal Engineers-Precedence
of Corps-Local Regiments-Courts Martial-Order of the
Bath-Victoria Cross-Decorations-Pensions and Rewards
-The J,filitia-'l'he Yeomanry . . . . . . pp. 81-96


LET'l'ER XII.
THE NAVY.


Popularity of the Navy-Early History-Naval Ascendancy-
Prizes of 1rVar-':"'Size of Men-of-W ar-The Board of Admi-
ralty-Rating of Ships-Officers of a Man-of-War-Stations
of Ships-Pay of Officers-Relative Armyand Navy Rank
-Commissions in the N avy-Pay of Warrant Officers-of
Sailors-Pensioners-The Coast Guard-Royal Marines-
Pay in the Marintls . . . . . . . . . pp. 97-107




x CONTENTS.


LETTER XIII.
TIIE CIVIL SERVICE.


Nature ofthe Civil Service-The Treasury-The Secretanes of
State's Offices-Boards of Admiralty, Trade, Customs, In-
land Revenue-Post Office-Paymaster Generars Office-
Military Officcs-Parliamcnt Offices-Board of W orks, &c.


pp. 108-113


LETTER XIV.
TIIE LAW.


The Common Law-Statute Law-Civil Law-Roman Civil
Law-Equity-Oonflicts of Law and Equity-New Pro-
cedure-Interpretation of the Law-The Sheriff, his Office
and Responsibility in executing and enforcing the Law


pp. 114-117
LETTER XV.


TIIE COURTS OF LAW AND EQUITY, AND THEIR PROCEDURE.


The Superior Courts-Oircuits of the J udges-Their several
Commissions-District (hurts of Record-Counsel and At-
torney-The Inna of Court-An Action at Law-The Plead-
ings-The Jury-The Trial-The Verdict-Judgment by
Default-The Costs-Execution-Judges in Equity


pp. 118-127
LETTER XVI.


OF CRIMES AND OFFENCES.


Definition of Onmes -Treasons-F elonies-Misdemeanours-
Punishments-Costs of Prosecutions-Accessaries and Ac-
complices-Nuisances-OommonLaw Offences pp. 128-133


LETTER XVII.
OF TIIE COURTS OF CRIMINAL LAW.


The High Oourt of Parliament-The Court of the Lord High
Steward-The Queen's Bench-Office of Coroner-Of Jus-
tices ofthe Peace-The Assize Courts-The Central Criminal
Court-Quarter and Petty Sessions-J urisdiction of J ustices
of the Peace and Police Magistrates • . . pp. 134-138




CONTENTS. Xl


LETTER XVIII.
OF THE PRACTICE OF THE CRIMINAL LAW.


Conduct of Public Prosecutions-Arrest of Prisoners by the
Police-Examination before Magistrates-Committal or Dis-
charge ofPrisoners-Indictments-Office ofthe Grand Jury
-'rrial-Challenges of Jurors-Proceedings at Trial-Court
of Criminal Appeal-Pardons. . . . . . pp. 139-147


LETTER XIX.


LA W OF EVIDENCE.


Conditions of Evidence-Parol-V erbal-Direct-Circumstan-
tial-Primary and Secondary Evidence . . pp. 148-151


LETTER XX.


CONCLUSION. • • • . pp. 152, 153






HOW WE ARE GOVERNED.


LETTER 1.
Introduction-Purpose of this Work.


:M:y DEAR SON,
Y ou have now reached an age at which it is desirable


that you should acquire sorne knowledge of the institutions
under which you have the happiness to live; of the machinery
by which the government of the country is conducted; and
of the judicial tribunals by which obedience to the law is
enforced.


That information 1 propose to impart to you in a series of
Letters. 1 cannot of coursc enter very minutcly into the de-
tails of so large a subject. For these 1 must refer you to
other works; but 1 hope to be able to give you such an out-
line of our constitutional system as will not only be useful in
itself, but will serve as an introduction to the more complete
and careful study of this extensive and interesting field of
inquiry.


1 propose to trace thc rise and growth of our mixed consti-
tution; to point out the powers now possessed by the different
estates of the realm; and to indicate the manner in which they
fulfil their functions. 1 shall devote a Letter to the N ational
Debt; and another to the not less important subject of that
Local Self-Government, through which so much is done in
England that is elsewhere the work of a highly centralized ad-
ministration. The Church, the Army, and the Navy, will each
receive due attention; and 1 shall describe, with as much fuI-
ness as my space will permit, the different courts of Law and
Equity, and the methods of procedure in both civil and crimi-
nal cases.


You will thus, 1 trust, be placed in a position to understand
the various polítical questions which you may hear discussed


. B




2 INTRODUCTION.
around you, and to appreciate both the substantial merita and
the slight defects of a system, which has been formed by the
persevering and patriotic efforts of many generations of Eng-
lishmen, and under which the British empirc has come to be
what we see it to-day-the envy and admiration of less fortu-
nate nations.


Your affectionate father,


A. B.




3


LETTER n.


THE CONSTlTUTION.


The Origin of the British Constitution-Of Parliamentary Governmellt
-The Feudal System-Taxatioll of the Country-Origin of the
HOllses of Lords and Commons-P~rliament-Rights of English-
men-?I1agna Carta-Habeas Corpus B.ct-Bill of Rights-l!'reedom
of the Pre,s.


TRIS Letter must be considered as a 80rt of introduction to
those which follow; and in it 1 am obliged to dcpart from the
rule of confilling myself to treating of our iostitutiolls as they
now exist for reasoos which you will very soon pcrceive.


The "constitution" of a country is the establiRhedsystem
linder which its government i8 conducted. It is defined by
Palcy to be "so much of its law as relates to the designation
and power of the legislature; the rights and functions of the
several parts of the legislative body; the construction, oflice,
and jurisdiction of courts of justice."


The origin of the British Constitution is hidden amidst the
general obscurity which surrounds the carly history of our an-
cestors. Harassed as they were by repeated invasions, and
unscttled by conseqnent changes amongst their rulers, they have
lef~ ns a very indistinct idea of the mauner in which the busi-
ness of their governmcnt was cltrried on. The principIe, how-
ever, which guided it i8 clear; for from a period long before
the union of the states of the Heptarchy under one crown, the
sway oí their princes was assisted, and in sorne measure con-
trolled, by assemblages of their peopIe, which may be taken to
be the origin of the parliaments of thc prcsent day.


These assemblages were known under various names. In
Saxon, as the Ji'icel Gemote, or Great .1lIeeting; the Micel
Synod, or Great Council,· and the 1Víttena Gemote, or Meeting
cif Wise "~len. After the consolidation of the seven kingdoms
the united council was called in Latin Commune Concilium
Regni, "the Common CounciI of the Kingdom;" M agnum Con-
cilium Regís, "the Great CouIlcil of the King;" Curia Magna,


B2




4 THE CONSTITUTION.
"the Great Court;" aml in other languages by othei similar
designations, which 1 need not enumerate. This council not
only made and altered the laws of the land; but also en-
forced them, being a court of justice for settling disputes
relating to the ownership of land, and for trying and punishing
great criminals. It also imposed the taxes, and sometimes
appointed the king's ministers. By an ordinallce of Alfred the
Great, it was commanded to assemble twice in the year at
least, or oftener, according to the state of the country; and
the laws which it passed were prefaced with a declaration that
they were such as the king, with the advice of his clergy and
wise men, had instituted. It was composed of Lords Spiritual
and Temporal-namely, of Barons, .who were summoned by
virtue of their tenure as holding in capíte of the king, and of
bishops and heads of religious houses whose tenure was in chief
of the crown. You will perceive hereaner how close a re se m-
blance this ancient couucil bears to the modern parliament.


Shortly after the N orman Conquest, the feudal system, at
that time in force throughout a great portion of Europe, was
introduced into England by William the Norman; not, as is
sometimes said, to enable him to reward his followers out of
the spoils of a conquered country, but at the request of the
Great Assembly of the Realm, in order that the kingdom
Illight be put iuto a state of defence against a threatened inva-
sion from Denmark. Once established, however, by the people
for thcir protection against a foreign enemy, it was soon turned
against them by those to whom they looked for protection into
an engine of the grossest oppression. Under this feudal sys-
tem (which, in its purity, was admirably adapted to an age in
wmch war and conquest were the chief pursuits of mankind)
the entire soil of a country was held to be the absolute pro-
perty of its sovereign; and was divided into estates called
feuds or feofs, and held of him by his chief men, called the
barons, vassals, and tenants in capite of the Crown, upon the
condition of their doing homage and swcaringfealty (loyalty)
to him, and attending him in his wars at the head of a certain
number of armed meno To obtain these they in turn had to
distribute land, and also to let out their own estates for cuIti-
vation in their absence, whilst performing their services, re-
ceiving rent (called in those days redditus, 01' a return) in the
shape of corn and provisions to support them and their fol-
lowers upon their campaigns. The relationship this created
was known as that of lO¡'d and vassal. Every vassal was bound




THE FEUDAL SYSTEM. 5
to defend and obey his irnmediate lord, according to the terms
under which he he Id his land, but no further. On his part
the lord was bound to protect his vassals, and to do justice be-
tween them.


At first these feuds were held only during t~e will of the
lord; they could not be transferred or disposed of by those
who held them during their lives, nor did thoy descend to their
heirs at their deaths. 'l'hoso persons only who were capable
of bearing arms, and were chosen by tho lord, could succeed to
them. Infants, women, and 1l10nks were therefore excluded
as a matter of courso. Subsequelltly, the heirs of a deceased
tonant were permitted to sha,re his lands amongst them upon
payment of what was called a fine, or present of armour, horses,
or money to the lord. Bllt the division of authority this oc-
casioned was found to weaken tbe defenees of the country;
and it became the gonoral rule to admit one heir only, in some
parts the eldest, in others tho youngest son of the deeeased, or
SOIlle other male relative eapable of taking upon himself the
conditions of the feudo Gradually, as intelligence and wealth
began to inerease, and other arts than those of war to be f01-
loweu, these fends becarne the absolute property of their
tenants-no longer vassals liable to be dispossessed at any
moment at the mere caprice of the lord, but free lwlders of the
Boil, possessing power to sell 01' bequeath it as they pleased,
subject ollly to certain rules of law.


'fhose lands that remained free, that is, which were not bound
to render service to a superior lord, or suzeraill, though liable
to burthens for the public defence, were called aUodial in con-
tradistinction to feudal. 'fhe ceremony by whieh the vassal
acknowledged his feudal dependen ce and obligations was
called homage, from /wmo, aman, because the vassal became
the Illan of his lonl. Homage W,LS accompanied with an oath
of fealty on the part of the vassal, ancl investiture OH the part
of the lord, which was tho conveying of possession of the fief
by mealls of some pledge 01' token. Homage was of two
kinds, liege and simple. Liege homage (from Lat. ligare, Fr.
lier, to bind) not only obliged the liege man to do personal
service in the army, but also disabled him from renouncing his
vassality by surrelldering his fief. 'fhe liege man took the
oath of fealty on his knecs without sword and spurs, and with
his hanus placed between those of his lord. 'fhe vassal who
rendered simple homago had the power of finding a substitute
for military service, or could altogether liberate himself by the




6 THE CONSTITUTION.
surrender of bis fief. In simple bomage the vassal took the
oath standing, girt with his sword and with his hands at
liberty. The great chief, residing in his country scat, which
he was commonly allowed to fortify, lost in a great meaSllre
his connexion or acqllaintance with the Prince, and added
every day new force to his authority over the vassals of his
barony. They rE\ceived from him education in all military
entcrprises; his hospitality invited them to live and enjoy
society in his hall; their leisure, which was great, made them
perpetual attendants on his person, and partakers of his
country sports and amusements; they had no means of
gratifying their ambition but by making a figure in his train;
his favour was their greatest honour; his displeasure ex-
posed them to contempt and ignominy j and they feIt every
moment the necessity of his protection, both in the contro-
versies which occurred with other vassals, and, what was more
material, in the daily iuroads and injuries which were com-
mitted by the neighbouring barons.· From these causes not
only was the royal authority extremely eclipsed, but even the
military vassals, as well as the lower dependants and serfs,
were held in a state of subjection, from which nothing could
free them but the progress of commerce and the rise of cities,
the true strongholds of freedom.


The changes which in a few lines 1 have thus narrated to
you took many eventful years to accomplish. Our sturdy
forefathers grappled manfully with thc iron yoke to which they
had unwittingly subjeded themselves, and slowly, but surely,
regained the freedom which had been enjoyed under their old
Saxon rulers. Their kings frequently required, for furtherillg
their ambition or ministering to their pleasure, larger sums
and greater services than the feudal system could provide j
and, as it was a fixed principIe in tJlis country, in its earJiest
days and under its most despotic ruJers, that no man should
be taxed without his own consent or that of his representative,
the Great Council of the nation-the successors of the WiUena
Gemote-had to be summoned to grant what was requir~d.
Seldom did it do so without obtaining in return the aboJition
of some abuse, or the restoration of sorne privilege as the price
of its concessions.


For a considerable time this council consisted of all the
king's barons, or those who held estates immediately of the
Crown j but its constitution was regulated by Magna Carta,
which ordained that all archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls,




ORlaIN OF PARLIA.M:ENT. 7
and greater barons should be summoned to Parliament severally
by the king's letters. Thus what we now call the Houso of
Lords was established.


In time of peace the great barons resided in castles scattered
throughout the country, in which they he Id almost regal state
and exercised almost royal powers. The lower orders flocked
beneath their battlements for protection against robbers and
the followers of other lords hostile to their own; for these
barons were a lawless, turbulent race, and often at open war
with each other. Thus, in many places, as population in-
creased, towns were formed. There are few old cities and
towns in EngIand in the midst of which you will not see the
ruins of some castle or fortress frowning from an eminence, or
guarding the banks of a river; and round its crumbling walls
are sure to be found the oldest houses in the place. As arts,
commerce, and trade began to take root and flourish, the in-
habitants of sorne of these settlements became so enriched as to
be able to purchase great privileges of their immediate lords, and
of the king, which rendered them independent communities.
Soon, therefore, owing to the old principIe which 1 have men-
tioned, it became necessary to summon some of their members
to the Great Council, not as barons, but as citizens and burgesses.
For similar reasons the freeholders, whose progress from a
state of servitude 1 have already sketched, had to be represented
by knights of the shire, elected from among themselves, to enable
the king to colleet revenue from their rich brethren. The
exact date at which-our Constitution took this shape is the
subject of much doubt; but it is certain that in the reign of
Henry lII., Simon de nfontford, Earl of Leicester, and the
king's minister, issued writs directing the election of two
knights for every county, two citizens for every city, and two
burgesses for every borough, to serve in the grand council of
the kingdom.


These deputies who were first returned to Parliament were
scarcely representatives in any sense of the term, for they pos-
sessed no legislative powers or authority whatever at the out-
seto They were limited in their functions to "inquiring into
grievances, and delivering their inquisition into Parliament,"
in which character they seem to have acted the part of Com-
missioners, rather than popular representatives. At first the
main object for which they were summoned was to grant
supplies. They were elected by the freeholders exclusively,
and assembled once 01' twice in each year, taking their seats at




8 THE CONSTITUTION.
the lower end of the chamber in which the barons imd other
magnates sat, but they did not mingle or vote in common with
the peers. They assisted as spectators, without any voice in
the deliberations, but with the right of assenting to, though it
would seem not of dissenting from, what had been done by the
Lords of Parliament. Perhaps indeed the chief, if not the sole
function of the early deputies, was to consent to the taxes that
had been imposed upon their constituents. And therefore we
cannot wonder that the worthy burgesses and freeholders of
those days did not at first fully appreciate the advantages of
the representative system. So far from hailing it as a boon or
privilege, we find that some boroughs considered it a burden,
and tbat the eIecters neglected and even refused to send depu-
ties to Parliament, on the gronnd of their own poverty and
consequent inability to defray the. expenses of their represen-
tatives. And here it may be proper to observe that in early
times, and even down to a comparatively modern period, the
members of the Lower House received pay for their services-
on a scale more or lesB liberal according to circumstances: in
more recent times the honour and dignity attached to this
oflice have been considered an adequate recompense for the
dnties wIDch pertain to it.


In the reign of Edward l. was passed the famous statute,
ever memorable in our cOIlstitutional annals, which enacted
that " No tax should be levied without the joint consent of
the Lords and Commons"-a statute of so much importance
that to it is chiefiy owing the great infiuence which the House
of Commons acquired in subsequent times. Ever since the
reign of Edward n., the Lords and Commons have occupied
separate chambers; the precise date, however, of their separa-
tion has not been determined by historical writers. But from
that period downwards the power and infiuence of the Lower
House of Parliament have continued to increase, nntil it may
fairly be said now to have beco me predominant in all State
affairs. This must be undoubtedly attributed to financial
considerations in the first place, and secondly to the growth of
:lo wealthy and enlightened middle-class, who by their intelli-
gen ce, commercial 'enterprise and industry have be en the chief
means of raising this country-so far, at least, as its vast
material and pecuniary resources are concernerl-to that degree
of preeminence which it now holds amongst the kingdoms and
empires of the whole civilized world. The taxation of the
country is now entirely managed by the House of Commons.




MAGNA CARTA. 9
For many years Parliament was made use of by our kings


as a mere instrument for taxing the people. It was called
together whcn moncy was wanted, and dissolved as Boon as
the requisite supplies were granted. Sometimes it refuscd to
fill the king's purse until some harsh usage was repealed,
some old custom restored, or the royal assent given to some
new law ; but many generations passed away before it began
to make and alter the laws as part of its regular duties.


1 have followed tho progress of parliamentary government
so far, to account to you for the shape in which we now find
it, not t,o supply a history of its rise. I will now give you a
brief summary of the rights and privileges which, during the
periods that I have passcd over, our forefathers won for US,
and which we now enjoyo


And forernost of aH the victories gained by Englishrnen in
their strugglcs with royal despotisrn is the possession of that
great bulwark of our national liberties, the :Magna Carta.
1'he Great Charter is in fact the fountain-head of all the rights
and privileges which we inherit from our ancestors: it is in a
manuer the groundwork and basis of our civilization; for
civilization properly commences only when personal rights and
the rights of property are duly recognised, guaranteed, and
upheld. Without tbese there would be no progress, and
society would relapse into the primitive condition of savage
life, where every rude warrior must fight single-handed with
his fellow-man for the means of existen ce, and where the law
of might is right is daily exernplified in ite. full force. The
benefits conferred by Magna Carta were derived rather,
perhaps, frorn the confirrnation of franchises embodied in pre-
vious charters-but which had nover be en acted upon-than
from any new rights or liberties which it granted. People
were no longer in terror for their personal safety or their pos-
sessions. A new soul was infused into the English people,
aud once more was revived that spirit of sturdy in dependen ce
which hOO formerly characterised the Anglo-Saxon race, but
which for the spaee of a eentury and a half had been bowed
down QY oppression and crushed beneath the yoke of a harsh
and exterrninating despotismo


Without reciting the provisions of the Charter at length, 1
will enumerate sorne speeial points and indicate generally its
bearing and principal features. After confirrning the immu-
nities and franehises pertaining to the clergy, it elucidates defi-
nitively the obscurities and ambiguities which existed in the




10 THE CONSTITUTION.
feudallaws, wbile it determines the import of those laws with
precision ; it fixes the amount, hitherto arbitrary, of the fine or
relief due to the Crown of an heir when he carne into possession
of his esta tes ; it takes precautions for securing their just reve-
nues to the widows and children of the King's vassals, and for
the marriage ofhis feudal wards j while it provides ample reme-
dies fol' those abuses which creep into the feudal relationships,
to the prejudice of the vas sal. The twelfth article of the
Charter ordains that no scutage or aid sha11 be imposed on the
kingdcm but by the Common Council of the kingdom, unless
to rcdeem the King, to make bis eldest son a knight, or to
marry his eldest daughter ; and that in the latter cases only a
reasonable aid shall be imposed. Tbe fourteenth article runs
in the following terms :-" For the holding the Common
Councíl of the kingdom for the purpose of levying any aid
other than in the three cases specitied, or for levying a scutage,
we will cause to be convoked the archbishops, bishops, and
abbots, the earls and great barons, individually and by letter
from ourself j and we will cause to be convoked in a body by
our sheriffs aH those who hold of us directly. The said con-
vocation shaH be bolden on a eertain fixed day-namely, at
the interval of forty days at least, and at a certain place to be
determined; and in the letters of summons we will explain
the cause of the convocation; and the convocation being thus
called, the matter shall be treated of on the day appointed,
with the advice of those who shall be prescnt, even if all those
who shall have been convoked should not be present."


Again, all the liberties enjoyed by the King's vassals are
declared common to the vassals of the lords. By the seventeenth
article it ls determined that in future the Court of Common
Pleas shall not follow the King in his movements from place to
place, but shall be held in a fixed locality-namely, at West-
minster. In Article XVIII. the King promises that he himself,
or in the event of his being absent from the kingdom, his grand
justiciar, will send two judges into each county four times every
year, who, with four knights chosen by such county, shall hold
assize on the day and in the place where the County Court
shall meet.


It is further ordained that no freeman shall be arrested or
imprisoned or dispossessed or outlawed or exiled or attainted in
any manner, save by virtue of a lawful judgment of his peers
and in accordance with the laws of the realm; that right and
justice shall not be sold or deIayed or denied to any man; that




HABEAS CORPUS ACT. 11
all merchants and traders shaU have full and free liberty of
coming into or leaving the kingdom, of residing in any par-
ticular locality, and of travelling by land or water, to buy and
to seU without any oppressive tax, according to the ancient
laws of custom. Furthermore, the King promises to appoint
110ne but judges of ability and integrity,-to forbid them to
condemn any m!ln without havillg heard the witnesses; to re-
instate every man disseized without legal judgment; to make
amends for the wrongs committed under Henry n. and Richard,
and to restrain the vexations of every kind exercised towards
the merchants, traders, citizells, and rural inhabitants. He
guarantees to the city of London, as well as to all other cities,
boroughs, towns, and seaports the enjoyment oftheir ancient cus-
toms and liberties; and he engages to send away forthwith all
foreign troops and mercenaries, with their arms and horses, who
are now in the kingdom to the great dctriment of all his subjects.


1 now come to what Blackstone calls the " Second Magna
Carta and Stable Bulwark of our Libcrties," the famous
Habeas Corpus Act. It is impossible to exaggerate the im-
portanee of this statute, which guarantees in the most distinet
terms the immunity of the subject from illegal imprisonment.
Taken in connexion with tria! by jury, it forms the most com-
plete security that human laws can airord against the arbitrary
infliction of punishment by the Sovereign.


The privilege of Habeas Corpus was twice solemnly con-
firmed in the reign of Charles 1., first by the Petition of Right
(16~8), and secondly by the statute abolishíng the Star Cham-
ber and otherarbitrary courts (1640). But as Charles n. and
his ministers still found means to evade these enaetments, the
eelebrated statute was passed in 1679, known as the Habeaa
Corpus Act. Its principal author was Lord Shaftesbury, and
it was for many yearR called" Lord Shaftesbury's Act." It
enacts:-


1. That on eomplaint and rcquest in writing by or on behalf
of any person committed and eharged with any erime (unless
committed for trcason or felony expressed in the warrant; or
as accessory or on suspicion of being aceessory before the fact
to any petit treason or felony; or upon suspicion of sueh petit
treason or felony plainly expressed in the warrant; or unless
he is convicted or charged in execution by legal proeess), the
Lord ChaneeUor, or any of the judges in vacation, upon view-
ing a copy of the warrant or affidavit that a eopy is denied,
shaU (unless the party has neglected for two terms to apply tú"




12 THE CONSTITUTION.
any Oourt for his enlargement) award a Habeas C017JUS for such
prisoner, returnable immediately before himself or any otber
of the judges; and upon the return made shall discbarge the
party, if bailable, upon giving security to appear and answer
to the accu8ation in the proper court of judicature.


II. That such writs 8ha11 be endorsed as granted in pur-
suance of this Act, and signed by the person Il,warding them.


IIl. That the writ sha11 be returned and the pdsoner
brought up within a limited time according to the distanci',
not exceeding in any case twenty days.


IV. That officers and keepers neglecting to make due re-
turns, or not delivering to tbe prisoner or bis agent within six
hours after demand a copy of the warrant of commitment., or
shifting the custody of the prisoner from one to another with-
out sufficient reason or authority (specified in the Act), 8han
for the first offonce forfeit 1: 100, and for the second offence
1:200 to the party grieved, and be disabled to hold his office.


V. That no person once delivered by Habeas Corpus shall
be recommitted for the same offence, on penalty of 1:500.


VI. That every person eommitted for treason or felony
sban, if be requires it, tbe first week of the next term, or the
first day of the next session of oyer and terminer, be indicted
in tbat term or session, or else admitted to bail, unless the
king's witnesses cannot be produced at that time; ana if ac-
quitted, or not indicted and tried in the second term or session,
he 8ha11 be discharged frolll his imprisonment for such imputed
offence j but that no person, after the assizes shall be open for
the county in which he is detained, 8ha11 be removed by Habeas
Corpus till after the assizes are euded, but ahan be left to the
justice of the judges of assize.


VII. That any such prisoner may move for and obtain his
Habeas COJ1nlS as \\ e11 out of the Chancery or Exchequer as out
of the King's Bench or eommon l'leas; and the Lord Ohan-
cellor or judges denying the same on sight of thc warrallt or
oath that the same is refused, forfeit severally to the party
grieved the sum of 1:500.


VIII. That this writ of Habeas Cm'pus sha11 run into the
eounties palatine, cinque ports, and other privileged places,
and the islands of Jersey and Guernsey.


IX. That no inhabitant of England (except persons con-
tracting or convicts praying to be transported, or having com-
mitted sorne capital offence in the place to which they are sent)
sha11 be scnt prisoner to Scotland, Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey,




:BILL OF RIGHTS. 13
or any plaC€s beyond the seas within or without the king's
dominions, on pain that the party committing, his advisers,
aiders, and IISsistants, shall forfeit to the party aggrieved a
sum not less than 1,500, to be recovered with treble costs;
shall be disabled to bear any office of trust or profit; shall in-
cur the penalties of prcemun'ire J' and shall be illcapable of the
killg's pardon.


'1'he Habeas Corpus Act was confined to criminal cases, but
in the reign of George nI. it was extended not only to cases
of illegal restraint by subject on subject, but also to those in
which the Crown has an interest, as in instances of impress-
ment or smuggling.


The third great Charter of our liberties is the famous Decla-
ration or Bill of Rights, concluded between the Parliament as
the representative of the people, and King William IIl., Feb.
13, 1688·9. The authority of Parliament and the freedom of
the subject are confirmed in the following terms; it is de-
clared-


1. That the pretended power of suspending laws, or the
execution of laws, by regal authority, without consent of
Parliament, is illegal.


2. That the pretended power of dispensing with laws, or the
execution of laws, by regal authority, as it hath been IISsumed
and exercised of late, is illegal.


3. That the commission for erecting the late Court of Com-
missioners 'for :Ecclesiastical Causes (the Court of High Com-
mission, founded by James n.), and all other commissions or
courts of like nature, are illegal and pernicious.


4. That levying money for, or to the use of the Crown, by
pretence of prerogative without grant of Parliament, for longer
time 01' other manner than the same ii or shall be granted, is
illegal.


5. That it is the right of the subject to petition the king;
and all commitments and prosccutions for such petitioning are
illegal.


6. That the raising or keeping a standing army within the
kingdom. in the time of peace, unless it be with consent of
Parliament, is against law.


7. That subjects which are Protestallts may have arms for
their dafenee suitable to their eonditiollS, and as allowed by
law. (This section now extends to all dellominations of her
Majesty's subjeets, the oppressive laws relating to the Roman
Catholics haying been repealed.)




14 THE CONSTITUTION.
8. That election of members of Parliament ought to be free.
9. That the freedom of speech and debates or proceedings


in Parliament ougbt not to be impeachcd or questioned in any
court out oE Parliament.


10. That excessive bail ought not to be required, nor ex·
cessive fines, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.


11. That jurors ought to be duly impanelled and rcturned;
and jurors who pass judgment upon men in trials for high
treason, ought to be freeholders.


12. That all grants and promises of fines and forfeitures of
particular persons, before conviction, are illegal and void.


13. That, for redress of all grievances, and for the amend·
ing, strengthening, and preserving of the laws, parliaments
ought to be held frequently.


And here let me say a few words respecting what now
claims to be a species of Fourth Estate or power of the realm,
namely, the Prcss. That this is a power, and a very vast one,
cannot for a moment be denicd. In former times, and in the
early ages of Constitutional history, it had no existence what-
ever, and in point of fact, it was not until after the Revolution
of 1688 tbat the newspaper press of the kingdom began to
make its infl.uence felt in the guidance and formation of public
opinion. Even during the eighteenth century it had not
reached that point of development Itnd preeminence when it
could fairly be called a "power" in the State. It is the
present century almost entirely that has witnessed the esta·
blishment of the Press in the rank of an "Estate." True, it
has no rccognised constitutional existen ce, as an integral por.
tion of the Legislature. It do es not muster rank and file in a
division. But surely it has a voice, and a very potent one
too, in aU the debates and deliberations in both Houses of
Parliament. It does not go into the lobby in proprú2 persona,
but who can deny that it influences and frequent!y determines
the vote of many aman upon questions of the gravest impor-
tance ~ It holds its debates daily in public, and sits tbe whole
year round. It has no "vacation"-no "recess." Its eye
never slumbers, and its voice is never mute. It speaks to
millions thunder-tongued. Amongst its vast auditory are Kings,
Princes, Priests and Senators, yet it does not address them with
hushed accents or bated breath. It does not tickle their ears
with the honeyed poison of flattery; but it tells thern trutbs
which in bygone times would never have reached them,-
wholesome truths in high places which preserve the body politic




FREEDO}{ OF THE PRESS. 15
from corruption and decay. But not this only. The Fourth
Est.ate has its eyes cast abroad in aH the corners of the earth in
search of knowledge; its emissaries explore the utmost recesses
of civilized and savage life, and accumulate, for the benefit of
the present and of the future, the vast treasures of experience
and information which are amassed and redistributed day by
day in the interests of human progress and enlightenment. In
a word, there are llone so low that the teaching of the Press
do es not in some way reach and affect them, and non e so high
as to be aboye the lessons of instruction and wisdom which it
conveys. And aboye aH, what adds to its power is, its free-
domo Our press is 110W absolutely free; no permission i8 re-
quired for the publication of any news, or any comments upon
it. The conduct of the highest in the land may ~e praised or
censured as their merits deserve-care only must be taken that
no untrue or malicious statements are made, by means of which
public peace and morality, or private character, may suffer;
but even when su eh are put forward, they cannot be suppressed
by any arbitrary exercise of authority. Like every other
wrong, tney must be submitted to a court of law, and by the
judgment of a court of law alone can their authors be punished.


" To submit the press," says Blackstone, in his " Commentary
upon the Law of England," "to the restrictive power of a
licenser, as was formerly done both before and since the Revo-
lutio11 (and is now done in almost every continental State), is
to subject aH freedom of. sentiment to the prejudices of one
man, and to make him the arbitrary, infallible judge of all
controverted points in Iearning, religion, and gove.rnment. But
to punish (as the law does at present) any dangerous or offen-
sive writings which, when published, should, on fair and im-
partiaI trial, be adjudged of a pernicions tcndeney, is necessary
for the preservation of pcace and good order, of government
and religion, the only solid foundations of civil liberty."


My reason for introducing this important subject in this
Letter may be gathered from the celebrated words of Mr.
Canning, who said that, "He who, speculating on the British
Constitution, should omit from his enumeration the mighty
powers of public opinion embodied in a free press, which per-
vades and checks, and perhaps in the last resort nearly governs
the whole, would give but an imperfect view of the govern-
ment of England."




16


LETTER III.


THE QUEEN.


The Three Estates of the Realm-Duties of Government-The Royal
Oflice-Succession to the Throne-The Royal Prerogative-The
Min~try-The Revenue-The Civil List-The Royal Family-
Royalll,farriage Act.


HA VING now laid the foundation of my subject, 1 shall pro-
ceed to show you how this country is governed at the present
day.


The U nited Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland is
governed by its King or Queen and two Houses of Parlia-
mento These are known as the Three Estates of the
Realm.


The duties of government are to make, and put in force,
the laws of the country for its OWIl people as subjects, and to
represent them as a nation in their dealings witIl foreign
powers. The first of these duties-tlte making of the law-
is performed by the three Estates conjointly; the remainder
belong to the sovcreign alone. 1 shall devote a Letter to each
of the three Estates, and in this will tell you of


THE SOVEREIGN.


There is no difference between the power exercised by a
king and a queen in tIlis country. Tbeir office is hereditary,
passing upon the death of the sovereign to the next heir-
males, in tIle same degree of relationship, being prefcrred to
females: thus the youlIgest son of tbe present sovereign would
inherit the throne to the exclusion of her eldest daughter, but
any daughter would stand in the order of succession before an
uncle, a nepbew, or a male cousin.


The succession to the throne of the U nited Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland was regulated in the commence·
ment of the reigu of William !II. by an Act of Parliament




PREROGATIVE OF TITE CROWN. 17
called the "Act of Settlement," by wbich tp.e Roman Catho1ic
branch of the family of the Stuarts was formally cxcluded
from the succession. By this Act, the sovereign power was
limited to the heirs of the Princess Sopbia of Brunswick (the
granddaughter of James l.), being Protestants. Upon the
death of Queell Anne, the son of this princess, King George 1.,
became king. He was succeeded by his son, George Il.'
From him the crown descended to his grandson, George 111.,
and from him to his son, George IV.; who, dying without
issue surviving, was succeeded by his brother, William IV. ;
upon whose death, having 1eft no children, the daughter of his
next younger brother, the Duke of Kent, her present most gra-
cious Majesty Queen Alexandrina Victoria, ascended the throne.


The crown of these kingdoms can on1y be worn by a Pro-
testant. Shou1d the king or queen marry aRoman Catholic,
it is forfeited from tbat momento Nor can any member of
the ROyll1 Famny, who is married to aRoman Oatholic,
ascend tbe throne.


The person of the sovereign is sacred; she is aboye the
law; no act of Par1iament can bind her, un1ess it contain
express words to that effect. It is also a maxim of the law
that she can do no wrong; she is not responsible for the
commission of anyact, and no omission upon her part can
be taken advantage of; she possesses the power of pardon
and of mercy towards criminal s ; she is the fountain of jus-
tice and of honour ; from her aH tit1es of nobility and honour-
ab1e distinctions spring; aH military and civil rewards and
decorations, such as orders of knighthood, crosses, stars, and
medals for meritorious services, are in her gift, and no subject
may wear or assume one granted by a foreign prince without
her licence. AH commissions to officers in the army and navy
are granted, although they are not now signcd, by her; she
has the power of proroguing Parliament-that is, putting an
end to its sittings for a time, and of dissolving it and con-
voking a new one in its place; she is the supreme head of
the State, the Church, the Army, and the Navy; she has the
power oí sending and receiving ambassadors, of declaring war
and making peace, of arranging treaties, and coining money
for the use of her subjects; she may refuse her assent to laws
passed by the two Houses of Parliament, but has no direct
voice in discussing them, speaking only through her ministers.


These, and other rights, are called the prerogative oj tite
Orown.


e




18 THE QUEEN.
Under the British Constitution the sovereign must govem


through her ministers, who are responsible to Parliament and
the country for her political acts, which are always presumed
to be done by their advice. N o ministry is able to carry on
the business of the country for more than a very short time,
unless it can obtain the assent of Parliament to its proceedings.
Of late years the great political questions, upon which the
formation and existence of ministries have depended, have
been discussed and settled in the House oí Commons. This
Estate of the realm being elected by thc 'people, you will per-
ceive that the ministry, althougb nominally appointcd by the
Crown, is virtually chosen by the country. Should the
ministry or Parliamcnt attempt to interfere improperly with
the royal prerogative, the sovereign can dismiss the one, and
dissolve the other. Should a faction in Parliament oppose thc
ministry in doing what they and the queen consider to be for
the welfare and honour of the country, the opinion oí all
classes can be taken by summoning a new Parliament. Should
thc Crown and the ministry set themselves against Parliament
and the people, the former, by reíusing to grant supplies for
the public service, could se cure the dismissal of the obnoxious
advisers. Thus a balance of power is preserved between the
Estat38 of the realm, which prevents any of them from in-
fringing the rights of the others, and makes the people of this
country the happiest, the íreest, and at the same time the
most 10yaI nation under the sun.


In former times, the taxes which were granted by Parlia-
ment were handed over to tbe king, to be expended by him in
maintaiuiug his state, and for keepiug up the military arrd naval
services. He had also estates in various parts of the country
called the crown lands, the rents and profits of which were
paid into his treasury. Thc nvenue, or annual income of the
country derived from the taxeB impolled by l'arliament and the
income from these estates (with the exccption of the Duchy
of Lancaster, which belongs to her :Majesty not as Queen of
England, but as Duchess of Lancaster), is now oollected into
one fund called the Consolidated Fztnd. The first charge upon
this fund is the payment oí interest upon the national debt
called the funds, and upon the unfunded debt. The origin
and progress of the national debt is so important and inte-
resting a subject, that 1 shall devote to it a future Letter.


Thc next charge upon the Consolidated Fund brings me
back to the subject which 1 have quitted for a momento It is




CIVIL LIST. 19
an allowance called the civil list, apportioned to the queen for
the support of her houschold and the dignity of her crown.
This was fixed by the statute 1st Victoria, cap. ] 1, at
385,0001., to be paid annually, and appropriatcd as follows :
Her Majesty's privy purse, 60,000l.; salaries of her Majesty's
household and retired allowances, 131,000l.; expenses of the
household, 172,500l.; royal bounty and special services,
13,200l.; pensions, 1200l.; and miscellaneous, 8040l. On
the Consolidated Fund are likewise charged the following
sums, aHowed to members of the Royal family, namely-
8000l. to the Princess Frederick William of Prussia; 60001.
to the Princess Louis of Hesse-Darmstadt; 60001. to the
Duchess of Cambridge; 6000l. to her daughter, the Grand-
Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz; 3000l. to the Princess
Mary of Cambridge, and 12,000l. to the Duke of Cambridge.
The Prince of Wales has an annuity of 40,000l., payable out
of the Consolidated Ji'und, settled upon him. He has, also,
the revenues of the Duchy of Cornwall, which now amount to
more than 50,000l. ayear, with every prospect of their in-
creasing. The Princess of Wales has settled upon her by
Parliament tile annual sum of 10,000l., to be increased to
30,000l. in case of widowhood. The sum for carrying on the
civil government, including the salarie~ of the ministers of
state, judges, and others, is also charged upon the Consoli-
dated Fund, the remainder of w hich is paid into the 'exche-
quer, for the public service, to defray the expenses of our
Army, N avy, Civil Service, &c. &c.


AH the great officers of state, the bishops, and judges, the
officers in the army and navy, are appointed by the queen, or
in her name; but as the ministry is responsible for the fitness
of the persons appointed, and for their conduct wbi15t in the
public servicc, the selection is placed in their hands, and the
sovereign approves, almost as a mattor of course, of the person
recommended.


Before 1 conclude, it would be as well wcre 1 to te11 you
'i',ome'Ln.mg abo\l'L 'Lue 1:0)'3.\ ~ami\y.


The royal consort-that is the wife or husband of a king or
quecn-has, as Buch, no snare in tile government of the
couutry. Tbey are s\lb~ccts 01 tb.e Cro\Vu only, aud ma.y be
appointed to fill any post in the state that a subject can
hold. A queen consort has sorne special pl'Ívileges and pro-
tections. She can sue and be sued in aH courta of justice as
though she were an unmarríed woman j and for this purpose


c2




20 THE QUEEN.
she has her own attorney and solicitor-general to conduct her
law business. She has power to purchase lands and to convey
-that is, dispose of-them. She can take a legal grant from
her husband, and make a will; no other married women can
do these things. She has a separate household and officers of
state. Her person, like the king's, is sacred.


A queen dowager is the widow of a king.
The Prince of Wales is the eldest son of the Sovereign, and


heir-apparent to the Crown. He is created Prince of Wales
and Earl of 'Chester and Dublin, and lS born Duke of Corn-


. wall. He is also High Steward of Scotland, Duke of Rothsay,
Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, and Lord of the Isles.
His person and that of his wife are specially protected by the
law. Should the eldest son die, his next brother becomes
Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester, but not Duke of Corn-
wall.


The Princess Royal is theeldest daughter of the sovereign.
Her person is also specialIy protected, as, should no son be
bom or live to succeed to the crown, she would beco me
queen.


The other members of the royal family have no specia!
rights conferred by law. They rank before all dukes, and are
forbidden by the statute 12 Geo. IIl. c. 11, called the Royal
Mal'riage Act, to marry without the consent of the sovereign
signified under the great seal; but it is provided that such of
the descendants of George n. " as are aboye the age of twenty-
five may, after a twelve months' notice given to the King's
Privy Council, contract and solemnize marriage without the
consent of the Crown, unless both Houses of Parliament shalI,
before the expiration of the said year, expressly declare their
disapprobation of such intended marriage." Persons assisting,
or being present, at a prohibited marriage incur very heavy
penalties. The act 1 have quoted does not affect the children
of princesses married into foreign families.


From this general sketch of the prerogatives of the Crown,
and the position of the Royal Family, you will understand
what is meant by saying that EngIand is under a "limited
monarchy." The sovereigns of other countries often assert a
" divine right" to govern; a sovereign of the house of Hanover
can put forth no such pretensions, because he holds his crown
under, and by virtue of, the Act of Settlement, and strictly
subject to the conditions which it imposes. But although the
direct power of the monarch be small, bis Ílldirect influence is




INFLUENCE OF THE SOVEREIGN. 21
considerable. His personal predilections are not without
weight in determining which of the leading statesmen of the
predominant polítical party shall fill the post of first minister;
and, as the head of English society, he can materially influ-
ence the tone of manners and morals, and either promote or
retard the progress of social improvement.




INFLUENCE OF TRE SOVEREIGN. 21
considerable. Rís personal predileetions are not without
weight in determíning wbicb of tbe leading statesmen of tne
predominant political party shall fill the post of first minister;
and, as the head of English society, he can materially influ-
ence the tone of manners and morals, and either promote or
retard the progress of social improvement.




22


LETTER IV.


THE HOUSE OF LORDS.


The U nited Parliament-Composition of tbe House of Lords-Spiritual
Peers-Temporal Peers-Rank of Spiritual Peers-Titles aud Rank
of Temporal Peers-Creation of Peerages-Voting by tbe Peers-
Privileges of tbe Peers-The Supreme Court of Appeal.


THE House of Lords or Peers, or, as it is also called, the
Upper Rouse of Parliament, ranks next in dignity to the
Crown, as the second Estate of the realm. Its origin 1 have
already traced in my lntroductory Letter.


Before their respective union with England, Treland and
Scotland had each a parliament, and consequently a Rouse of
Lords of its own. N ow, however, there is but one House íor
the U nited Kingdom, and only a certain number of peers
selected from the nobility of the sister countries have seats in
it. The members oí the peerage of Scotland and Ireland who
have not seats in Parliament enjoy every other pnvilege of their
order. Peers of Scotland are no longer created; but for every
three lrish peerages that become extinct-that is, have no one
capable of inheriting them-the Queen has the power of
creating one new one. There is no limit to the number of
British peers that she may make.


The following is a summary of the members oí the House of
Lords in the session of 1868 :-


SPIRITUAL PEERS.


2 Archbishops of England and Wales.
24 Bishops do. do.


(The Bishop of Sodor and Man and the Junior
Bishop have no seat.)


1 Archbishop of Ireland.
3 Bishops oí Ireland.


Total, 30




C01rIPOSITION OF HOUSE OF LORDS. 23
1 will tell you how Bishops are appointed in my Letter


upon THE CHURCR.
TEMPORAL PEERS.


4 Peers of the Blood Royal. ,
20 Dukes.
21 Marquises.


127 Earls.
30 Viscounts.


229 Barons.


Total, 432
30 Spiritual peers.


432 Temporal peers.


Grand total, 462


The Archbishop of Canterbury takes ranIe next after the
youngest royal duke; the Archbishops of York and Armagh, in
the order oftheir consecration, next but one, the Lord Chancellor
intervening. The bishops rank as barons at the head of that
order, those of London, Durham, and Winchester taking pre-
ceden ce of all other English-and the Bishop of Meath of all
other lrish-bishops. The Queen may appoint as many
bishops as she may be advised, but thirty only have seats in
Parlianient. They are said to sit, not by virtue of their sacred
{¡ffice, but as barons in respect of the temporal estates attached
to their sees; but some difference of opinion is felt by learned
persons upon this point.


The temporal peers rank in the order in which 1 have
placed them in the above table, those in the same degree of
nobility taking precedence according to the date of their
creation.


The title of DUKE is derived from the Latín word dux, a
leader.


The title of l\fARQUIS was conferred upon those who held
the command of the ir! arclles, as the boundaries between
England and Wales, and England and Scotland, were called
when those countries were hostile to this nation. A marquis
is created by patent; his title is most honourable; and bis
coronet has pearls and strawberry leaves intermixed round, of
equal height. Bis sons are by courtesy styled lords and bis
daughters ladies.




24 THE HOUSE OF LORDS.
The title of EARL is so ancient that its origin° cannot be


clearly traced out. This much, however, seems tolerably
certain, that among the Saxons they were called ealdormen,
quasi elder men, signifying the same with senior or senator
among the Romans; and also scl¿iremen, because they had each
of them the civil government of a several division or shire. On
the irruption of the Danes they changed thcir names to eorels,
which, according to Camden, signified the same in their lan-
guage. In Latin they are called comites (a title first used in
the empire), from being the king's attendants. Afier the N or-
man conquest they were for some time called counts, from the
Frcnch; but they did llOt long retain that llame themselvea,
though their shires are from thence called counties to this day.
At present the title is accompanied by no territory, private or
judicial rights, but merely confera nobility and an hereditary
seat in the House of Lords. In writs, commissions, and other
formal instruments, the Queen, when she mentions any peer
of the dcgree of an i\arl, usually styles him "trust y and well-
beloved cousin," an appellation as ancient as the reign of Helll'y
IV., who being eithel' by his wife, his mother, or his sisters
actually related or allied to every earl in the kingdom, artfully
and constantly acknowledged that connexion in aH his letters
and other public acts, whence the usage has descended to rus
successors, though the reason has long ago failed.


The VISCOUNT (Vice Cvmes) was anciently an officer under
an earl, to whom, during his attendance at Court, he acted as
deputy to Iook after the affairs of the county. But the name
was afterwards made use of as an arbitl'ary title of honour,
without any shadow of office pertaining to it, by Henry VI.
A viscount is created by patent as an earl is; his title is
Right Honourable, and he ranks bctween an ear! and abaron.


The title of BARON is the oldest in point of antiquity,
aIthough the lowest in point of rank, of any order of nobility.
He was, as 1 have already stated, one who held estates im-
mediately of the king.


Peers are now created by letters-patent from the Crown.
Formerly a writ of summons, calling upon the persons intended
to be ennobled, to take their place in the House of Lords, was
issued; and thus they became peers of Parliament. W rits of
summons are now issued when it is intended to call the 'eldest
son of a peer to the House of Lords in the lifctime of his
father.


The House of Lords is usually presided over by the Lord




PRIVILEGES OF THE PEERS. 25
Chancellor; but he does not decide, as does the Speaker of
the House of Cornmons, upon the regularity of its proceedings.
The House at large does this; and members whilst delivering
their speeches address the assembly and not the Lord Chancellor,
or other lord upon the woolsack.


Peers vote either in person-using the words content or non
content, to signify their approval or rejection of the question
before them-or by proxy-a signad paper to the same effect
used upon their behalf, in their absence, by sorne other peer.
They have also the privilege of entering a protest in the
Journals of the House against any proceeding resolved upon
by it against their will. AH laws relating to the rights of
their order must be originated in the House of Lords; arrd a11
~sru~ed .c1a~ms to titles of nobilit~ are referred y the Crown
to it for decision. They cannot be arrested for debt. The
House of Lords is the proper tribunal for trying persons im-
peached by the House of Commons; it also has the right of
trying its own members when accused of treason or felony.
To assist it in these duties, the judges and law officers of the
Crown are its legal advisers.


The House of Lords is the most ancient and dignified Cour!;
in the kingdom, and is the highest Court of Appeal, beyond
which no cause can be carried. It exercises both legislative
and judicial functions; but in its judicial capacity its authority
is delegated for the most part to those of its members, who
haviug been elevated from the Bar to the U pper House, are
conversant with the law bearing upon those questions that
come before them from time tú time, and are therefore the
most competent to decide. Yet, when any question touching
the dignity or privileges of the House itself is raised, the whole
of the Peers take part in the deliberations, and give their de-
cision, which is final. The members of the House of Peers are
legislators by hereditary right. By the same right they are
the Counsellors of the Crown, "and may be called together by
the King to impart their advice, either in time of Parliament,
or when there is no parliament in being." In consequence,
however, of the great importance acquired by the Commons in
modern times this cnstom has fallen into disuse. Still, to a
Peer of the realm belongs tbe privilege, if he should think fit
to exercise it, of demanding an audience of the Sovereign, to
lay before him "such matters as he may deem of importance
for the public weal."


The Honse of Lords has likewise the right of initiating in




26 THE HOUSE OF LORDS.
their Chamber any Rills,-save Money Bills, which must
originate with the Lower House. The Lords have, moreover,
a' negative vOlce on the acts of the Commons, wmch, though it
gives them the power of frustrating realIy useful measures
wmch may be obnoxious to themselves, yet affords a guarantea
to the State against the encroachments of the Lower Housa of
Parliament. The number of Peers of the realm is not fixed or
limited, and has varied considerably from time to time, owing
to divers causes. During the Tudor and Stuart dynasties there
were much fewer Peers than there had previously been, or
than we have at the present day. Indeed, tbe great majority
of existing peerages are of comparatively modern creation.
The Crown possesses the exclusive prerogative 'of adding to
their number whenever it may see fit to do so; but the Peers
tbemselves are very jealous of having their numbers augmented
from the ranks of the commoners, and in the reign of George l.
they introduced a Bill to limit their body to those then
existing, but the Bill was rejected by the Lower House.




27


LETTER V.


TRE ROUSE OF COMMONS.


'The Reform Bills of 1832 and 1867-The Representation of tbe Country
l before tbe Reform Bill of 1832-Rotten Borougbs-Party Spirit--


An Election under the old System-The present Composition of the
House-Qualifications of the Electors-Of the Elected: in Counties;
in Boroughs-Proceedings at a Illodern Election-The issuing of the
Writ-'l'he Nomination-Show of Hands-The Returning Officer-
The Polling-The Heturn-Rights and Duties of Members.


THE House of Commons, or Lower House, consists of persons
chosen by the people to represent them in Parliament.


1 have already told you its origin, and why its members
were assembled. The number of places to be represented and
of the members that they were entitled to return was originally
fixed by the kings; and as tp.ey looked with great jealousy
upon the increasing power of Parliament, no additions of any
great importance were made as the wealth and population of
the country began to expando A history of the progress of the
House of Commons would be, in fact, a history of England,
and with that 1 have no intention to supply you~ 1 need only
tell you that the acts of union with Scotland and Ireland fixed
the numbers of members to be sent byeach part of the United
Kingdom, and that our representative system, as it now exists,
was first settled by the Reform Bin of 1832, and within the
last year has been greatly revised by the Iteform Bill of 1867.


The Reform Bill of 1832 was due to the perseverance and
statesmanship of Earl (then Lord John) Russell and the late
Lord Grey. It received the royal assent June 7, and appears
in the statute-book as the "Act to amend the Representation
of the People in England and Wales," 2 and 3 Will. IV. C. 45
(J une 7, 1832). Its main principIes were, that boroughs
having a less population than 2000 should cease to return
members, and that those having a less population than 4000
should cease to return more than one member. It created be-




28 THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
tweeu fm:t-y ami nfty uew bm:oughs, including thc fou"t mct"t()·
politan ones of Marylebone, Finsbury, the Tower Hamlets, and
Lambeth, each of the last returning two members. It extended
the county and borough franchises. In the counties the old
408. freeholders were retained, and three new classes intro-
duced: 1, copyholders of 10l. per annum; 2, leaseholders of
the vaIue of 10l. for a term of sixty years, 01' of 50l. for twcnty
)"ears; and 3, occupying tenants paying an annual rent of 50l.
In boroughs the franchise was given to aU 10l. resident house-
holders, subject to certain conditions.


Wide and decisive as were the remedies supplíed by this
Bill, it became gradually to be felt that the growing popula-
tion, wealth, and intelligence of our country required a further
extension and purification of our representative system. Ac-
cordingly, after many various futile attempts at reform by both
Whig and Tory Governments, it was reserved for that master
statesman, Mr. Disraelí, to introduce and carry into effect the
Reform Bill of 1867. As this bill now occupics such an im-
portant position in the history of our constitution, 1 think all
interested in knowing "how we are governed" should be fuUy
conversant with its main clauses. 1 therefore give an abstract
of" The Representationofthe People Act, 1867." lt is divided
into three parts.


PART 1.
Occupation Franchise /01' Voters in Boroughs.-Every man


shall, in and after 1868, be entitled to be registe red as a voter,
and, when registered, to vote for a member oc members to
serve in P:;,rliament for a borough, who is qualified as foIlows :
-He must be of full age; and have on the last day of July
in any year, and during the whole of the preceding twelve
calendar months, been an inhabitant occupier, as an owner 01'
tenant, of any dwelling house withill the borough; and have
during the time of such occupation been rated as an ordinary
occupier in respect of the premises so occupied by him within
the borough to all rates (if any) made for the relief of the pOOl'
in respect of such premises; and have on 01' before the
twentieth day of J uly in the same year p:tid an equal amount
in the pound to that payable by other ordinary occupiers in
respect to all pOOl' rates that have become payable by him in
respect of the said premises up to the preceding fifth day of
January. No man under this section to be entitled to be




THE REFORM BILL OF 1867. 29
registered as a voter by reason of his being a joint occupier of
any d we11ing house.


Lodger Franchise in Boroughs.-Every man, in and after
1868, sha11 be entitled to be registered as a voter, and, when
registered, to vote for a member or members to serve in Par-
liament for a borough, who is qualified as follows :-He must
be of full age, and, as a lodgcr, have oceupied in the same
borough, separately and as sole tenant, for the twelve months
preeeding the last day of July in any ycar the same lodgings,
such lodgings being part of one and the same dwelling house,
and of a clear yearly value, if let unfurnished, of ten pounds
or upwards; and have resided in sueh lodgings during the
twelve months immediately preceding the last day of July,
and have claimed to be registered as a voter at the next ensuing
registration of voters.


Property Franchíse ,in Counties.-Every man, in and after
1868, shall be entitled to be registered as a voter, and when
registered, to vote for a member or members to serve in Par-
liament for a county, who is qualified as follows :-He must
be of full age, and not subject to any legal ineapacity; and be
seised at law or in equity of any lands or tenements of free-
hold, copyhold, or any other tenure whatever, for his own life,
or for the life of another, or for any lives whatsoever, or for
any larger estate of the clear yearly valne of not less than five
pounds over and above aU rents and charges payable out of or
in respect of the same, or who is entitled, either as lessee or
assignee, to any lands or tenements of freehold, or of any other
tenure whatever, for the unexpired residue, whatever it may
be, of any term originally created for a period of not less than
sixty years, of the clear yearIy vaIne of not less than five
pounds over and aboye a11 rents and charges payable out of
or in respect of the same. No person to be registered as a
voter under this section unIess he sha11 have complied with the
provisions of the twenty-sixth section of the Act of the second
year of the reign of His Majesty William the Fourth, chapter
forty-five.


Occupation Franchise in Counties, and Time lor Paying
Rates.-Every man, in and after 1868, shall be entitled to be
registered as a voter, and when registered to vote for a mem-
ber or members to serve in Parliament for a county, who is
qualified as fo11ows :-He must be of full age, and have on
the last day of July in any year, and during the twelve




30 THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
months preceding, been the occupier, as owner or tenant of
lands or tenements within the county, of the rateable valne of
twelve pounds or upwards; and have during the time of sneh
oceupation been rated in respect to the premises so occupied
by him to all rates (if any) macle for the relief of the poor in
respect of the said premises; and have on or before the
twentieth day of J uly in the same year paid a11 poor rates
that have become payable by him in respect of the said pre-
mises up to the preceding fifth day of J anuary.


The Occupier to be Rated ,in Borougl¿s, and not tlte Owner.-
Where the owner is rated at the time of the passing of this
Aet to tle poor rate in respect of a dwelling honse or other
tcnement situate in a parish wholly or partIy in a borough,
instead of the oeeupier, his liability to be rated in any future
poor rate sla11 cease, and thc fo11owing enaetments sha11 take
effect with respect to rating in all boronghs :-No owner of
any dwelling honse or other tenement situate in a parish,
either wholly or partIy within a borough, to be rated to the
poor rate instead of the occupier exeept as hereinafter men-
tioned: The fuU rateable value of every dwelling house or
other separate tenement, and the fuU rate in the pound pay-
able by the oecupier, and the llame of the oeeupierto be entered
in the rate book: Where the dwelling house or tenement
shall be who11y let out in apartments or lodgings not separately
rated, the owner of sueh dweUing house or tenement to be
rated in respeet thereof to the poor rate.


Composition.-N othing in this Aet shaU affeet any composi-
tion existing at the time of the passing of this Aet, and no sueh
composition shall remain in force beyond tho twenty-ninth day
of Septomber next : nothing herein contained sha11 affect any
rate made previousIy to the passing of this Act, and the powers
conferred by any subsisting Act for the purpose of collecting
and recovering a poor rate sha11 remain and continue in force
for the collection and recovery of any Buch rate or composition.


Rates to be deductedjrom Rent.-When the occupier under
a tenancy subsisting at tbe time of the passing of this Act of
any dwelling house or other tenement which has been let to
him free from rates is rated and has paid rates in pursuance
of this Act, he may deduct from any rent due from him in
respect of the said dwelling house or other tenement any
amount paid by him on account of the rates to which he may
be rendered liable by this Act.


Fitst Registtation of Occupíers.-Where any occupier of a




THE REFORM BILL OF 1867. 31
dwelling house or 'other tenement would be entitled to be
registered as an occupier in pursuance of this Act at the first
registration of Parliamentary voters to be made after the year
1867, if he had been rated to the poor rate for the whole of
the required period, such occupier shall, notwithstanding he
may not have been rated prior to the 29th Sept., 1867, as an
ordinary occupier be entitled to be registered, subject to the
following conditions :-Having been duly rated as an ormnary
occupier to all poor rates in respect of the premises after the
liability of the owner to be rated to the poor rate has ceased,
under the provisions of this Act: That he has on or before
the twentieth day of July, 1868, paid all poor rates wruch
have become payable by him as an ordinary occupier up to
the preceding fifth day of J anuary.


Clause A.-At a contested election for any county or
borough represented by three members, no person shall vote
for more than two candidates.


Clause B.-At a contested clection for the city of London
no person shall vote.for more than three candidates.


No Electo)' wlw has been employed lor reuJard al any Electíon
to be entitled lo vote.-N o elector who witrun six months before
or during any election for any county or borough shall have
retained or employed lor all or any al the purposes of the elec-
tion for reward by or on behalf of any candidate at such elec-
tion as agent, &c., or in other like employment, to be entitled
to vote at such election, and if he shall so vote to be guilty
of a misdemeanour.


nisfranchisement of cerlain Borouglts.-From and after the
end of this present ParlÍament the boroughs of Totnes, Reigate,
Great Yarmouth, and Lancaster shall respectively cease to
return any member OI' members to serve in Parliament for
having been guilty of corrupt practices, bribery, &c. &c. Per-
sons reported guilty of bribery in these towns to be disquali-
fied as voters for the respective counties in which these towns.
are situated.


PART Il.
nistribution of Seats.-From and after the end of this


present Parliament, no borough which has a less population
than ten thousand at the census of 18tH, shall return more
than one member to serve in Parliament, such boroughs being
enumerated in schedule (A). From and after the end of this
present Parliament, the city of Manchester: and the boroughs




32 THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
of Livcrpool, Birmingham, and Leeds, "hall each tespectively
return three members to serve in Parliament.


New Boroughs.-Each of the places named in schedule (B)
shall be a borough, and each such borough shaIl com prise such
places as are specified and described in connexion with the
name of each such borough in the said schedule (E); and in
aH future Parliaments the borough of Chelsea named in the
schedule (B), shall rcturn two members, and each of the other
boroughs named in the said schedule shaIl return one mem-
ber to serve in Parliament.


Registers of Voten to be formed for new Boroughs.-Regis-
ters of voters shaIl be formed in and after 1868, for or in re-
spect of the boroughs constituted by this Act, in like manner
as if before the passing of this Act they respectively bad been
boroughs returning members to serve in Parliament.


Jferthyr Tydjil and Salfol'd to return each Two Memoers.-
From and after the end of the present Parliament the boroughs
of Merthyr Tydfil and Salford sbaIl each return two members
instead of one; and the borough of the Tower Hamlets shaIl
be divided into two divisions, and each division shaIl be a
separate borough returning two members.


Division of the Tower Hamlets.-The said division shall be
known by the name of the borough of Hackney, and the
borough of the Tower Hamlets, and shan comprise the places
mentioned in connexion with such borough in schedule (C).


Register of Voters.-Registers of voters to be formed for the
boroughs of Hackney and the Tower Hamlets.


Division of cerlain Counties.-From and after the end of the
present Parliament, each county named in the first column of
schedule (D) to be divided into the divisions named in the sccond
column ofthe said schedule. In all future Parliaments there shall
be two members ta serve for each of the divisions specified in the
said column of schedule (D), and such members shall be chosen
in the same manner, and by the same description of voters, as
if each division were a separate county. AH enactments re-
lating to divisions of counties returning members to serve in
Parliament to be decmed to apply to the divisions constituted
as aforesaid. Registers of voters sha11 be formed in and after
1868, for or in respect of the divisions of counties constitúted
by this Act, in like manner as if before the passing of tbis Act
they had respectively been counties returning members to serve
in Parliament.


Uni1)mity of London to 1'eturn One Member.-Every roan




THE REFOm,r BlLL OF 1867. 33
whose name is for the time being on the register of graduates
constituting tho convocation of the Ulliversity of London shall,
if of full age, and not subject to any legal incapacity, be en-
titled to vote in the eIection of a member to serve in any future
Parliament for the said university.


PART nI.
Successive Occupation.-Different premises occupied 111 lm-


mediate succession by any person as owner or tenallt during
the twelve calendar months Ilext previous to the last day of
JuIy in any year shall, unIess as herein is otherwise provided,
have the same effect in quaIifying such person to vote for a
county or borough as a continued oceupation of the same pre-
mises in the manller hereinafter provided.


Joint Occupatíon in Countíes.-In a eounty where premises
are in the joint occupation of several persons as owners or
tenants, and the rateabIe vaIue of such premises is such as
would, if dividcd amongst the several occupiers, so far as the
value is concemed, confer on each of them a vote, thell each
of such joint occupiers shall, if otherwise quaIified, and subject
to the conditions of this Act, be entitled to be registered as a
voter, and when registered to vote at an election for the county;
but that not more than two persons shall be entitled to be
registered in respect of such premises, unless they shall !lave de-
rived the same by descent, succession, marriage, marriage settle-
mens, or devise, or unless they shall be bond fide engaged as
partners carrying on trade or business thereon.


Notice o/ Rate in Arrear to be given to Vot~s.-Where any
poor rate due on the 5th day of January from an occupier in
respect of premises capable of conferring the franchise for a
borongh remains unpaid on the 1st day of June following, the
overseers shall give llotice, on or before the 20th of the same
month of J une, unIess such rate has previously been paid or has
been duly demanded by a demand note. The notice shall be
deemed to be duly given if delivered to the occupier or 1eft at
bis last or usual place of abode, or with sorne person on the
premises in respeet of which the rate is payable. Any over-
seer who shall wilfully withhold such notice, with intent to
keep such occupier off the list of voters, shall be deemed guilty
of a breach of duty in the execution of the Registration Acts.


Overseers lo make out a Líst of Pe?'sons in arrear of Rates.-
Overseers of every parish shall, on or before the 22nd day of


. D




34 THE HOUSE OF COMl\WNS.
July, in every year, make out a list containing the' name and
place of abode of .every verson who shall not have paid, on Ol"
befo re the 20th day of the same month, all poor rates which
shall have becomepayable from him in respect of any pre-
mises within the said parisb, before the 5th day of Januarythen
last past, and the overseers shall keep the said list, to be pe-
rused by any person at any time between the hours of ten in
the forenoon and four in the afternoon of any day, except
Sunday, during the first fourtcen days after the 22nd day of
J uly; any overseer wilfully neglecting to make out such list,
or to allow the same to be perused, shall be deemcd guilty of
a breach of duty in the execution of the Registration Acts.


Registration 01 Voters.-The overseers of every parish or
township shall cause to be made out lists of all persons who
are entitled to vote for a county in respect of the occupation of
premises of a clear yearly value of not less than ten pounds.
The claim of every person desirous of being registered as a
voter for a member or members to serve for any borough in
respcct of the occupation of lodgings, shall be in a form pro-
vided by the overseer, and every snch claim shall, after the last
day of J nly, and on or before the 25th day of August, be
delivered to the overseers of the parish in which such lodgings
shall be situate, and the particulars of such claim 8hall be
pnblished by such overseers on or before the 1st day of Septem-
ber next cnsuing in a separate listo So much of scction eighteen
of the Act of the session of tbe sixth year of the reign of Her
present Majesty, chapter eigbteen, as relates to the manner of
publishing lists of claimants, shall be as heretofore.


P1'ovision as to Clerks oj Peace in Parts 01 Lincolnskire.-As
several of the hundreds now assigned to Mid-Lincolnshire are
situate in the parts of Lindsey, and others are situate in the
parts of Kesteven, and the liberty of Lincoln consisting of
the Oity and the Oounty of the Oity of Lincoln is situate parlly
in the parta of Lindsey and partly in the parls of Kesteven, in
forming the register for the said division of Mid-Lincolnshire
the clerk of the peace of the parts of Lindsey shall do and
perform all such duties as are by law reqnired to be done by
clerks of the peace in regard to such of the hundreds assigned
to Mid -Lincolnshire as are situate within. the said parts of
Lindsey, and in regard to so much of the liberty of Lincoln
as is situate within the said parts of Lindsey; the clerk of the
peace of the parta of Kesteven shall do and perform all such




THE REFORM BILL OF 1867. 35
duties as are by law required to be done by c1erks of the peace
in regard to such of the said hundreds assigned to Mid-
Lincolnshire as are situate within the said parts of Kesteven,
and to so much of the liberty of Lincoln aforesaid as is situate
within the said parts of Kesteven.


poning Places.-In evcry COUllty the justices of the peace
having jurisdiction therein 01' in the larger part thereof, assem-
bled at some court of general or quarter sessions, 01' at some
adjournment thereuf, may, if they think cOllvenience requires
it, divide such county into polling districts, and assign to each
district a polling place, in such manner as to enable each voter,
so far as practicable, to have a polling place within a convenient
distance 'Jf his residence. Where any parish in a borough is
divided into 01' forms part of more than OIle polling district,
the overseers shall make out the lists of voters in such manner
as to divide tho names in conformity with each polling district.
The town c1erk shall cause the liots of voters for each borough
to be copied, printed, arnmged, and signed, and delivered in
the manner directed by the Act, so as to correspond with the
division of tlle borough iIlto polling districts. A dcscription
of the polling districts made or altered in pursuance of this
Act shall be advertised by the local authority in such manner
as they think fit. The local authority may, from time to time,
alter any districts made by them under this Act. When
polling places or polling districts are altered, or additional


. polling places 01' districts are created, the same shall be a.d ver-
tised by tbe justices in such maIJIler as they shall think fit,
and when so advertised shall have the same force and effect as
if the same had been published in the London Gazette.


Payment of Expenses Illegal.-It is enacted that it shall not
be lawful for any candidate, 01' any one on his bchalf, at ,any
election for any borough, except the several boroughs of East
Retford, Shoreham, Oricklade, lHuch W cnlock, and Aylesbury,
to pay any money for the conveyance of any voter to the polI,
but such payment shall be deemed to be an illegal payment
within the meaning of " The Oorrupt Practices Prevontion Act,
1854."


Rooms lor taking the Poll.-At every contested election, the
Returning Olicer shall, whenevtlr it is practicable so to do, in-
stead of erecting a booth, hire a building or room for the pur-
pose of taking the polI. The time for delivery of lists of
voters shall be December instead of N ovember as heretofore.


D2




36 THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
Oath to be taken by the Poll Clerk.-The oath too be taken


by the poll clerk shall hereafter be in the following form :-
" 1, A. B., do hereby swear, that 1 wiU truly and indifferently
take the poll at the election of members to serve in Parliament
for the borough or county of So help me, God."
Every person for the time being by law permitted to make a
solemn affirmation or ileclaration, instead of taking an oath,
may make a solemn aflirmation in the form of thc oath hereby
appointed, substituting the words, "solemnly, sincerely, and
truly declare and aflirm" for the word "swear," and omitting
the words " So help me, God."


Receipt oj Pal'ochial Relief.-It is enacted that overseers
of every parish shall omit from the lists made out by them of
persons entitled to vote for the borough and county in which
such parish is situate, the names of all persons who have re-
ceived parochial relief within twelve calendar months next
previous to the last day of July in the year in which the list
is made out.


Election in tite Universíty qf London.-The Vice-Chancellor
of University of London to be the returning officer. Elections
for University of London to be within sÍX days after receipt of
writ, three clear days' notice being given. At every contested
election oI. a member or rnernbers to serve in Parliarnent for
the University of London, the polling shall cornmence at cight
o'clock in the morning of the day next following the day fixcd
for the election, and may continue for not more than five days
(Sunday, Christrnas day, Ascension day, and Good Friday
being excluded), but no polI shall be kept open later than four
o'clock in the afternoon. At every election of a rnember to
serve in Parliament for the University of London the Vice-
Chancellor shall appoint the polling place, and snall have power
to appoint two or more Pro-Vice-Chancellors, any one ofwhom
may receive the votes and decide upon all questions during
the absence of such Vice-Chancellor ; and such Vice-Chancellor
shall have power to appoint pon clerks and other officers, by
one or more of whom the votes may be entered in the polI
book, or such number of poll books as may be necessary; and
such Vice-Chancellor shall, not later than two o'clock in the
afternoon of the day next following the close of the polI,
openly declare the state of the poll and make proclamation of
the member chosen. It is enacted that no person shall be re-
gistered as an elector for the city of London unless he shall




THE REFORlII BILL OF 1867. 37
have resided for six calendar months next previous to the last
day of J uly in qny year, nor be entitled to vote at any election
for the said city unless he shall have ever since the la8t day of
July in the year in which his name was inserted in the register
thcn in force have resided, and at the time ofvoting shall have
continued to reside witbin the said city, or within twenty-five
miles thereof or any part thereof.


Returning Officer in a New Boroug7¿.-In any borough
named in schedule (B) and (C) which is or includes a muni-
cipal borough, the Mayor of such borough shall be the return-
ing oflicer, and in other cases the returning oflicer shall be
appointed.


Boundary Oommissioners. - The Right Honourable Lord
Viscount Eversley, the Right Honourable Russe11 Gurney, Sir
J ohn Thomas Buller Duckworth, Baronet, Sir Francis Cross1ey,
Baronet, and J ohn 'Valter, Esquire, of whom not less than three
shall be a quorum, sha11 be appointed boundary commissioners
for England and Wales, and they sha11 immediately proceed to
inquire into the temporary boundaries of every borough consti-
tuted by this Act, with power to suggest such alterations as they
may deem expediento They sba11 also inquire into tho boun-
daries oí every other borough in England and Wales, except
such boroughs as are disfranchised by this Act, with a view to
ascertain whether the boundaries should be enlarged, so as to
include within the limits of the borough a11 premises which
ought to be included therein. They sha11 a180 inquire into the
divi8ions oí counties as constituted by this Act, and as to the
places appointed for holding courts for the election of members
for such division, with a view to asccrtain whether and what
alterations should be made in such divisions or places. The
said commissioners shall, with all practicable despatch, report to
one of her Majesty's principal Secretaries of State upon the
several matters in this section referred to them, and their re-
port sha11 be laid before Parliament. The commissioners and
assistant commissioners so appointed sha11 give notice by public
advertisement of their intention to visit such counties and bo-
roughs, and shall appoint a time for receiving the statements
of any persons who may be desirous of giving information as
to the boundaries or other local circumstances; the said com-
missioners or assistant commissioners sha11 by personal inspec-
tion and such other means as the commissioners sha11 think
necessary, possess themselves of such information as will en-




38 THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
able the commissioners to make such report as herein men-
tioned.


Bribery.-Any person, either directly or indirectly, corruptly
paying any rate on behalf of any ratepayer for the purpose of
enabling him to be regi3tered as a voter, thereby to influence
his vote at any future election; and any candidate or other
person paying any rate on behalf of any voter for the purpose
of inducing him to vote or refrain from voting, shan be guilty
of bribery ; and any person on whose behalf any such payment
is made sha11 also be guilty ·of bribery, and punishable ac-
cordingly.


Clause H.-The returning officer, his deputy, the partner or
clerk of either of them acting as agent, sha11 be guilty of a.
misdemeanour.


Clause I.-Demise of the crown not to dissolve Parliament.
Members holding offices of profit from the crown not required
to vacate their seats on acceptance of another office. Copy of
reports of commissioners to be evidence in cases of corrupt
practices. Clause 49 provides for separate registers wherc
boroughs and counties have be en divided by this Act. Clause
50 provides for the formation of llew boroughs. The revising
barrister to write the word "borough" opposite the name of
each voter, ir not entitled to vote for the county. The fran-
chises conferred by this Act sha11 be in addition to existing
franchises, but no person ahall be entitled to vote for the same
place in respect of more than one qualification. It is enacted
that the issue of writs to County Palatine of Lancaster "hall
cease.


SCHEDULES.


SCHEDULE (A).
Boroughs to return one jlfember only in future Parliaments.


Honiton.
Thetford.
Wells.
Evesham.
Marlborough.
Harwich.
Richmond.


Lymington. Andover.
Chippenham. Leominster.
Bridport. TewkesburY.
Stamford. Ludlow.
Chipping Wycombe. Ripon.
Poole. Huntingdon.
Knaresborough. Malton.




THE REFORM BILL OF 1867. 39
Buckingbam. Bodmin. Cockermoutb.
Newport (I. ofW.). Great l\Iarlow. Bridgnorth.
New Maldon. Devizes. Guildford.
Tavistoek. Hertford. Chiehester.
Lewes. Dorebester. Windsor.
Cireneester. Lichfield.


SCHEDULE (B).


Middlesex-
New Boroughs.


CHELSEA-Parisbes of Chelsea, Fulham, Hammersmitb,
and Kensington.


JJurham-
DARLINGTON - Townships of Darlington, Haughton-Ie-


Skerne, and Coekerton.
THE HARTLEPOOLS - Municipal Borough of Hartlepool,


townships of Throston, Stranton, and Seaton Carew.
STOCKTON - Municipal Borough of Stockton, and the


township of Thornaby.
Kent-


GRAVEsEND-Parishes of Gravesend, Milton, and North-
. fteet.


Lancashire-
BURNLEY-Townships of Burnley and Habergham Eaves.


Lancashil'e and Oheshil'e-
STALEYERIDGE-Municipal Borough of Stalcybridge; re-


maining portion of township of Dukinfield, the town-
ship of Stalley, and the district of tbe Local Board of
Health of Mossley.


Staifol'dshíre-
WEDNESBURy-Parishes of Wednesbury, West Bromwich,


and Tipton.
Y01'kshiTe (NOTth Riding)-


MIDDLEsBORouGH-Township of Linthorpe, and so much
of the townships of Middlcshorough, Ormesby, and
Eston as lie to the north of the road leading from Eston
towards Yarm.


Yorkshil'e (West Ridíng)-
DEWSBURY - Tbe townships of Dewsbury, Batley, and


Soothill.




40 THE HOUSE OF COMl\1ONS.


SCHEDULE (C).


N ew Boroughs lormed by Division 01 tl¿e Borough 01 the
Tower Hamlets.


County to be
Divided.


-----


Cheshire


Derbyshire


Devonshire


Essex


West Kent


N. Lancashire


Borough of Tower Hamlets.
Borough of Hackney.


SCHEDULE (D).
Counties to be Divided.


Division. County to be Divided.


North Cheshire. S. Lancashire
Mid Cheshire.
South Cbeshire.


Lincoln
N orth Derbyshire.
South Derbyshire.
East Derbysbire.


Norfolk


N orth Devonshire.
East Devonshire.
South Devonshire. Somersetshire


N orth 'Vest Essex.
N orth East Essex. Staffordshir'e
South Essex.


West Kent. ¡ East Surrey
Mid Kent.


N ol'th Lancashire.
N. E. Lancaahire.


y ork.hire ('Vest
Riding)


Division.


S. E. Lancasbire.
8. W. Lancashire.


N ortb Lincolnsbire.
Mid Lincolnshire.
80uth Lincolnshire.


West N orfolk.
NorthEastNorfolk.
80uth East N orfolk.


EaBt Somerset.
Mid Somerset.
West Somerset.


North StaffordShire,¡
West Staffordshire.
East Staffordshire. ,


East Surrey.
:&-lid Surrey.


N orthern Di visiono
Mid Division.
Southern Diviaion.


Before the passing of these measures an election was a very
different afl:'air to what it is now. In the first place, party
spirit ran to a height which the better sense of the present day
would not tolerate, and can scarccly realize. In many towns,
a Whig would not sit down to the same table with a Tory, and
their respective wives and families would not show common




ELECTIONS IN FORMER TIMES. 41
ci"ility to each other when they were thrown in contact, merely
because they happened to differ in politics! :.\fany large counties,
such as Cheshire, Lancashire, Surrey, and Cornwall, sent but
two members to Parliament; whilst tOWIlS of considerable
commercial importance, such as nIanchester, Halifax, and Bir-
mingham, were not represented at all. On the other hand,
numbers of petty places-belonging to sorne nobleman or rich
country gentleman-of no political or commercial importance
whatever, and containing not more than a score or so of voters,
and often less, returned their one or two members to Parlia-
mento These were called rotten boroughs, and those who owned
and supported them boroughmongers.


In counties where sorne great landowner was supreme, or a
combination of landowners holding the same politics prevailed,
the same thing was done. But in others, where the interests
were divided, the fiercest con tests took place. The voting
began at nine o'clock in the morning, and continued till four
o'clock in the afternoon, and went on day after day, provided
that a vote were recorded every hour, until the whole of the
electors had polled. Thus you may easily perceive that in a
constituency of several thousands the con tests might be kept
up for months. And so they were; the question in dispute
being, not who was the best man to send to Parliament, but
which side would spend the most money. The most whole-
sale bribery went on openly, or was administered under the
flimsy pretext of giving employment to electors as agcnts, mes-
sengers, banner-bearers, and tbe like, at wages out of aH pro-
portion to their labours. The electors who had voted were
elltertained, with a view to securing their suffrages on some
future occasion: those who had not, were lodged and feasted,
in order that the other side might not obtain their votes. The
more protracted the struggle the more mOlley would be spent by
both parties, and the better \Vould it be for the electors. Bands
of prize-fighters and other ruffians were hired by rival candidates
to uphold their cause and intimidate the weak and unpro-
tected. Drunkenness and every species of debauchery reigned
paramount. Electors were kidnapped by the opposillg party
for fear they should vote, or locked up by theirfriends for fear
they should be kidnapped. Hundreds and thousands of
pounds were spent in carrying out these disgraceful tactics;
and the resources of many a noble family were sadly crippled
by the enormous outlay required. It is reported that the
costs of a celebrated contested election in Leicestershire resulted




42 THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. •
in a permanent charge of 15,000l. ayear upon the estate oí the
successful candidate !


The House of Commons consists at present (1868) of 658
members. Thus :-


ENGLAND AND W ALES.
Knights of shires 160
Citizens and burgesses 340


500
SCOTLÁND.


Knights of shires 30
Citizens and burgesses 23


53
IRELAND.


Knights of shires 64
Citizens and burgesses 41


105


Total of the U nited Kingdom 658
Ireland and ScotIand have each a separate law regulating


the qualifications of electors.
The degree of Master of Arts, without any property qualifi-


cation, confers a vote in the U niversities.
The following are disqualified from voting. N o person can


vote who
1. 18 an alien or foreigner.
2. Has not arrived at the age of 21 years.
3. Has been convicted of perjury in a court of law.
4. Has been in receipt of parochial re1ief during the year.
5. ls con cerned or employed in the charging, collecting,


1evying, or managing the duties of customs or excise, or in co1-
1ecting the house duty.


6. Who is employed under the· Commissioners of Stamps,
or is such commissioner.


7. Who is employed in any way connected with the General
Post Oflice, or is a police constable.


8. Who is a peer of the realm; and
9. Who has been convicted of bribery, treating, or using


undue infiuence at an election.
In every county, city, and borough a register of qualified


voters is kept. This list is revised once every year by barristers
appointed for that purpose, when the names of persons who




DISQUALIFICATIONS OF l\!Ei\IBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 43
have become entitled to vote are entered, and the names of
those who have died or become disqualified are struck out.


Until the year 1858 members of the House of Commons
were required to possess a property of a certain value; but in
that year this qualification was abolished. The following,
however, are disqualified by law :


l. Aliens. .
2. The fifteen judges of the superior courts of common law,


the lords justices, the three vice-chancellors, the judges of the
county courts, police magistrates, and revising barristers.


3. Persons under the age of twenty-one years.
4. Clergymen-Protestant and Roman Catholic.
5. Outlaws in criminal cases, and persons convicted of


treason and felony.
6. Candidates reported guilty of bribery or treating at an


election (disqualified only for the existing parliament).
7. The returning officer of the county, city, or borough of


which he is such officer.
8. Persons con cerned in the management of taxes created


since 1692, or holding places of profit under the Crown created
since 1718.


9. Pensioners of the Crown.
And lastly,


10. Army agents, government oontractors, and sheriffs'
officers.


Seven years is the limit fixed by law for the duration of
any parliament; at the end of that period it becomes dissolved
as a matter of course. It is also dissolved six months after the
death of the Sovereign, and may, as has already been said, be
put an end to at any moment by the exercise of the royal
authority.


When a new Parliament has to be called together, a royal
warrant is directed to the Lord Chancellor, ordering him to
cause the writs authorizing the elections to be made out and
issued. In every place entitled to be represented in Parlia-
ment is a person called "the Returning-Officer," whose duty is
to manage the election. In counties the sheriff, and in citiea
and boroughs the mayor, bailiff, or some other person duly
appointed, is the returning officer. The writs are despatched
to these returning-officers, commanding them to elect their
members, which they must do in boroughs within six daya
after the receipt of the writ; while in counties twelve days are
allowed, but the election must not be held sooner than the




44 THE HOUSE OF COM~WNS.
sixth day. U pon the day fixed, called the nomination day, a
covered platform called the hustings, is erected in the principal
town in counties, and in sorne convenient locality in other
places, upon which the candidates for election and their friends
assemble. The returning-officer takes the oath against bribery,
and for the proper discharge of his duties. The candidates are
proposed by one supporter, and seconded by another. Tbey
then acldress the electors, stating their political opinions and
their claims to represent them. If the number of persons pro-
posed does not exceed that wruch the electors are entitled to
send to Parliament, they are elected then and there; if more
be put in nomination, and a contest arises, the returning officer
calls for "a show of hands," and declares which candidate has
the greatest number held up for him, but as there is no way of
discovering whether all who thus give their vote are entitled to
one, any candidate unwilling to abide by tbis decision, may de-
mand a pollo When trus is taken, each elector appears before
persons appointed by tbe returning officer as his deputies, and
decides for wruch candidate he intends to vote. Trus vote is
entered by the clerks in the poll-books, which, at the expiration
of the time allowed by law for polling, are taken to the
returning-officer. The votes are aclded up, and the candidates
who are found to have gained the highest number are declared
by him to be duly elected. In counties the poll remains open
for two days, in cities and boroughs for one only.


The Member of Parliament thus elected may be deprived
of his seat, if it can be proved before a committee of the House
of Commons that he, or his agents, with his knowledge, have
been guilty of bribery, corruption, or undue influence in
obtaining votes; or if it be found that persons had voted for
him wbo had no right to do so, and that when their votes
were deducted, his opponent liad a rnajority of duly-qualified
electors.


Should a vacancy occur during the sitting of Parliament, the
Speaker, by order of the House, issues his warrant to the clerk
of tbe Crown, and the writ is sent down, as 1 have narrated.
If it happens during tbe recess, if tbe Speaker is informed of
it in writing, signed by two members of Parliament, the writ
is issued without an order of the House.


A mcmber properly returned may be expelled the House fOI
misconduct, and his seat will become vacated if he be made
bankrupt, and does not satisfy his creditors within ayear, or if
he accepts an office under the Crown; he may, however, be




PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. 45
re-elected, and afterwards fill it. A member may not resign
the trust confided to him; but by his acceptance of the
stewardship of the Chiltern Hundreds, or of the Manor of
Northstead (sineeure offiees under the Crown preserved for the
purpose), his seat will be vaeated and he can thus retire from
Parliament. He cannot be made liable for anything that he
may say in debate. The Lower Houso has the right to
originate all bilIs relating to, or affecting the revenue and the
taxation of the kingdom, and to vote the supplies; nor can any
bilIs dealing with the taxation of the country be altered or
amended by the House of Lords. That House can only rcjeet
thern, or pass thern in the forrn in which they come up from
the Comrnons.




46


LETTER VI.


THE ADVISERS OF THE CROWN.


The Privy Council-The Judicial Committee-The Cabinet Council-
Tbe Attorney- and Solicitor-General-The Ministry, its Compo-
sition and Policy-The Opposition-Pensions of Ministers.


1 RAVE told you that the advisers of the sovereign are respon-
sible for his political acts; 1 must now tell you who these are.


The principal council of the crown is the Privy Council. Its
members (whose number is now unlimited) are appointed by
the sovereign, and can be removed at her pleasure. The oath
taken by a privy cOUIlcillor upon entering office is as follows :


1. To advise the queen according to the best of his cunning
and discretion.


2. 'ro advise for the queen's honour and good of the public
without partiality through affection, love, meed, aoubt, or
dread.


3. To keep the queen's counsel secreto
4. To avoid corruption.
5. To help and strcngthen the execution of what shall be


there resolved.
6. 'ro withstand all persons who would attempt the COll-


trary. And lastly,
7. To observe, keep, and do aIl that a good artd true couu-


sellor ought to do to his sovereign lord.
The power of thís Councíl as a body has of late years been


very mueh diminished. Its judicial business (whích maiuly
consists of hearing appeals from the courts in our plantations
or colonies, and from the Admiralty and Ecclesiastical Courts)
is transacted by a committee of judges and other eminent
lawyers made members for the purpose; and its duties of
advising the Crown aud conducting the government of tlle
country are almost exclusively performed by the principal
ministers of State, who are members of the Oabinet Oowncil.




THE CABINET COUNCIL. 47
This is'so termed on account of its being originaIly composed
of such members of the Privy Council as the killg placed most
trust in" and conferred with apart from the others in his cabinet
or private room. Curiously enough, although it is a body of
the highest importance-being in fact the government of the
country-it is not recognised in any way by the constitution.
It is not, even in any strict or formal sense, a Committee of
the Privy Council, to which, however, its members always
belong. Gn this subject Macaulay writes, "Few things in our
history are more curious than the origin and growth of the
power now pOBsessed by the Cabinet. From an early period
the Kings of England had been assisted by a Privy Council to
which the law assigned many important functions and duties.
During several centuries this body deliberated on the gravest
and most delicate affairs. But by degrees its character
changed. It became too large for despatch and secrecy. The
rank of Privy Councillor was often bestowed as an honorary
distinction on persons to whom nothing was confided, and
whose opinion was never asked. The sovereign, on the most
important occasions, resorted for advice to a smaIl knot of
leading ministers. The advantages and disadvantages of this
course were early pointed out by Bacon, with his usual judg-
ment and sagacity: but it was not till after the Restoration
that the interior council began to attract general notice. Dur-
ing many years old fashioned politicians continued to regard
the Cabinet as an unconstitutional and dangerous board.
N evertheless, it constantly became more and more important.
It at length drew to itself the chief executive power, and has
now be en rcgarded, during several generations, as an essential
part of our polity. Yet, strange to say, it still continues to be
altogether unknown to the law. The names of tbe noblemen
and gentlemen who compose it are never officially announced
to the publico No record is kept of its meetings and resolu-
tions; nor has its eristence ever been reeognised by any Aet
of Parliament."


The criminal jurisdieticn of the Privy Couneil, that iI1 the
days of the Star Chamber (whieh was composed of its mem-
bers), was stretched to so dangerous a lengtb, is now no
greater than that exercised by justices of the peace.


Rer Majesty is frequently empowered by act of parliament
to make proclamations and orders upon given subjects, "by and
with the advice of her Privy Council," but only such members
as are specially summoned attend upon each occasion.




48 THE ADVISERS OF THE CROWN.
Privy councillors are distinguished by having tbe words


" right honoumble" prefixed to their christian names or initials.
The sovereign may appoint her own ministry, or may order


any person to form one; but as a majority in parliament is
indispensable for the carrying on of government, it follows
that, in practice, the ministry is composed of the leader of the
political party in power, assisted by his friends and supporters.
The Oabinet Oouncil, sbortly termed the Cabinet, forms only
part of the ministry or administration. It usually consists of
the following great officers of state :


The First Lord of the Treasnry. This office is now generalIy
held by the Premia, or first minister, but he may hold anyother.


The Lord High Chancellor-the law adviser of the ministry ;
and kecper of the great seal.


Tite Lord P1'esident of tlLe Council.
1'l¿e Postmastet'-Geneml.
TIte Lord P1'ivy Seal.
Tite Secreta1'y of State fo1' F01'eígn Affairs-who conducts


our intercourse with foreign nations.
Tite Secl'etary of State for tite Colonies.
Tite Secntary o/ State for tIte Home ])epar-tment-who


manages the internal affairs of the kingdom.
Tlze Secretary of State for the Wa1' ])epartment.
TIte Secretary of State for I ndía.
The Chancellor of tlLe Excher¡uel'-w ho arranges and accounts


to Parliament for the public revenue and expenditure.
The Cltancellor of tite ])uchy of Lancaster.
TIte First Lord of tlle Admimlty-who presides over thc


affairs of the Royal N avy.
The President o/ the Board of Tmde-who attends to


matters relating to trade and commerce.
Distinguished statesmen who hold no oflice under govern-


ment are sometimes made members of the Oabinet.
Members of the Ministry must have seats either in the


House of Lords or Oommons.
Many other polítical oflices subordinate to those 1 have


mentioned, and a number of places in her Majesty's Household
are filled by members of the party in power, who resign them
when their friends go out of office.


The chief legal adviser of the Orown is the Lord Ohall-
ceUor; its law officers are the Attorney- and Solicitor-General
and Queen's Advocate. The two former are selected from
amongst the most distinguished Queen's Oounsel (a grade in




THE MINISTRY AND THE OPPOSITION. 49
the legal profession which I will oxplain in due course). They
have to investigate the claims of inventors to letters-patent, by
which the sole right to use or permit the use of the invention
is secured to its owner for fourteen yeara. rrhey represent the
Crown in the courta of law and equity, the Attorney-General
being in strictness entitled to a brief in every criminal prose-
cution, but only such as are of great difliculty and importance
are undertaken by him. In cases of high treason both these
oflicers invariably appear. The Queen's Advocate acts for the
Crown in the Admiralty, and other courts where the civil law
is administered.


A Ministry usually belongs to a distinct polítical party, and
accepts oflice pledged to carry out some particular plan or
policy of government. 'l'he party in Parliament tbat is opposed
to this is called the Opposition. The Ministerial members-
those who generally support the .Ministry-sit on the right-
hand side of the Speaker's chair in the House of Commons,
and those of the Opposition on the 1eft. In the House of
Lords-substituting the throne for the Speaker's chair-the
same rule ia generally observed, exeept upon high state oeca-
sions, when the Lords take their seats upon separate benches,
according to the rank that thcy hold in the pcerage, irrespec-
tive of their political opinions. When the Ministry is defeated
-that is, placed in a minority upon some question intimately
connected with the poliey under which they took oflice; or if
a vote of want of confidence is passed against them, they should
resign, and, constitutionally speaking, the Opposition ought to
be able to take their place.


When Ministers bave served for a period of three years,
tbey are each entitled to a pension of 1:2000 for life on retire-
ment; in computing which period it is usual to reckon the
aggregate tenure ol' oflice, il' it should happen that any of
them have served more than once.


E




;;0


LETTER VII.


PROCEEDINGS IN P ARLIAMENT.


Opening of Parliament-Election and Duties of Speaker-Tbe Speech
from the Tbrone-the Business of Government-Passing Bills,
public and private-Divisions of tbe House-Voting by Feers,-
by the Commons-tbe Royal Assent-tbe Budget-Committee of
"W"ays and l'I'leans"-Of Supply-l'I'lutiny Act-Prorogation.


WHEN the day fixed for the meeting of a new Parliament
arrives, the members of both houses assemble alld take the
oaths prescribed by law. 'l.'he Commons then, under an order
from the Crown, proceed to elect their Speaker. This impor-
tant oflicer of the Crown is chosen by the House of Commons
from amongst its own members, subject to the approval of the
Sovereign, and holds his oflice till the disBolution of the Par-
liament in which he was elected. Bis dnties are, to read to
the Sovereign petitions or addresses from the Commons, and
to deliver in the royal presence such speeches as are usually
made on behalf of the Commons; to manage, in the name of
the House, where counsel, witnesses, or prisoners are at the
bar; to reprimand persons who have incurred the displeasure
of the House; to issue warrants of committal or release for
breaches of privilege; to communicate in writing with any
parties, when so instructed by the House; to exercíse vígilance
in reference to prívate bilIs, especiaIly with a view to protect
property in general, or the rights of individuals, from undue
encroachment or injury; to express the thanks or approbation
of the Commons to distinguished pcrsonages; to control and
regulate the subordinate oflicers of the HouRe; to entertain
the members at dinner, in due succession and at stated periods;
to adjourn the House at four o'clock if forty members be not
prescnt; to appoint tellers on divisiolls. 'l.'he Speaker must
abstain from debating, unless in committee of the whole
Honse. As chairman of the House, his duties are thc same
as those of any other president oí a deliberative assembly.




OPENING Ol!' PARI,L\.~IENT. 51
When Parliament is about to be prorogued, it is customary fol'
the Speaker to address the Sovereign, in the House of Lords,
a speech recapituIating the proceedings of the session. Should
a member persevere in breaches of order, the Speaker may
" name" him, as it is called, a course unifol'mly followed by
the censure of the House. In extreme cases the Speaker may
order mcmbers or otbers into custody, until the pIeasure of
the House be signified. On divisions, when the numbers
happen to be equal, he gives the casting vote, but he never
otherwise votes, except when the House is in committee,
when he can vote Iike any other member. At the end of his
official labours he is generally l'ewarded by a peeragc, and a
pension of 40001. for two lives. He is a membel' of the Privy
Council.


When her Majesty opens Parliament, she goes in State to
the House oí Lords, and takes her seat upon the throne. The
Commons are then summoned, and such members as pIease
attend, with their Speaker, at the bar. The royal specch,
prepared beforehand by the Ministry, and in which the present
condition of pu bIic affairs is briefly set forth, and the new
measures to be submitted to the Legislature adverted to, is
handed to the Queen by the Lord Chancellor and read by her j
after wmch, her Majesty retiring, the business of the session
commcnces. 1'he Cornrnons return to their own chamber, and,
by way of form, rcad sorne bill to keep up their priviIege of
not giving priority to tlle royal specch. Two members ap-
pointed by Governmcnt then move and second "the address"
in either House, thanking her Majesty for her graeious speeeh,
and each appoints a deputation to present it. In former days,
the debate UpOIl the address was often very vehementIy con-
tested, and "amendments" or alterations, implying a refusal to
accept the intended poliey of the Ministry, were frequently
proposed; but of late, although the Ieaders of the Opposition
in each House usually eriticise closely the topies contained in,
or omitted from, the speecl¿, the address is generally passed
without further opposition.


When ParIiarnent is opened by Commission, the royal speech
is read by one of the Commissioners, and the address passed as
1 have stated.


The business of making and aItering the laws is carned on
by eaeh House of Parliamellt, independently of the other. N o
proceeding which has taken place in the one may properly be
aUnded to iu the other, nor may any past debate of the same


E2




52 PROCEEDINGS IN PARLIAMENT.
session be mentioned. Their deliberations are suppbsed to be
seeret, and although the publie is admitted to hear the debates,
and reporters from the newspapers attend regularly to publish
them, this is only practically permitted by a foolish fiction
under which their presence is ignored. For should any mem-
ber draw the attention of tlle Speaker to the faet, that there
are strangers in the House, he has no alternative but to order
them to withdraw. There are parts oí the House to whieh
strangers may be admitted when no objection is made, but any
attempt to trespass upon the portion set apart for members oí
Parliament would be treated as a serious contempt. By a
curious fiction, the space immediately around the Throne and
the W oolsack, in the House of Lords, is deomed not to be
a part oí that House. So that when the Lord Chaneellor
wishes to speak, he moves írom the W oolsaek to the front oí the
head of the ducal beneh, and from thence addresses the peers.


The only official report ofproceedings in Parliament is printed
by the Queen's printer.


1 have already stated the measures which it is the privilege
of the Lords or Commons to originate. There is one bill
only which the Crown has the right of initiating-an Act of
General Pardon. This is originated by the Sovereign, and
read once in each House oí Parliament. AH others may be
introduced in either House, and by any membcr; only such
as are of great public importance are generally taken charge of
by the Governmont, who having certain days of the week ex-
clusively devoted to the discussion of the bilIs they bring in,
have better opportunities of passing them. Government
bilis are entrusted to the head of the department which con-
ducts that branch of the administration which the proposed
new law will affect. Thus, bilIs relating to the colonies are
brought in by tho Colonial Secretary; to police, prisons, &e.,
by the Home Secretary; to taxes, by the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, &c. &c.


The chieí business of both Houses oí Parliament is the pass-
ing of bills and the presentation oí petitíollS. Bills are either
(1) public, affecting the general interests oí the State; or (2)
private, enablillg prívate individuals, associated together, to
undertake works of public utility at their own risk, and, in a
degree, for their own benefit; and also relating to naturaliza-
tion, change oí name, or for perfecting titles to estates, &c.
Public bilis may originate in either House, unless they be for
granting supplies of any kínd, or unless they involve directly




PASSING BILLS. 53
or indirectly the levying or appropriation of any tax or fine,
for then they must be initiated in the Commons; so must all
private bills which authorize the levying of local tolls or rates.
Estate, peerage, and naturalization bills are commenced in the
Lords. To bring a private bi11 into Parliament, ccrtain notices
and advertisements must be given, and certain plans and docu-
ments deposited according to the standing orders of the Houses ;
a petition must then be presented by a member, whieh usually
sets forth the object desired. A publie bill is brought into
the House of Commons upon motion made to the House for
leave to bring it in j but in the H01lse of Lords a previous
permission is unneeessary. The bill is presented to the house
and then printed. In the House of Lords, if the bill begin
there, it i8, when of a private nature, referred to two of the
judges to examine and report the statc of the facts alleged, to
see that all necessary parties consent, alld to settle aU points
of technical propriety. A public bill i8 read a first time, and,
at a conveniellt interval, a second time j and, after each read-
ing, the Speaker states whcn the next stage will be taken.
The introduction of the bill may be opposed at once, as the
bill itself may at any stage. If the opposition sueceed the
bill must be dropped for that scssion. After the seeond read-
ing the bill is considered in committee of the whole House.
It i8 there debated clause by clause, amendmellts may be
made, the blanks supplied, and sometimes it i5 entirely re-
modelled. After it has gone through the comlllittee the
chairman reports it to the House, with such amendments as
the cornmittee have made, and then the House reconsiders the
whole bin, and the question is put upon overy amendment.
When the HouRe has agreed or disagreed to the amendments
of the committee, and sometimos added new amelldments of
its OWIl, the bill is ordered to be reprinted, after which it is
read a third time, and amendments are sometimes even then
made to it and further elauses 'addcd. The Speaker then puts
the question whether the bill shall pass. lf this is agrced
to, the title to it is settled. After this thc hill as passed is
printed, and a deputed member, attended by several more,
carries it to the bar of the Lords, delivers it to their speaker,
and desires their concurrence. It there passes through the
same forms as in the other House, and, if rejected, lIomore
notice of it i8 taken, bnt the matter passes sub silentio, to
prevent unbecoming altercations. But if it is agreed to, the
Lords send a message to the Commons that they have agreed




54 PROCEEDlNGS IN PARLIAl\lENT.
to the bill. The bill remains with thc Lords if they have
made no amendment to it; but if any amendment~ be made
such amendments are sent down with the bill to receive the
concurrence of the Commons. If tite Commons disagree to the
amendments a conference usually follows bctween members
deputed from either Honse, who, for the most part, settle and
adjust the difference; but if both Houses relllain inflexible,
the bill is then dropped. If the Commolls agree to the amend-
ments the bill is sent back to the Lords, by one of thc mem-
bers, with a message to acquaint thelll therewith. The same
forms are obscrvcd, mutatis mutanrlis, when thc bill begins in
the House of Lords.


The House of Lords meets at fin o'clock in the afternoon,
the House of Commons at four o'clock, except on vVednesdays,
when it sits at noon. In both Houses, howevcr, rnorning
sittings are sometimes spccially appointed. Before the com-
mencement of business in either, praycrs are read; in the
Lords by one of the bishops in turn, and in the Commons by
the Speaker's chaplain. Three members must be present in
the former, and forty in the lattcr, or therc is what is called
" no house," and business is adjonrned until the next day.


When the bill has passed through both Houses in this
manner, it is ready to receive the royal assent, which is given
either by her Majesty in person or by Commission. Wheu her
:M:ajesty gives her consent in person, her concurren ce is pre-
viously communicated to the clerk-assistallt, who reads the
titles of the bills, on which thc royal assent is signified by a
gentle inclination. If it be a bill of supply, the clerk pro-
nounces loudly, " La reigne remercie ses bons 8uJets, accepte lelW
bénévolence, et ansi le veult." " The Queen thanks her good
subjects, accepts their bcnevolence, and answers, ' De it so.'''
To other public bills the form of assent is " La reigne le veult,"
-" The Queen wills it RO." To private bills, "Soi fait comm.e
il est désiré,"-" Be it as it is prayed." vVhen the royal assent
is refused, the clerk says, "La reigne s'avisera,"-" The Queen
will consider of it;" but theso words are never now prononnced,
and have not been heard since Queen Anne refused to sanction
the Scotch Militia Bill in the year 1707.


A bill may be opposed at any, or all, of its stages. When
it is intended to do so, after a sufficient discussion has taken
place, the "question" is " put" by the Speaker, and the House
is divided. Those members who vote for the bill, or amend-
ment in it, go into one lobby of the House, and those who vote




VOTING BY PEERS AND COMMONS. 55
against them into another. Tellel"s, or counters of the voters on
either side (generally the mover and seconder of the bill and
two of its principal opponents), are appointed to ascertain the
numbers in each. The result is written down upon a slip of
paper, which is handed by the teller of the side that has a
majority to the Speaker, who declares it to the House. The
Speaker does not vote except when the House is equally di-
vided; he tben may give a casting vote. In" committee" he
is entitled to speak and vote like any othor member.


In the House of Lords, peers vote by the words " content"
and " non-content," and many use proxies, as already explained.
In the Commons, members must be present, and signify their
wish by saying "aye" or "no." If the "noes" are in a majo-
rity, the bill, 01' amendment, is lost; if tho " ayos" prevail,
the bill proceeds, oc the amendmeut stands part of it. Bills
must pass through aH their stages in one session. So a formal
method of throwing ono out, is to move that it be reau a
second time that "day six months," when it is almost certain
that Parliament will not be sitting. Bills are also sometimos
referred to select committees chosen by the House in which they
are introduced. These committees deliberate and examine
witnesses, to ascertain whether the proposed measure is essen-
tial or otherwise, in apartmeuts provided for the purpose, and
report the result of their investigations to the House.


Early in the session the Challcellor of the Exchequer lays
his Budget (from the French word bOl~gette, a bundle) before
Parliament. This contains an estimate of the SUlll required
for the service of the State, for the Army, N avy, Civil Service,
&c. &c., and tho llloans proposed for raising it by taxation, or
otherwise. 'rhe duration of a Ministry very often depends
upon the correetness alld sound financial poliey of its Chall-
cellor of the Exchequer. The sum required is voted, or
refused, in Committee of Ways and Jlfeans, alld if granted, the
manner in which it is to be applied is discussed, item by item,
in Committee of Supply.


N ow, 1 intend to saya few words about these two impor-
tant committees of the House of Commons. The duties of a
Committee of Ways and Means always refer to the funds
which are to sustain the expenditme of the nation. Loans,
duties, taxes, tolls, and evcry kind of means for raising re-
venue, are submitted to this committee (which is always one
of the whole House). The propositions of Government on
these subjects are reduced to the form of resolutiollS, consi·




56 PROCEEDINGS IN P ARLIAMENT
dered, decided on, and, such as are agreed to, reportéd to the
House. Those which may be there adopted are embodied into
bills, and in due course become law. The House of Lords
may reject, but cannot modify nor insert pecuniary penalties in
any bill whatcver. With regard to the Committee of Supply,
all bills authorizing expenditure of the public moneyare based
upon resolutions moved in a Committee of Supply, whieh is
always a committee of the whole House. The practice with
regard to these bills is as follows :-In the course of the ses-
sion estimates are submitted to a Committee of Supply, ancl
resolutions moved gmnting to the Crown the sums requisite
for defraying the expenses attendant on the various branches
of the publie service. Those resolutions having be en consi-
dered and disposed of, such amongst them as may be affirmed
are reported to the Houso, reconsidered, and adopted, or
rejected. Under authority of those to which the House agree,
the Lords of the Treasury issue the requisite funds for carry-
ing on the service of the country. At the end of the session
the supply resolutions are consolidated in the Appropriation
Bill, which is sent up to the Lords, and after being there con-
sidered and agreed to, receives the Royal Assent and becomes
law. The Lords may reject this money-bill, but it would be
considered an invasion of tlle privileges of the Commons if
their Lordships were substantially to modify measures of this
c1ass. The Commons, however, do not object to consider any
verbal emendations which may be made by the other House.


To pass the Mutiny Act is also the annual business of Par-
liament. In former days the monarch often used the army to
control the liberties of the subject. To remedy any abuse of
power in this respect, it has for many years been the custom
to pass the laws relating to the discipline and regulation of
the army for one year only, to be renewed the next. If any-
thing happened to prevent the Mutiny Act being passed in
proper time, the whole of our arIlly would be in fact dis-
banded.


When the business of the session is concluded, Parliament
is prorogued, or, if necessary, dissolved, by the Sovereign in
person, or by Commission, when a royal speech is delivereu
commentir:g upon the proceedings of the session, the state of
public affairs, and thanking the Commons for voting the
supplies.




57


LETTER VIII.


THE NATIONAL DEBT.


Its Origin-The Funds-Funding System-Transfer of Stock-Price
of Money-Reduction of Debt-Sinking Fund-Amount of Debt
at various periods of our History-Revenue-Exports and Importa
-Balance of Trnde.


THE Nationa1 Debt consists of sums borrowed by Government
to make up dcficiencies of revenue. Charles n. was the first
king of Great Britain who borrowed money on the nationa1
eredit; this began in 1660. At the abdication of James n.,
in 1688, the amount of the debt was 660,000l. But it was
his sueeessor who established the system. The Revolution,
and the eonsequent banishment of the house of Stuart, in-
volved us in a long and costIy war with Louis XIV. of Franee,
who espoused the cause of our exiled king. The seat of his
son-in-Iaw, William IU., upon the vacated throne, was by no
means se cure. A large and powerfuI party of Englishmen
still remained true to James n. as king de Jure (oj rigltt), and
many others onIy just tolerated the sway of the de jacto sove-
reign. Money, far beyond what the ordinary revenue of the
eountry wouId pro vide, was required to defray the heavy ex-
penses of the struggle whieh \Ve were eompelled to wage in
defence of our religion and Iiberties; and it was feIt that it
would be dangerous in the extreme to impose new taxes suffi-
cient to meet the demando


The cause of Louis was the cause of James, and it was not
to be expected that the adherents of the lattor would quiet1y
submit to heavy imposts designed to furnish means for de-
stroying their fondest hopes. It was therefore determined to
borrow money upon interest, and to repay it when the re-
sources oí the country were in a more flourishing eondition.
But the exigeneies oí the pubIic service went on increasing,
and loan after loan was eontracted. Other wars were engaged
in-again the national expenditure became greater than its




58 THE NATIONAL DEBT.
income, and Ministry after Ministry added to the debt, untit
not only do we find it existing at the present day; but (not-
withstanding that large portions of it have been paid off from
time to time) existing to the enormous extent of eight lu~ndred
millions of pounds! besides sums due upon Exc1tequer bills
(promissory notes issued by Government for temporary pur-
poses) which constitute the unf~tnded debt.


The termfund applied originally to the taxes or funds set
apart, as security, for repayment of the principal sums ad-
vanced and the interest upon them; but when money was no'
Ionger borrowed to be repaid at any given time, it began to
mean the principal sum itself. In the year 1751, Government
began to unite the various Ioans into one fund, called the
Oonsolidated fund (which you must not confuso with that of
the same name into which part of tlle revellue is collected),
and sums due in this are now shortly termed consols. These
come under the general denomination of stoclcs.


The interest paid upon loans during the reigns of William
III. and Anne was various j but latterly, instead of varying
the interest upon the loan, according to the state of the money-
market at the time, it was fixed at three and a half per cent.,
the necessary addition being made in the principal funded.
Thus, suppose that Government could not borrow money
under four and a half per cent., they would give the lender
1501. three per ccnt. stock for cvery 1001. he advanced, and
the country would be bound to pay him 41. lOs. a year as in-
terest until the debt was extinguished by a payment of 1501.
This was evel'ltually found to be a very bad plan, and it was
calculated, when it was discontinucd, that owing to its adop-
tion, the debt then existing amounted to nearly two-fifths more
than the sum actually advauced, and that we were payingfrom
6,000,0001. tú 7,000,0001. a year in interest more tban wúuld
have been due had the money been borrowed at the market rate
(lf the day, and funded without increase of capital. For the
market rate of interest might faH the week after the loan was
contracted, whereas the additional capital funded remained
undiminished.


A portion of the revenue is set apart every year to pay the
interest upon the N ational Debt to such persons as have them-
selves lent money, and to those by whom the claims of others
have been inherited, or to whom they have been transferred.
The person to whom stock is transferred need not receive any
certificate of the transfer, but his na me is registered in the




TRANSFER OF STOCK. 59
National Debt books. If he disposes of the whole or any part
of it, this is again transferrcd from his name to that of its new
proprietor. The registry books are arranged aIphabeticaIly in
the Bank of England, and distributed in several apartments,
marked with the initial letter and syllables of the book they
contain. Thus everybody is able to find the exact place where
his account is kept. The business of buying arid selling
stock, however, is almost entirely in the hands of the stock-
bl'o1cers, who beco me agents for the parties who wish to procure
or part with it, aud transact aIl the nccessary operations upon
their behalf. The Bank of England manages the payment of
interest upon the funds for Government.


'1'he vaIue of a nominal 100l. of stock fluctuates according
to the abundance or scarcity of money in circulation. During
the 1ast hundred years the markct price of 100l. in the 3 per
cent. consols has becn as low as 47±, and as high as 101i-
Anythillg that tends to endanger or lcssen the national pros-
pcrity causes the Funds to sink, and vice versa. Foreign
nations have attempted to keep up the price of their stocks by
force of law, but have failcd signaIly. ~foney, likewater, will
find its own level, and no legislative enactmcnts will cause any
permanent increase, or the contrary, in its value.


r saw that you werc much puzzled once when your uncle
and 1 were talking of the price o/ money. Y ou thought, no
doubt, that sovereigns and shillings were of a fixed and unalter-
able value; and as far as regards their shape and weight they
are so. But really and practica11y they are no more than
pieees of gold and silver, worth just as much as you can get in
exchange for them, and no more. A sovereign represents so
mueh land or so many 1cgs of mutton, or pieees of ribbon, or
ericket-bats, or anything else that we may require. If there
are only a very few 1egs of mutton in the market, and plenty
of soverciglls to buy them with, the ]lOlders of money must
(practicalty) compete with a11 other persons requiring meat,
and give as much for it as any of them will payo If, on the
other hand, 1egs of mutton are numerous, and there are very
few sovereigns in cireulation, the tables are turned-the butcher
must compete (in the sallle way as before) for the money, and
give as much meat as others will in return for the gold.
Therefore, when you say that certain things are cheap or
dear, you mean, in other words, that they are plentiful or
the reverse.


For the, gradual reduction ofthe principal of the National




60 THE NATIONAL DEBT.
Debt, sinking funds were established; the first by Sir Robert
Walpole in the year 1716, the second by Mr. Pitt in 1786.
By the latter an estimated surplus of 900,000l. in the revenue
was augmented by taxes, so as to make up a sum of one mil-
lion; and this was to be applied every year towards paying off
the public creditors. As long as this, or any surplus remained
over expenditure, it might be properly and successfully applied
to this purpose; the time carne, however, when there was no
such thing, but the sinking fund did not disappear with it. We
were soon at war again, and obliged to make new loans to
supply a d![/iciency, but the 900,000l. were still applied as
before, and the fund still deserved (in one sense) the term by
which it was known, for it \Vas sinking the nation deeper and
deeper in debt. We were discharging liabilities upon which a
small amount of interest was due with one hand, and con-
tracting fresh ones upon which we had to paya large interest
with the other. We were, in fact, foIl owing the exam pIe of
the Irishman in the story, who, finding that his blanket was
not long enough to cover the upper part of his bed, cut a piece
off its other end to supply the deficiency! The financier¡; of
the day were deluded by a fascinating tbeory that the sinking
fund accumulating upon compound interest· (that is, interest
upon interest) would in time equal the debt. Dr. Price, at
wbose illstigation the second sinking fund was established,
attempted to prove this by calculating how many globes 01 gold
a penny invested at compound interest at the birth of Jesus
Ohrist, would amount to at the date ofhis investigation. But
to secure the marvellous in crease effected in time by compound
interest, aU the proceeds J1lust be re-invested and added to the
capital, not expended as income; and this was never actuaUy
done. Experience provcd tbat the system was a fallacious
one, and it was discontinued. Now notbing but actual excess
of revenue over expenditure is applied for tbe reduction of the
N ational Debt.


One of the methods successfully adopted for decreasing the
amount of interest paid upon the funds, was for Government
to offer-when it had a surplus in hand-to redeem sums of
stock unless t!J.e holders agreed to accept a lower rate upon
them; and as this was proposed at the market price of the day,
they were frequelltly willing to do so.


Most other nations have contracted public debts, but thc
N ational Debt of England exceeds the heaviest kllown j and
this fact is often thrown in our teeth, when the greatness of




AMOUNT OF NATIONAL DEBT. 61
our country is the subject of discussion. But such is the
vastness of our trade and the elasticity of our resources, that
the impost is by no means insupportable. lndeed some main-
tain that we are better off with it, than we should be without
it. I do not go so far as this. The debt, however, is the
priee we pay for the position (out of aU proportion to their
geographicallimits) which these little islands have won. Sorne
of the wars for carrying on which it was incurred, might have
been averted probably, or brought to speedier termination;
but others were most necessary, and, taking the rough with the
smooth, it is very fair that posterity should bear a portion of
the burden, as they participate in the experiences and benefits
it secured.


The following table will show you the amount of the Na-
tional Debt (both funded alld unfunded) at various periods of
our history down to the year 1866 :-
Year.
1688.
1702.
1714.
174!1.
1763.
1786.
] 798.
1802.
1814.
1817 {
1850.
1856.
1860.
1864.
1866.


Occasion.
On the accession of WiIliam In ..
On the accession of Queen Anne •
On the accession of George I. .
At the end of the Spallish war .
Át the end of the Seven Years' war
Three years. after the Ámerican war .
After the Irish rebellion and foreign war
Close of the French revolutionary war •
Close of the war against Buonaparte . .
When the English and Irish Exchequers


consolidated . • • • • • . • •
. . . . ~ . . . . . .


Conclusion of the war with Russia


Amount.
.i660, 000


16,500,000
54,000,000
78,000,000


139,000,000
268,000,000
462,000,000
571,000,000


. • 865,000,000
~er~ ¡ 840,850,491


790,927,016
803,913,694
802,190,300
790,565,224
785,875,434


Our average revenue during the reign of William lII. was
about 4,000,000l.; in that of George l. it was 6,000,000l.;
in that of George n., 8,000,000l.; in the year 1788, it had
risen to 15,572,971l. In 1820 the sum raised by taxes in
the United Kingdom was 65,599,570l.; in 1825 it fen to
62,871,300l. ; in 1830 it was 55,431,3171.; in 1835 it was
50,494,732; in 1845 it was 51,067,856l.; in 1850 it was
52,951,478l.; in 1855, during the Russian war, it was
84,505,788l.; in 1864, 70,313,000l.; and in 1868 it was
70,000,000l.


To show you the wealth of our country, the declared value
of our exports was-




62 THE NATIONAL DEBT.
In 1853 :1:99,000,000


"
1855


·


95,000,000 (year of war.)
"


1856 . 116,000,000


"
1857 · 122,000,000


"
1864 • 213,000,000


"
1866 • 188,917,536


"
1867 · 181,183,971


Our imports were-
In 1853 1:123,099,313
" 1854 124,338,478
" 1855 143,000,000


"
1856 172,000,000


"


1857 187,000,000


"
1~64 274,000,000


"
1866 29.5,290,274-


"
1867 275,249,853


With regard to thc disparity in value which exists between
our exports and our imports, 1 may observe that it used to be
urged that this showed an unsound state of commerce. The
balance 01 trade, it was said, was against us, as we took more
from foreign nations than we gave. 1 can show you the fal-
lacy of this argument by a very simple illustration. Suppose
a merchant were to send to America (for example) 10001.
worth of goods, and selling them at a profit, ship homeward a
cargo ofthe value of 15001. If tIús arrives safely his imports
exceed his exports, and (according to the above theory) he is
rapidly becoming bankrupt; but if they all sink to the bottom
of the sea and are lost, then he is a most fiourishing trader.
Exports are thc price of imports, and (as gold is now reckoned
in the category of both as an article of commerce) it is quite
clear that if we buy more than we sen it must be because we
are selling at a profit.




63


LETTER IX.


LOCAL GOVERNMENT.


Its PrincipIe, Origin, and Objects-High Shel'iff and Lord Lieutenant
of tlle County-Local Rates-tha Parish and its Officers-The Con-
stable-Churchwardens-Surveyor of Highways-The Vestl'Y,
General and Select-The POOl' Law-The Law of Settlement-
Operation of the old POOl' Law-'1'he new POOl' Law-Municipal
Corporations-Town Councils-Mayor and Aldermen-Boards of
Health-Improvement Commissioners.


You now know how the general government of the kingdom
is carried on. 1 purpose, in this Letter, to show you how
the affairs of the counties, citics, boroughs, and parishes of
which it is composed are regulated.


It is a fundamental principIe of the British Conetitution,
that all persons and communities shall be allowed to manage
their own affairs as long as they do so regularly and according
to law. For it is only natural to conclude, that those whose
comfort and wclfare are to be considered, who will be the first
and principal sufferers by neglectful or bad government, are
much more likely to know what ought to be done than
strangers, however well intentioned they may be, who have not
the same knowledge and experience. The powers of local go-
vernments are fixed by the common law, by charter from the
Crown, and by Aet of Parliament.


The most ancient division of the eountry for the purpose of
self-government was into shires, hundreds, and tithings. At
present the usual di visions are counties, hundreds, boroughs,
and parishes. The ministerial and judicial business of the
county is transacted by the High Sheriff, the Coroner, and the
Justices of the Peace, and is enforced in it by the former and
rus officers. lts military government is confided to the· Lord
Lieutenant, who, when occasion requires, with the aid of his
Deputy Lieutenants, ealls out the Militia, of which force he
has the command; and the commissions of all its officers, with
the exceptions which 1 shall state hereafter, are signed by him.




64 LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
Re is frequently the custos rotulorwn, or keeper of the records
of the county, and attends the Sovereign when he passes
through it. The post of Lord Lieutenant in counties was in-
stituted in England by Edward III., i!l the year 1349, and
extended to Ireland in 1831. The appointment, which is a
purely honorary one, is made by the Crown, and is for lire.


The oflice of Sheriff is of much greater antiquity. Ris office
is of Saxon origin, and its name is derived from the words
shire gereja, or shire reeve. Re was inferior to the Earl only
when that was the title of the county's military governor, and
is now the chief man in it as his successor.


Sheriffs, by virtue of several old statutes, are to continue in
their oflice no longer than one year, but a sheriff may be ap-
pointed durante bene placito, and so is the form of the royal
writ. Therefore till a new Bhcriff be named his office cannot
be determined. On expiration of his office, he must deliver to
his successor a correct list of aH prisoncrs in his custody, and
of aH unexecuted process. N o man who has served the office
of sheriff for one year can be compeHed to serve again within
three years after, if there be other sufficient person within
the county. The discharge of this oflice is in general compul-
soÍ'y upon the party chosen; and if he refuse to serve; having
no legal exemption, he is liable to illdictment or information.
Certain persons, such as militia oflicers, practising barristers,
attorneys, and prisoners for debt, are not liable to serve; nor
are persons under disability by judgment of law (as in the
case of outlawry) to be appointed. No person can be assigned
for sheriff unless he have sufficient lands within the same to
answer the crown and people. And this is the only qualifica-
tion required for the oflice.


Ris powers and duties are various :-
Judícially, he superintends the election of knights of the


8hire, coroners, and verdcrors, and proclaims outlawries and
the like. As keeper of tite Queen's peace, both by common law
and special eommission, he is the first man in the county, and
superior in rank to any nobleman in it during his ofliee.
Ministerially, he is bound to execute aH civil and criminal pro-
cess issuing out of the superior courts, and in this respeet is
considered an oflicer of these courts. Re is also the returning
officer for his county, and he opcns the elections for members
of Parliament, and has various duties to diseharge in reference
to such elections. As the Queen' 8 bailijJ, it is his business to
preserve her rights within his bailiwick-i.e.) county.




PRICKING FOR SHERIFFS. 65
He has under him several inferior officers, as an under-


sheriff, bailiffs, gaolers, &c., to assist him in the exeeution of
his several ofliees.


The manner in which sheriffs are appointed is as follows :-
The Lord Lieutenant prepares a list of persons qualified to
serve, and retuma tbree names, which are read out in the Court
of Exchequer upon the morrow of the Feast of Sto Martin,
when the excuses of such as do notwish to serve are heard,
and if deemed sumcient, the objector is discharged. The list
is then sent to the Sovereign, who, without looking at it,
strikes a bodkin amongst the names, and he whose uame is
pierced is elected. This is called "priclcing lor sheri.ffs." The
affairs of the boroughs are administered by the municipal cor-
porations, and of the parishes by the constable, churchwardens,
and surveyor of highways, and, where there is one, the vestry.


The principal objects of local government are the preserva-
tion of peace and order; the maintenance of the poor and
police; the making, paving, and lighting of roads aIld streets;
the repairing of bridges, the regulation of markets, hackney
coaches, and public carriages; the laying down of rules for
preserving the public health and convenience, &c. The money
required for these purposes is raised by levying rates. Every
person who is not exempted by extreme poverty, or sorne pri-
vileges which I need not particularize, is rated according to tbe
value of the premises which he occupies. The sum required
for the rate is estimated, and each liable person is called upon
to pay his portian; when you hear, therefore, ofa poor, 01' any
other rate of one shilling in the pound, it m(;'ans that for every
pound at which a person is rated, according to the value of his
house or property, he has to pay that sumo


I shaIl tell you hereafter how justices of the peace are
appoillted. They lay the county rates for maintaining the
police, &c. &c. The Lord Lilmtenant and bis deputies regu-
late the county mili tia.


The constitution of parishes and municipal corporations
must now be considered. .


The c:omtable* was formerly the chief man in the parish, for
then the parish was respollsible for all robberies committed
within its limita if the 'thieves were not apprehended. It was,


.. "The next officer mentioneu, after·the sheriff, in Magna Charla
(o. 24), is constabularius, or constable, which is sometimes derived froID
the Saxon, but other authorities have considered it more truly to come


F




66 LOCAL GOVERNlIrrENT.
therefore, the iuterest of the community to elect to this office
the person who was most competent to prevent the commission
of crime. But this state of things has long passed away; the
parish may no longer be called upon to restore the value of
stolen goods; and although constables are still appointed, their
duties are almost entirely performed by the county police.


When the religion of this country was Roman Catholic,
costly ornaments, and very often large sums of money, were
kept in the parish churches, and men of character were there-
fore required to take charge of them, and to stand between the
ignorant country people and their clergy, who monopolized all
the learning of that time, and often sought to encroach upon
the rights of their fellow-subjects. Ghurchwardens were there-
fore appointed hy the Synod of London in the year 1127, and
continue to this day to be elected, to see that the parson does
his duty, and to exercise authority over the building of the
church, and the performance of its services. Two church-
wardens are generally appointed annually, the one by the
rector, vicar, or incumbent, the other by the parishioners. '1'he
following description of persons are exempt from serving the
oflice of churchwarden, viz. :-Aldermen, apothecaries, or
members of the apothecaries' company by charter, attorneys
and solicitors, barristers, clergymen, clerks in court, dissenting
teachers, militiamen, members of parliament, peers, pbysicians,
prosecutors of felons, surgeons, magistrates, revenue officers,
oflicers of tbe courts of law, captains of the guards, persons
attendant on the Queen, officcrs in tbe army, navy, or marines,
whether on full or half pay; and no person living out of the
parish, although he has or occupies property within it, can
lawfully be chosen churchwarden.


The parish is bound to maintain the highways which pass
through it in good order, and for this purpose sltrveyors of


from tite Latin comes stabuli, a superintendent of tite imperial atables, or
master of tite horse. This title, however, began in the course of time to
sigr.ify a commander, in which sense it was introduced into England. In
the dause of Magna Charta referred tú, the word is put for the constable,
o keeper of a castle, frequently called a castellan: ¡ndeed, the term is


still used occasionally in thia sen se in England, the governor of tha
Tower of London being styled Gonstable of the Tower. '.rhey were pos-
sessed of such considerable power within their own precincts, that pre-
viou.Iy to tbe Act of Magna Charta, they held trials of Cl'imes, properly
the cognizance of tbs Crown, as the sheriffs did within their respective
bailiwicks; and sealed with their own effigies on horseLack."-Greasy's
Rise and Progres8 of the Englisk Gonstitut-ion.




RELIEF OF THE POOR. 67
kighways, or, as they were anciently called, waywardens, are
elected by the parishioners and hold office for one year.
Under a recent Ac~ a number of parishes may be united into
a highway distric~, the roads in which are managed by a board.


A vestry is a body of the ratepayers of a parish elected to
conduct and regulate its business, inc1uding the appointment
of its officers. When it i8 elected by the ratepayers at large
it is called a general vestry ; if (as is more frequentlythe case),
its mcmbers select their own companions and successors, it i8
called a select vestry.


'1'he maintenance of its poor is the most important duty of
the parish, and as this is a subject upon which you ought to
be informed, 1 will give you a brief sketch oí the origin and
progress of the laws relating to it.


Previously to the dissolution of the monasteries, the main-
tenance and relief of the poor were secured by the great reli-
gious houses: their endowments being required, in most cases,
by the charters of foundation, and in aH, by the statute of
Carlisle (Ed. l. A.D. 1306), to be expended to the honour of
God and in support of Ris poor. When these institutions
were suppressed, and their property distributed among the
monarch's courtiers, the helpless and indigent, the aged and
the young, were at once deprived of all provision. '1'he greedy
rapacity of the king's attendant8, and the absorbing contro-
versies of religion, were not favourable to the discovery or the
adoption of any substitute for the funds so disposed of. AH
that the authorities of that time devised were severe and
stringent measures directed against the numerous mendicants
by whom the country bpgan to be infested. Vagrancy and
begging were made punishable by whipping, the stocks, the
pillory, imprisonment, and death; and the exccutions of
" aturdy beggars," as they were termed, increased year by year,
until, in the last years of Renry VIII.'s reign, no fewer than
38,000 persons were put to death for this species of ofrence!
The same repressive system followed under the subseguent
sovereigns, until the power of Queen Elizabeth having been
firmly established towards the latter part of her reign, the
foundations of a new system were laido '1'his was done by an
act passed in the 43rd year of that qucen. Its principal pro-
visions were, that a fund or stock should be raised in each
parish, out of which such poor persons as were able to labour
should be set to work, and the feeble should be helped and
maintained. The churchwardens were appointed, together


. F 2




68 LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
with three or four more persons of su bstanee, overseers 01 tite
poor. The operation of the statute was found beneficial; and
the lawlessnes8 and violenee, whieh had not been suppressed
by barbarous enactments, disappeared by degrees. Gradually
an entirely new code of legi"lation arose, as experience
developed the benefits and the disadvantages of the system ;
and its ramifications embraced, as well the support of the
indigent, as the adjustment of the liabilities of the contri-
butors. Thus, in the time of Charles n. the parish, which
had enjoyed the benefit of a man's residence as a contributor
to the parish rates, or as a labourer when be was able to sup-
pon himself, was bound to maintain bim when in di~tress, in
preference to tbat where he migl}t become in want. Hence
arose what is called the law of settlement. The contribution
iteelf was called the poor-rate, and the contributors ratepayers.
The ratepayers had not the power of electing the overseers of
the poor directly, these officers being nominated by justices of
the peace. In many parishes the overseers of the poor were
assisted, and sometimes controlled, by a select vestry.


In the course of nearly three centuries some abuses of greater
or less magnitude could not but be expected to grow around
the system. The chief source of these was alleged to arise
from the administrators of the rate being appointed by others
than the ratepayers, and the great evil apprehended was tllat
a cIass of persons receiving relief, habitually and as the ordi-
nary rule, were gruwing up under this system, and that to be
a pauper (as the receivers of relief are called). was becoming a
recognised and actual condition, or state, in tlle ranks of social
life.


This general feeling, assisted by many matters of minor
character, led to the enactment in the 5th and 6th years of
William IV., of what is called a test for pauperism (a some-
what different thing from poverty, but which may be described
as that state of destitution requiring to be relieved out of the
poor-rate), by requiring that no relief should be given to ally
person whatever, except in tbe workhouse j but as many of
the parishes in this cuuntry are so small as not to need or
possess a workhouse, in order to apply tbis test several
parishes werfl by the act joined together for the purpose oi
supporting such an establishment in common. These parishes
thus joilled together were called Unwns, and for their govcru-
ment, and for the performance of a great number, but not a11,
of the powers of the overseers of the poor, a number of persons,




1tIUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS, 69
called Guardians o/ tite P001', were constituted a Board.
These are elected by the ratepayers annually in each parish
of the U nion. In order to obviate the recurren ce of the old
abuses, to insure uniformity of administration, and to carry
out the ncw test in its integrity, it was considered desirable to
have a permanent establishment, called the Poor-Law Board,
of which the President is usually a mernber of the Privy
Council, and must possess a seat in the House of Commons.


The experience of a quarter of a century has modified the
rigorous theory of the Amendment Act, and now a plan of
administering relief in two modes-inside the workhouse and
at the residence of the pauper (called out-door relief), is
permitted.


It may be added, that the legislature has provided remedies
for a parish or uniun which may consider itself aggrieved, and
for a ratepayer in tIle 8ame position. This is by the legal
process called "an appeal," whereby if an union be called upon
to maintain a pauper not belonging to it, or a parishioner is
required to pay out of prop:lrtion to his neighbours, or for
improper chargei!, the interference of the Court of Quarter
Sessions is invoked. Against improper charges an additional
remedy is provided by the appointment of an oflicer called a
"Poor-Law Auditor," whose duty it is to check every account
in connexion with the poor-rate and its expenditure, and who
has power to disallow any item not justified by law.


1 now come to the lIfunicipal Oorporations. In the year
1833, a royal commission was appointed to inquire into their
state, and it being reported that they had degenerated into
great inefliciency and corruption, an Act of Parliament was
passed, by which rnost of the then existing Corporations were
dissolved, and replaced by a municipal body con~isting of
mayor, aldermen, and burgesses. 'fhis law is kllown as the
"Municipal Corporations Act."


AH persons of ful! age, who llave occupied for three years a
house or shop within the limits of the borough to be incor-
porated, and those who have regularly resided w.ithin seven
miles of its limits, and have during that timo bcen rated to
the relief of the poor of sorne parish in the boruugh, are en-
titled to be placed on the list of burgesses. The borough is
divided into wards, or districts, and by the burgesses in every
ward the Common Councillors are elected. Tlle number of
councillors is fixed by the Act for each borough, and one-third
of them go out of office every year. The councillors elect




70 LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
Aldermen, whose number is one-third of their OWll.· Thus is.
formed the Town Council, which electa the Mayor, whose
business it ia to preside over it. He holds office for only one
year, but may be re-elected. Half the aldermen go out of
office every third year, but may be re-elected. The town-
council lay the borough rates.


In many populous towns not incorporated, comm'Íssioners
and boarda, sueh as Boarda 01 Healtk, Improvement Comm'Ís-
sioners, &ce. &ce., are eleeted by the ratepayers, under tbe
authority oi 'Parliameni, io conuuct ulleiu\ 'W1)"[kll, ",nd. tI)
manage the local business.




71


LETTER X.


THE CHURCH.


History of the Church of England-Authority of the Pope-The Re-
formation-Puritans-RolDan Catholics-Jews, Disabilities of-
Constitution and Discipline of the Church-Bishops-Dean and
Chapter-Priest-Deaeon -Tithes-Ordinations-Church Accom-
modation-Con vocation.


IN order to give you a right understanding of the relatiolls of
the ecclesiasticaI system and the Constitution of this country,
it will be necessaz:y briefly to sketch the history of the Church
in EngIand.


It is an undoubted fact that Christianity was very early
introduced into this country whilst it was in the hands of the
Romans, and tradition points to the numerous old churches
dedicated to Sto Paul, as a confirmation of the assertion that
he was the apostle of Britain. However this may be, certain
it is that in the third century numerous Chótian congrega-
tions existed here, and the older chroniclers declare with a
fond pride that Britain produced the first Christian emperor
(Constantine the Great), the first Christian king (Lucius),
and tbe first Christian monastery, that of Bangor in Wales.
The Saxons, being idolatrous and exterminators, persecuted the
native believers, and drove them into the Welsh mountains.
There they were found when Pope Gregory the Great sent
hither the monk Augustine and his companions, on the occa-
Ilion of the conversion of EtheIbert, King of Kent. Before
this time the British Church was governed by its own bishops,
but Augustine (by coercion as well as persuasion) induced the
scattered bodies of the faithful to acknowledge bis authority
as primate, whilst he himself admitted the superiority of the
Roman pontiff. Augustine, upon being consecrated Arch-
bishop of Canterbury, received a present of a pall from the
pope, and eacb of hiEl succeSsors applied for and obtained a
like mark ,of distinction for many years after from succeeding




72 THE CHURCH.
occupants of the papal chair, until it was asserted that an Archbishop of Canterbury could not enter upon his functions
unIess and until it was granted. This" pall" is an ecclesi-
astical vestment somewhat resem bliúg in shape the hood now
worn by c1ergymen to indicate the university degree of the
wearer, and a symbol of it is still retained in the emblazon-
ment of the arms of the province of Canterbury. Under the N orman kings, and the early Plantagenets, the c1aim to pre-
sent this pall, and the rights which it was supposed to con-fer, were stoutly resisted. But what Henry n. refused to Thomas a'Beckett was conceded by his son John, wbo, as you know, humiliated himself so far as to hold his very crown as a fief under the pope. Notwithstanding the famous statute of
prremunú'e, passed in the reign of Richard n., which is still un-
repealed, and which 1 shall have oeeasion to mentíon again, the general results of various comprumises made between diffel'ent
monarchs and popes amounted to this :-That, whilst in mat-
ters of faith and (to sorne extent) of discipline also, the Chureh
of England gave obedience to Rome, in matters connected
with tbe choice of bishops and the enjoyment of temporalities
the royal supremacy was admitted.


The first stage of the Reformation in the reign of Henry VIII.
was not made in reference to doctrine. The right of appeal from the Epglish courts to the pope was that against which
the king's poliey was direeted in the beginning, and the
operation of tbe statute 25th Henry VIII. chapter 20, was to
establish the jurisdiction of the Crown, and the killg's tri-bunals, in entire independence of any foreign potelltate. The words of what is called the bidding prayer (still used in
cathedrals and other churches before sermon) indicate elearly
the intention of the Constitutioll upon this point. It runs as follows :-" Ye shall pray for all Christian kings, &c., and espe-
cíaIly for our Sovereign Lady Queen Victoria, defender of the Faith, over all persons, and in all causes ecclesíastícal and civil,
within tkese ller dominions 8upreme." It is in this sense that
the soverdgn is called "the supreme head of the Chureh."


The policy of Elizabeth and of the Stuarts was to establish
the Chureh of which they were members as the sole and ex-
clusive forlll of religion. Henee non-attendance at a man's parish church, and non-conforUlity to its ordiuances, were
made by Convocation-of whieh 1 shaIl treat hereafter-the
subject of spiritual censure, and by Parliament, of civil penalties, even of death. The theory of the Church down to




ACT OF TOLERATION. 73
so late a period as the reign of George IV., according to the
Constitution, was that of an ecclesiastical corporation co-
extensive with the State, every English subject beillg also
an English churchman, and the Church a bod)' absolutely
national. Two great religious sections maintained a COllstant
and, eventllally, sllccessful strllggle againi5t this theory,-,-I
mean the Puritans and the Roman Catholics. The former
party resorted to arms, and their victory in the con test
against Archbishop Laud and his sovereign displaced for
twelve years both the Chllrch and her royal head. On
the restoration of Charles Il. the former doctrine was re-
vived; and it was not until the accession of William IlI. that
the Act of Toleration, permitting Protestants to meet 'to cele-
brate divine service after other forms than the Liturgy-and
in other places than the temples-of the Church of England
was passed. More tban a centllry and a half elapsed before
persons who did not confurm to the religion established by
law were allowed to enter Parliament, and to take office in
municipal corporations. Every man elected to either was
obliged to partake of the holy Sacrament, according to the
rites and doctrine of the Church of England, as a test. It
was not until the year 1828 that the statutes imposing this
test were repealed. Thus terminated the con test with the
first religious section 1 named. The result was that there
was no longer a Constitution exclusively ChuTeh of England,
but one necessarily Protestant. Tbe following year saw the
final Sllccess of the Roman Catholic body. Like the Protestant
Dissenters, thev had obtained various instalments of toleratíon.
The objection to admít them to full rights of citizenship was


'based rather llpon political than theological grounds, and they
endllred for many years the most vexatious disabilities in-
tended to prevent their gailling wealth alld infiuence, before
it was discovered tbat being a papist did not prcvent aman
from also being an honest and a loyal subject. The Roman
Catholic Relief Act, passed in tbc year 1829, placed Roman
Catholics upon the 8ame footing with their Protestant fellow-
countrymen, and therc were 110 offices from -which Roman
Cathplics were to be excluded, except those of Regent, of
Lord Challcellor of Englalld or Ireland, and of Viceroy of
Ireland. 'Until 1858 British subjects professiug the Jewish
religion were excluded from senatorial rights and honours,
not by any direct enactmellt of the legislature, but beca use the
,wording of the oath of supremacy, which had to be taken by




74 THE CHURCH.
a11 members of Parliament, prevented them from ~ubscribing
it; concluding, as it did, in the words, "upon tIte tme Jauh of
a Christian." This form of words was adopted when this
oath was framed, to prevent the jesuit adherents of the Pretender
from swearing fealty to the king de Jacto with a mental reser-
vation, but indirectly it had the effect 1 have stated. Our
Jewish fellow-subjects couJd be judges, sheriffs, and magis-
trates. They could be called upon to carry the laws into
execution, but had no pan in framing them; they had to pay
taxes, but had no voice in imposing them. They might vote
at elections for others j nay, more !-they could be elected
themselves, but could not take their seats. They migbt
lvrite M.P. after their names, but the doors of the Parliament
house were firmly closed against them. At last, however,
after considerable opposition from the House of Lords, the
excluding oath has becn modified, so as to admit the J ews to
legislative honours; and now the necessity for any religious
profession whatever, as a condition for becoming a member of
Parliament, is no longer in eristence.


Thus the Church of England gradua11y ceased to be what
at one time she was, and what many statesmen consider she
ought to have remained-an integral and indivisible part of
the Constitution. But although she has no longer the ancient
prerogatives and high privileges that once were hers, ahe
still occupies a position, and exercises an influence it is im-
possible to overlook, in a recapitulation such as 1 wish to
make. Her antiquity and associations, her wealth and dig-
nity, her venerable and majestic ritual, the learning and
courageous exertions of her clergy, preserve for her respect
and reverence, and are the legitimate foundations upon which
the authority and power she exercises (independently of se-
cular enactments) are substantially based. A short account,
therefore, of the ecclesiastical system of the Church of England,
as it now exists, cannot properly be omitted.


The whole of EngIand and WaIes is divided for church
purposes into two provinces, Canterbury and Yorle. The
former is governed by its Archbishop and his 8uffragans, or
inferior prelates, who are the Bishaps of London, Winchester,
Rangor, Bath and Wells, Bristol and Gloucester, Chichester, Ely,
Exeter, Hereford, Llandaff, LichfieId and Coventry, Lineoln,
N orwich, Oxford, Peterborough, Rochester, Salisbury, Sto Asaph,
Sto David's, and Worcester. The province of York is governed
by its .A.rchbishop, and the Bishops of Durham, Carlisle,




DIOCESES AND THEIR JURISDICTIONS. 75
Ches ter, Manchester, Ripon, and Sodor and Man are his suf-
fragans. In addition to his province and the appellate juris-
diction connected therewith, each archbishop has a particular
district within which he exercises original authority. The
district over which a suffragan bishop presides is called his
diocese, or see (from the Latin word for a seat or chair). This
diocese is divided into archdeaconries, each archdeaconry into
rural deaneries, and rural deaneries into parishes. 1 subjoin
atable of the English and Welsh dioceses and their several
jurisdictions :-


Diocese.


r


Canterbury (Archdio-
cese) . • . . .


I
Bath aud Wells


ehiehester . •
Ely ••


~I ~ Exeter
""
.,
E-<
Z
-< O


Gloucestel' and Bl'istol


~ 1 Hereford . i I Lichfield •
ji¡ ·Lincolu •


p..; London


~
Norwich •.


loxford •• Peterborough
Rochester


J urisdiction.


AH Kent (except the city of Rochester and
deauery of the same), the parlshes of
AddiDgtOU aud CroydoD, together with
the district of Lambeth Palace, in the
couuty of Surrey.


Nearly the whole of the county of Somer-
seto


The whoJe county of Sussex.
Nearly the whole of Cambridgeshire, Hun-


tingdoushire, aud Bedfordshire, and parto
of Norfolk and Suffolk, adjacent to
Cambridgeshire.


Cornwall aud Devonshire, and the ScilIy
IRlanda .


Gloucestershire and city of BristoI, a part
of Wiltshire adjacent to GJoucestershire~
and the parish of Bedrniuster.


Herefordsbire and part of Salop. Mon-
mouth, RadDor and ·Worcester shires.


Staffordshire, Itud tbe greatest part of
Derbyshire, Warwickshire, and Salop.


Lincoln and N ottingham sbires.
London, Middlesex, and parishes in coun-


ties of SUlTey, Essex, aud Kent, abon!;.
ten miles round Loudon.


AIl Norfolk and Suffolk, with the excep-
tion of the Arcbdeaconry of Sndbury.


Oxfordsbire, Buckinghamsbire, Berkshire,
aud parts of Willshire.


Northampton, Rutlaud, and Leicester
shires.


The deanery and city oí Rochester in Kent;
Hertfordshire and E.sex, except the
parishes in the latter within eigbt or ten
miles of London.




76 TRE CRURCH.


Diocese. J urisdiction.


[Salisbury. • AH Dorsetshire, the parishes of Holwell


I
(Somerset) and Thorneeomb (Devon),
~ and parts of Wiltshire and Berkshire.
~ Winchester. Surray (exeept certain parishes nea .. Lon-~ I don), Rauts, Guernsey, and Jersey.
~ W orcester N eal'ly aH W orcestershire, the areh-
Z I deaconry of Coventry, and parts of Staf-
..¡ forushire and Gloueestershire. ~ (St. Asaph.. The whole countíes of Flínt and Deubigh,
o < I and parts of the countíes of Salop, and
Iil I Montgomery. ~ • Bangor.. The whole eountíes of Anglesea, Carnar-
:> I ¡:¡ yon, and Merioneth, and part of Mont-~ :;¡ ~ gnmery.
~ I Llandaff ". The counties of Glamorgan and Monmouth.
~ I Saint David's. Part, of Caermarthenshire, Pembl'okeshire,
.. Brecknockshir'e, Radnorshire, Cardi¡;an-


shire, Montgomeryshire, and Hereford-
l l shil'e.


[


York (Archdiocese) AH tbe county of York not in tha diocese
O~ of Ripon. Durham. • •• The counties of Durham, NOl'thumberland,
p.. and tbe district called Hexhamshire.
~ I Carlisle The counties of Cumberlanu anu West-


moreland, and tbe deaneries of Furness ~ ~ and Cartmel in Lancashire. ~ I Chester . • Tbe county of Cheshire, with the arehdea-
O com'y al' Li verpool.
P:: Manehester • Almost the whole of Lancashire.
"" l' Ripon The greater part of the West Riding of
~ Yorkshire.
~Sodor and Man. TIJe Isle of .Man.
The principal church of his diocese is called the cathedral


(from the Greek word of the same import), because it contains
the episcopal seat or tkrone. The title bislwp is derived from
the Gre<lk epislcopos, through the Saxon biscop, both signifying
an overseer, or superintendent, "so called from that watchful-
ness and faithfulness which by his place and dignity hc hath
and oweth to the church." Formerly bishops were elected by
the clergy and people, but now the right to appoint them is in
the crown. The form of an election by the chapter oí the
diocese is still preserved. When a vacaney occurs the sove-
reign sends a permission to them to elect (called a congé
d:élij'e), together with a lelter mÍ8sive, recommending the pemon
therein named. Obedience to this recommendation is secured




DEANS AND CANONS. 77
by the famous statute of prremuni1'e, and some acts of Henry
VII!., which direct, upon any delay or refusaI, a forfeiture of
all the realand personal property of the recusant parties, with
imprisonment at the king's pleasure, and other penalties. We
have seen that a bishop is a peer of Parliament and sits in
the House of Lords.


To assist the bishop in the government of his dio cese gene-
rally, there are the dean and an indefinite number of canons or
p1'ebendaríes, who form the chapter.


The title Dean is derived from the Latin word for ten, that
being the usual number in the early chapters. Deans are of
six kinds :-Deans of Ckapters, who are either of cathedrals or
colIegiate churches. Deans of PeC'uliars, who ha ve sometimes
both jurisdiction and cure of souls, and sometimes jurisdiction
only. Rural Deans, who are deputies of the bishop to inspect
the conduct of the parochial clergy, to examine candidates for
confirmation, &c., and who are endowed with an inferior de-
gree uf judicial authority. Deans in tlw Colleges of our
Universities, who are officers appointed to superintend the
behaviour of the members, and to enforce discipline. Hono-
rary Deans, as the Dean of the Chapel Royal 8t. James's, &c.;
and Deans nf Provinces, thus the Bishop of London is Dean of
the province of Canterbury. It is now provided that alI
old deaneries, except those in Wales, are henceforth to be in
the direct patronage of the Queen; and no person is to be
capable of becoming dean, archdeacon, or canon, until he has
been su years in priest's orders. A dean must reside at least
eight months in the year.


A canon is a person who possesses a prebend, or revenue
allotted for the performance of divine service in a cathedral, or
collegiate church. Originally canons were only priests, or
inferior ecclesiastics, who lived in community; rcsiding by
the cathedral church, to assist the bishop; depending entirely
on his will; supported by the revenues of the bishopric; and
living in the same house, as his domestica, or counsellors. By
degrees, these communities of priests shook off their depen-
dence, and formed separate bodies, of which the bishops,
however, were still the heads. In the tenth century, there
were communitie'l or congregations of the same kind, esta-
blished even in cities where there were no bishops: these were
called collegiates, as they llsed the terms congregation and
college indifferently: the name chapter, now given to these
bodies, being much more moderno Under the second race of




78 THE CHURCH.
the French kings, the canonical, or collegiate life had spread
itself all over the country; and each cathedral had its chapter,
distinct from the rest of the clergy. They had the name
canon from the Greek "avwv, which signifies three different
things; a rule, a pension, or fixed revenue to live on, and a
catalogue or matricula; all which are applicable to them.


In time, the canons freed themselves from their rules, and,
at length, they ceased to live in community.


The country parts of the diocese not otherwise governed as
aboye, are subdivided into archdeaconries and rural deaneries.
By the Canon Law the archdeacon is called "the bishop's eye,"
and has power to hold visitations within his jurisdiction when
the bishop is not present, to make institutions and inductions
of benefices, to assist at the examination of candidates for
orders, and also to inquire into, correct, and reform irregularities
and abuses amongst the parochial clergy. The rural dean
governs part of an archdeaconry, usually cOllsisting of about ten
parishes, and exercises a similar but more restricted authority
over them. Finally, we have the parochial clergy, consisting
of 1'ectors, vicars, incumbents, and curates. The two former are
usually distinguished -as beneficed clergy, in contradistinction to
the curates, who are assistants to them, acting under a licence
from the bishop, which is revocable at his pleasure. The word
"curate" signifies a person having the cure (or care) of souls.
"Rector" is one who has the chief rule of the parish in eccle-
siastical matters. The rector is entitled to the whole of the
tithes of his parish (now commuted into a fixed annual sum
called a rent charge). The vicar has onIy the small tithes.
"Vicar" means a substitute. When, in days long passed away,
the great landholders granted a rectory to a monastery, the
living never became vacant, as the abbey or convent was a
corporation, and corporations never die, although those who
constitute them do. The monastery, as rector, took aH the
tithes, and sent a clergyman to perform divine service, to whom
were given the small tithes as his recompense. By degrees the
substitute thus sent acquired a permanent right to the benefice.
When Henry VIII. confiscated to the crown the possessions of
the religious houses, it was thought that their great tithes
would revert to the vicar. This, however, was not agreeable
to the grasping courtiers to whom the monarch had granted
the property and estates, and an act of Parliament was, there-
fore, passed, which annexed the great tithes to the confiscated
lands. Thus the position of the vicars remained unaltered.




CEREMONY OF ORDINATION. 79
An incumbent differs from a curate in being free from the


liability to summary dismissal mentioned just now, as his
ordinary title of perpetual curate shows; but he has no inde-
pendent rule, and is in the eye of the law (notwithstanding his
having sole authority in his own church), only an assistant to
the rector or vicar of the parish in which it is situated.


It only remains for me now to tell you how a person is
made a clergyman. It is the peculiar prerogative of the bishop
alone to confer holy orders, which in our church are of three
kinds-those, namely, of bishop, priest, and deacon. When a
layman is macle a deacon he must be at least twenty-three years
old, and (if not possessed of a university degree), a "literate
person"-that is, one of competent learning and good educa-
tion. Tha ceremony of making deacons is called ordination.
After twelve months the deacon may be ordained a priest. A
bishop Illust be a priest of at least thirty years of age, and is
set apart for his office by three other bishops. This is called
his consecration. The archdeacons (who are priests appointed
to that office by the bishop) assist the bishop in ordinations.
He has also his examining chaplains to aid him in testing the
abilities of the candidates, who must each have a title lor
orders-that is, a sphere oí labour under some clergyman, with
a proper stipend íor his support, before he can be ordained.


There are many matters which it is difficult to avoid
touching upon in connexion with the subject of this letter, but
which, if fully entered into, would swell it into the bulk of an
entire volume. I will, in conclusion, refer to one which
(especially in late times) has attained a degree of prominence
tbat may have an important bearing upon the constitution-I
IDean the ecclesiastical parliament, called Convocation. This is
an assembly of the spiritual estates oí the realm in both pro-
vinces. In each it consists of an U pper and Lower House.
In the former sit the bishops, presided over by the Archbishop
as Primate and Metropolitan. The latter is composed of
Proctor8 or delegates chosen by the chapters of cathedrals and
beneficed clergy. The members elect their own Proloculor or
Speaker. Formerly Convocation granted to the Crown the
right to tax the clergy. That usage has now ceased, and with
it the State necessity for convoking the assembly yearly.
Recently, however, ecclesiastical and spiritual necessities have
caused its sittings to be in some degree available in a practical
sense.


r shall conclude by giving you a table oí the church accOill-




80 THE CflURCH.
modation provided by several of the religious denominations in
England, published in the year 1855.


ReligiouB Denomination. No. 01' Places Sittings ror ol'WorBhip.
Church of England . . 14,077 5,317,915
Scottish Presbyterians :


Church of Scotland . 18 13,989
United Presbytel'ian Church 66 31,351


Presbyterian Church in England 76 41,552
Independents ..... 3,224 1,067,760
Eaptists (a1l denominations of) 3,789 752,253
Society of Friends 331 91,599
Unitarians 229 68,r,54
Moravians 32 9,305
Wealeyan Methodists :


6,596 1,447,580 Original Connexion .
N ew Connexion 297 96,964


Primiti ve Metbodists 2,871 414,030
Independent Methodists 20 2,263
Bible Christians 482 66,834
Lutherans 6 2,606
Roman Catholics 570 186,111
Greek CllUrcll 8 ggI
JIOW'6 . .


,,'/, 'e,t.,~~
Latter·Day Saints 222 30,783


Although the information contained in this table is now ten
years old, it is the latest we possess in reference to the numbers
of the different denominations j for in consequence of the
opposition of tIle Dissenters the Government were compelled to
abandon their intention of illcluding in the censua of 1861
returns relating to the religion of the people.




81


LETTER XI.


THE ARMY.


Origin and HiRtory of Standing Armies-The Feudal System-Mer.
cenary Soldiers-Ancient Warfare-The Mutiny Act-The Secretary
for War-The Staff-Cavalry-Infantry-Quartering of Troops-
Camps-Purchase System-Price of Commissions-Pay of Oflicers-
Brevet Rank-Recruiting- Pay of Privates-Dragoon Regiruents-
Namesof Regiments-The Royal ArtiJIery-The Roy¡tl Engineers-
Preceden ce of Corps-Local Regiments-Courts Martial-Order of
the Bath-Victoria Cross-Decorations-Pensions and Rewards-
The Militia-The Yeomallry.


TBE force maintained for the defence of this kingdom and its
numel'OUS dependencies against foreign attack, for the support
of order at home, and for the security of our vast commerce,
spreading over the entire surface of the globe, consists princi-
pally of THE ARMY alld THE NAVY.


In treating of the first of these, 1 propose to commence by
telling you something about the origin of a standing army in
this country, and then to expIain its composition and manage-
mento


1 have aIready described how the military service of our
ancestors was constituted under the feudal system. In the rude
ages in which it existed, the force it provided was sufficient in
every respect to protcct our 8hores. AH persons holding
knight8' fees (of wbich there were more than 60,000 in England
alone), were bound to be in readiness to attend their sovereign
for forty days' servíce every year. Those who were unable 01'
unwilling to take up arms were obliged to provide efficient
substitutes, so that when a rebellion broke out, or an invasion
was threatened, an army of 60,000 men could be brought into
the field with very little delay, and no expense to the Crown.
There were few fortified places in those days, and campaigns
were not planned upon scÍelltific principIes. The contending
forces usually attacked each other without delay, and the cause


. G




82 THE ARMY.
for which they fought was generally won and lost within the
forty days. If the war was of longer duration, the feudal
militia were entitled to return to their homes, or, continuing to
serve, to be paid by the sovereign.


When our kings of the house of Plantagenet began their
foreign wars, and encountered the partially trained soldiers of
France, they found that they required more continuous and
experienced services froID their subjects than the Feudal
system could pro vide . They therefore began to commute the
military services of their tenants in capite for a money payment,
or scutage, as it was termed, charged upon every knight's fee.
Thus, when Henry n. was about to engage in hostilities
against the Oount of Toulouse, in 1159, instead of requiring
all his vassals to accompany him, he imposed upon them a
scutage, which produced a sum equal to 2,700,000l. of the
money of the present day, with which he provided himself
ivith an army accustomed to the march, and to be relled upon
on the battle.field, and th).ls gained much popularity from those
of his subjects who preferred remaining at home, in the pursuit
of more peaceful avocations. At last money payments were
entirely substituted for feudal services, which were finally
abolished by the statute 12 Charles n. c. 24.


Philip Augnstus of France was the first kiug who established
an army of paid troops, in no way connected with the feudal
militia, to protect his throne and humbler subjects from the
lawlessness and tyranny of his great vassals. From the fact oí
their receiving money, they were called Soldati (whence our
word "soldier,") derived from soldo, the ltalian for payo
Several of our English sovereigns also maintained similar
bodies of mercenaries, and paid them out of the revenues
of the vast estates belonging to the Crown. Regular garrisollS
were kept in the Tower of London, the Castle of Dover, and
in the Marches along the Scottish border,-posts of great
military importance, where the presence of trained soldiers was
always required; bnt with these exceptions the troops 1 have
mentioned were only raised for sorne special purpose, and were
disbanded as soon as the occasion for which they were embodied
had passed. .


U ntil the reign of Oharles VII. of France, what we now
designate a standing army-that is, a body of soIdiers trained
and paid by government, and kept under arms during peace
for the defence of the State-was unknown. By this time the
invention of gunpowder had entirely swept away the ancient




STANDING ARMY. 83
plan of making war. As long as personal courage, strength,
and daring decided the fate of a battle, war had great charms
for noble knights who fought each one at his own expense, on
horseback, cased in armour, and were al ways the principal COrn-
batants. Intellectual employment was almost unknown in
those days, war and the chase being considered the only pur-
suits worthy the attention of a gentleman. But the intro-
duction of firearms, especially artillery, deprived brute force and
valour oftheir exclusive importance. It was one thing, encased
in proof mail, to ride amongst an undisciplined alld almost un-
armed herd of leather-clad countrymen, alld to mow them
down with two-handed swords; but to charge a line of sturdy
pikemen, supported by a rear rank of musketeers, whose bul-
lets sent horse and rider rolling in the dust before the latter
had the opportunity of striking a blow, was a very different
state of affairs. Gcnerals began to &ee the necessity for regular
tactics under these new conditions. A crowd of armed men,
each one fightillg for himself, was no longer of any use in
settling the disputes of nations. A military machine that
could be di,ectad with exact and steady action by the master-
mind oí the commander, was required. To produce this,
practice, training, and strict and unquestioning obedience were
demanded, and the presence of a lower order of men was
required in the ranks. The great importallce of regular
infantry became every day more and more apparent; war was
reduced to a science, and standing armies were established
throughout the continent of Europe.


The origin of our own present standing army dates as far
back as 1660, when Charles II. formed two regiments of guards,
one of horse and one of foot, and with those (and some other
troops brought over from abroad) he organized a force of 5000
meno This number was increased during the reign of James
II. to 30,000 soldiers. The embodimellt of this army was,
however, never sanctioned by Parliament; the king raised it
by bis own authority, aud paid it out of the civil list by
wrongfully appropriating money granted for other purposes.
With this force he hoped to awe his subjects into submitting to
the unconstitutional encroachments which had sent his father
to the block. The hope, however, was a delusive one. So
treacherous and fickle was his conduct, that civilians and the
military made common cause against him, and no sooner had
the Prince of Orange landed, than, as you know, the army
joined bis s,tandard almost to aman.


G2




84 THE ARMY.
But the danger which our forefathers thus escaped was a.


great one, and one which they were determined not to risk
again. If you will turn back to my Letter in which 1 gave
you some extracts from the Bill of Rights, you will see that
a standing army cannot be maintained without the consent of
Parliament. This is practically given by passing the Jfutíny
Act, in which the number of soIdiers to be empIoyed, the
terms upon which they shall be enlisted, the offences for which
they shalI be punished, and the manner in which they shall be
billeted, paid, and pen¡¡ioned, is laid down. The discipline
of the army is regulated by the Articles of War, which are
issued by the Crown in conformity with the Mutiny Act, and
printed with it.


You will remember my telling you that the sovereign is the
head of the army; but military matters are managed entirely
by the Secretary-of-State for War, and the Commandcr-ill-chief
of the Forces.


It is impossible to define with any great exactness the func-
tions of the Secretary-of-State for War, as they seem to be
mued up with those of the Commander-in chief in a not very
comprehensible manner. This much, however, is clear, that
the former arranges the number of men that Parliament is to
be called upon to provide for, and forms the estimates accord-
ingly j decides what troops are to be sent abroad in time of
war; appoints the generals who are to command them; and
is the constitutional medium between the Government and the
army. The Commander-in-chief is responsible for the disci-
pline and recruiting of the army. He is assisted by several
subordinate officers, such aB-


The Ad}utant-General, who has the superintendence of all
matters relating to what is called the personnel of the arrny ;
he is the channel through w hich all officers communicate with
the Commanderin-chief; and all instructions, regulations, and
orders relative to the recruiting, organization, and discipline of
the army, and applications for leave of absence, come thruugh
him. He regulates also the employment of officers upon the
staff, &c.


The Quartermaster-General, whose duty it is to prescribe,
map out, and plan routes of marches; to pitch camps and find
quarters for the troops; to manage their embarkation and
disembarkation; to provide the means of transport for their
atores, &c.


The Paymaster-General, who distributes the pay of the army.




HOUSEHOLD TROOPS. 85
Tite Gommissary-General supplies the troops with stores


and provisions.
"Each of these officers has a host of subordinates and clerks


to transact the business of his department.
The British army consists of cavalry, infantry, artillery, and


engineers. That portion of it called tite Guards, or the
"Hollsehold troops,"* as they are also termed, because they
guard the palaces and person of the sovereign, comprises the
Grelladier, Coldstream, and Bcots Fusileer regiments of Foot
Guards; the 1st and 2nd regiments of Life Guards, and the
Royal Horse Guards, or BIues. The three latter, which are
cavaIry, greatly distinguished themselves in the Peninsular
War, as well as at WaterIoo, but they have not been employed
on foreign service since 1815. The strength of our regiments
varies according to circumstances. At present an ordinary
regiment of cavaIry on home service consists of eight troops of
fifty men each, officered as follows :-


1 Colonel. This is a; mere titular rank, held by some dis-
tinguished general, who, beyond receiving the pay of the post,
has very little to do with the regimento


1 Lieutenant-colonel, who commands it.
1 Major.
8 Captains.
8 Lieutenants, } . d'
8 C t one of whom 18 A Jutant. orne s,
1 Paymaster.
1 Quartermaster.
1 Ridingmaster.
1 Surgeon.


" Tha present strength of tha Household troops is :-
Foot Guards, 3 regimenta, having 7 hattalions, 6300 ruen, inclusive of


258 officers.
Cavalry, 3 regimenta, 1320 men, inclusive of 99 officers.


There are two other corps attached to the person of the sovereign,
and which are rarely employed but at leveee and otber eeremonials;
but tbese can scarcely be considere1, like tile Housebold troops, to form
part of tbe arroyo Tbe first is styled tbe corps of "Gentlemen-at·
arms," and consists of a captain, lieutenant, standard-bearer, paymaster,
clerk of tbe cheque or adjutant, a hal'binger, and forty gentlemen. The
otiler is called the "y eomen of tiJe Guard," or, in COtnmon parlance,
" Beef·eatera," who until very lately have wom a singular costume, tba
fashion of which had not been altered since the days of Henry VIII.
Tbis corps consists of 100 men, witb tbe foIlowing offieers: Captain,
lieutenant, ensign, and two exons or corporals.




86 THE ARMY.
1 Assistant-surgeon.
1 Veterinary surgeon.
N early all the infantry regiments have at present two bat-


talions. The regiment has but one colonel (in the infantry as
in the cavalry a mere titular rank). Each battalion, which
consists of twelve companies of 100 men each (when at fun
strength), is officered by-


1 Lieutenant-colonel.
2 Majora.
12 Captains.
15 Lieutcnants } ..
10 E · 'one of whom lS AdJutant. nSlgns,
1 Quartermaster.
1 Paymaster.
1 Instructor of musketry.
1 Surgeon.
2 Assistant-surgeons.
When a cavalry, 01' infantry, regiment is serving in India,


it has two lieutenant-colonels; and the former also has one,
and the latter two, additional assistant-surgeons. Regiments
in India were paid by the East India Company, not by this
nation, and received extra pay to place them upon an equality
with its own army. Officers below the rank of captain are
called subalterns; majors, lieutenant-colonels, and colonels,
jield officers; and all aboye the latter grade, General officers.


When a regiment of cavalry, or an infantry battalion, is
sent abroad, two troops or companies remain behind, under a
major, to form the depót, which is to supply vacancies, &c.
The remainder are called the service troops, or companies.


When peace was proclaimed after the great war with France,
and the army returned, it was for awhile popular enough; but
soon afterwards great political agitation took place-to such
an extent, indeed, that for a time the Habeas Oorpus Act was
suspended, and our soldiers were scattered in small bodies over
the country to act as police and check disturban ces, particularly
in Ireland. It was for a long time deemed impolitic to
familiarize the English people with the display of soldiers
massed together, and it was hoped that, by their dispersion in
detachments, the existence of a standing army might be almost
ignored. This concession to popular prejudices, which were
not unreasonably founded, combined with other politic and
conciliatory measures, eventually restored confidence, and
soldiers ceased to be regarded as obnoxious agents of uncon-




PURcnASE OF COMMISSIONS. 87
stitutional power. The troops, meanwhile, from being cooped
up in small detachments, had lost mueh of their former em.-
cieney; and it was found that, w hen occasionally brought
together to execute manceuvres of any importance, they were
strange to such duties, and unhandy in the performance of
them. It was then felt that, if suddenly called upon to meet
a foreign foe, an army collected of such raw materials would
be no fair match for Continental troops trained to aet together
in large bodies-comprising every description of force, and
forming complete armies. To remedy this defect, camps were
subsequently formed, first at Chobham, and afterwards at
Aldershot, Shorncliffe, and thé Curragh in Ireland, and occa-
sionally for siege operations at Chatham, where our soldiers
were enabled to practise manceuvring in large bodies, and re-
hearse sorne of the ordinary operations of a campaign, and the
attack and defence of fortified places. When two or more
regiments act together, they form what is called a brigade, and
are commanded usually by the senior Lt.-Col. as brigadier.
Two or more brigades form a dívision, and several divisions
an army.


Officers in the Guards, and cavalry and infantry of the Line,
obtain their first and subsequent commissions up to the rank
of major either by gift and promotion by the commander-in-
chief, in the name of the sovereign, or by purchase from sorne
of their comrades who have bought their commissions and wish
to dispose of them. Thus, if the major wishes to sell, the
senior captain who is ready and able to purchase the step does
so; the senior lieutenant buys the vacant captain's com-
mission; and so on down to the ensign or cornet, who sellS
the rank from which he is promoted to the aspirant for mili-
tary fame who wishes to enter the service. But no officer can
be advanced in this way witbout the approbation of the com-
mander-in-chief, or until he has served a certain time in the
rank from which he wishes to rise. Candidates for first com-
missions must pass an examinatiou before they are allowed to
enter the army.


There is no purchasing aboye tbe rank of major.
Much has been ~ai.d about the injustice of this system of


promotion, and as much urged in its support. To do away
with it, the nation must be prepared to buy up all the com-
misSÍons acquired under it, which are as much the private
property of the officers who hold them as their swords. The


'leaning of the military authorities towards a gradual reform of




88 THE ARMY.
the purchase system may, however, be inferred, from the great
number of officers who now enter the army as ensigns without
purchase. Our regimental system is agreed upon all hands to
be more perfect than that of any foreign army, and although
it may work injustice to individuaIs in sorne cases, it would
be rash to make any sud den change, the introduction of which
might impair the present efficiency and soldier-like spirit of
our regimental officers. It is essentiaI, however, in reflecting
upon this subject, to bear in mind that in the scientifie
branches of the army-the Engineers and Artillery, as well as
the corps of Royal Marines-promotion is obtained by se-
I1iority, and that purchase in them is unknown.


The officers of the Foot Guards enjoy a peculiar privilege,
which entitles them to an accession of arrny rank; so that
whilst in their own regiments they are respectively captains,
lieutenants, &c., in the army at large they take a step higher,
and rank accordingly as lieutenant-culollels, majors, captains,
&c. What is called Br'evet rank is given to officers in aIl
branches of the army as a reward for vrilJiant ana lsngtuened
service; and w hen such nominal rank has been held for a
certain number of years, it is usually converted into substantial
rank.


When officers desire to retire froro active service on account
?f iIl health, wounds, &c., or when the strength of a regiment
ll! ~educed, tbey are, on obtaillillg permission from the autho.
rlbes, put upon ltalf-pay, which is a little more than a moiety
of the fun pay of their rank; they are, however, liable to be
called upon to resume their duties.


The following tabIes show the vaIue of the commissions of
regimental officers, and their pay per dieni :-


PRlCE OF COMMISSIONS.


~ "" . ...,; t~ ~ .,,; sag ,; ~" .. Él~
" .. ""
~" Rl.lu.


"
o .. o o .. ~s"g8 t!l !:::J t.o¡'d "" o" .~ II:" ,,- ..


"""
~·s.cGS ID


.E t!l i:\~A t!l ""~ ~ ~ ~'Ci
----------- --- --- --- ------


.e .e .e
Major .... ............ ........ 5350 6350 4575
Captain ..................... 3500 3500 3225
Lieutenant .................. 1785 1600 1190
2nd Lieutenant .......... ..
Cornet ........... ...... ....... 1260 1200 840
Ensign ...................... ..


.e
8330
4800
2050


.e
3200
1800
700


450


.e
3200
1808
700
500




RJ.NK OP QPPICEIIS.
Life Guarda


and Horae
Guarda.


Foot I G~::!~~~d
Guarda. Dragoons.


ROYA.L ARTILL'BRY.


Foot.
BOf3e. Foot.


Royal
Engineers.


-¡-;-Z- -¡-;'-Z-~¡- -¡-;-d/-¡-;-;L/-;:-;:¡-I-;:-;-Z-Colonel.commandant ........ ......................... ... .,. •.. .:.' 3 O O 2 140 9! 2 l4o' 9i
Colonel ................ ...................... ...•... ... .., ... 1 12 4 1 6 3 1 6 3


Lieutenant·colonel ..........•......•.•.......... :::::: 1 9 2 1 6 9 1 3 9 O 17" O 1 7 1 O 18 1 O lB 1
Major . ..... ............ .................................... 1 4 6 1 3 O O 19 3 O 16 1


Captain ... .... ..... ...... ............. ..... ...... ......... O 15 1 O 15 6 O 14 7 O 11 7
Ditto with Brevet rank ............ o ........ o........ ñ


~\~~!e~~~: ~;.y~~~~;.~·~~~i¿~·.~~:::::::::::::::::::::: O l~. 4 O " 40 O 9 O
i 6 O O


6
O


6
t O


6


Cornet, Ensign, and 2nd Lieutenant ..... ,...... O 8 O O
1;; {on appolllrment .............................•... O l! ;¡ After 5 years' service .... " ........... .... ...... O 1i


e :: ~~ ':: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ... r li
O


6
Adjutaut ........................ :.. ......................•. o 13 O O 11


{
On appomtment . ..... ..... .... O 9 6 O t


Quarter-master After 10 years' service ... ... o 8 6
. ,,15 "...... o 10 o


Surgeon .. maJor I u 19 9
Surgeon ........................ '" ...... .•... ..... .... .... o 13 O O 11


After 10 years' Bervice .............. ...•...... o 15 O O 11
" 20 ........................ o 19 O O 1!


"25,, ........................ 1201:
ASBiatant Surgeon . ........ ..... .... ..... ..... ........ O 8 6 O:


Aftar 10 years' service ..•...... ............... o 11 o o 11
VeteriDary Snrgeon .....


After 3 years' aervioe '" '" ..•........•.........
u 10


,,20
" 25 "


O 8 O
O 10 O


O 12 O
O 16 O
017 6


I O
O


O
O


6
O


O 10 O
O 8 6


O lO 6
O 12 O


013 O
O 15 O
O 19 O


1 2 O
O 8 6


OH O
O 8 O
O 10 O


O 12 O
O 15 O


017 6


* In addition to hia payas subalterno t Ir 2nd Captain, 17 •• 9d.


O 16 1
018 1


O 910
01010


O 1~' 8t
O 10 10


O 10' O
O 10 O


O 15 O


O Ü .. 1
013 1


O 6 10
O 710


057


O 8 6t


O 710


O 13 O
G 15 O


O 19 O
120


O 7 6
O 10 O


~ If2nd Captain, 12 •• 9d.


011 1
O 13 1


O 6 10
O 710


057


I O 8 O


~
o


":l
o


i
rr.


$




90 THE ARMY.
The British army is the on1y force in Europe that is com-


posed of volunteers. The great miJitary forces of the Conti-
nent depend almost wholly upon conscription; but in our ser-
vice the ranks are filled by voluntary enlistment, and recruit-
ing parties are stationcd in aH our large towns expressly for
that purpose. The recruit receives a sum of money as bounty,
and is provided with a kit of clothing and necessaries. When
enlisted he is taken before a justice of the peace, who is directed
by the Mutiny Act to put to him certain questions, to give
him time to reflect upon what he has done, and to prevent
hasty or incautious enlistment. If he should change bis mind,
he is dismissed upon paying a fine of twenty shillings, popu-
larly called smart money; but if he do es not, he is attested, and
after that, should he abscond, he is considered and punished
as a deserter. lf his conduct be good, he may rise to be a
non-commissioned, and even a commissioned officer: In the
latter case, he is presented in the cavalry with 150l., and in
the infantry with lOOl., to purchase an outfit.


The following is atable of the pay of llon-commissioned
officers and privates, from wbich is deducted a certain sum for
their clothing and food :-


""
Royal Artillery. ro "" l~ ~=m m .,; t O '" ~ RUJ<. -00'" " ~~ g~ ~~ .:1 .,; " H fl ~ .... ,.,~w p:¡O O ~ A¿;A O e f"I ~ F-<


8. d. .. d. 8 • d. 8. d. .. d. s. d. 8. d.
Sergeants ......... 2 Si 2 2 2 O 3 O 210 P O 3 O
Corporals ......... 1 5 1 4 2 4 2 2 2 4 1 7i
Privates ............ 1 lIt 1 1 1 O 1 Si 1 3i 1 5 1 3


Over and aboye aH deductions, the private soldier of the
Line has about threepence left to bim to spend as he pIeases.
Thia may seem a amall sum; but it must be remembered that
his food and clothing are paid for, that he ia provided with
light, fire, and house-rent free, as well as medicaI attendance j
and that, if he behaves himself wllll, he has good prospects of
promotion, arid the certainty of a pension for his Iatter days.
The majority of men in the ranks of life from which he springs
are certainly not so well off in many respects.


1 will now return to the organization of the army. The
cavalry are termed either heavy or light, according to the nature




ORGANIZATION OF THE ARMY. 91
of their respective duties on service, and the manner in which
they are mounted and armed. Our heavy cavalry, besides the
three regiments of Household troops previously mentioned,
consists of nine regimenta, seven of which are known as " Dra-
goon Guards," and the other two as "Dragoons."* 1vVe have
at present nineteen regimen,ts of light cavalry. Of these, fi ve
regiments are Lancen, so called from the weapon with which
they are armed,-namely, the 5th, 9th, 12th, 16th, and ] 7th-
and the remainder .lbtssal's-with the exception of the 6th
(lnniskilling) Regiment of Dragoons-which name is derived
from the Hungarian words husz (twenty), and al' (pay), because
every twenty houses had to provide one horse soldier. The
Hussar regiments are the 3rd, 4th, 7th, 8th, 10th, 11th, 13th,
14th, 15th, 18th, 19th, !lOth, and ~lst.


The Mílitary Train is aIRO a cavalry corps, its duties being
to transport stores and munitions of war, to guard the bag-
gage, &e.


Eaeh regiment is known by its number, and many have a
distingnishing name besides. Thus, in the cavalry the 1st
Dragoon Guards are called "the King's j" the 4th Dragoon
Guards, "the Royal Irish j" the 6th Dragoon Guards," the
Carbineers," from the weapon they carry; the 1st Dragoons
are called "Royals j" the 2nd Dragoons are the renowned
" Seots Greys ;" their old eompanions in glory, the 6th Dra-
goons, the "Inniskillings;" the 11th Light Dragoons are
" Prince Albert's Own Hussars," In the infantry, which con-
sists of 109 regiments, the 1st Foot, formerly known as "the
Royal Seots," is now styled "Royals j" the 3rd Foot, "the
Bntrs j" 4th Foot, "the King's Own;" 18th Foot, "the Royal
Irish;" 23rd Foot, "tha Welsh Fusileers j" 26th Foot, " the
Cameronians j" 27th Foot, " Inniskillings JI' 33rd Foot, "the
Duke of Wellington's Own Regiment ;" tha 88th, "the Con-
naught Rangers ;" the 100th Foot, "the Royal Canadian Regi-
ment." There are se ven Highland regimentllt-viz" the 42nd,
72nd, 74th, 78th, 79th, 92nd, and 93rd j five Fusileers, the
5th, 7th, 21st, 23rd, and 87th; the 101st, 102nd, 103rd, and
l04th are lndian Fnsileer regiments j and nine Light lnfantry


* The term "dl'agoon" is derived from tha Roman draconarii, who
bore lances ornamented with the fignre of a dragan, and were trained to
fight both on horseback and on foot.


t Of these, five regiments weal' the kilt-viz., the 42nd, 78th, 79th,
92nd, and 93rd; the other two wear the trew8, 01' tartan tronsera.




92 THE ARMY.
regiments-viz., the 13th, 32nd, 43rd, 51st, 52nd; 68th, 71st
(Highland), 85th, and 90th. The 105th and 1.06th are lndian
regiments of Light Infantry. The 60th Hegiment, containing
four battalions, is a Hifle corps; and there is al80 a distinct
corps (not numbered) called the "Hille Brigade," likewise con-
sisting of four battalions. The nrst twenty-five regimenta of
foot now have two battalions each. When any augmentation
of the army is required on the breaking out of war, &c., it is
customary to raise a second battalion to existing regiments
rather than to create n~w ones.


Every battalion of foot has two flags, the Queen's colour, or
Union Jack, and the regimental colour, upon which is embla-
zoned the arms or crest of the corps, as well as the names of
the victories to which it has contributed, inscribed under royal
sanction. The standard s of the cavalry bear similar honour-
able decorations.


The Artillery has become in recent warfare the most im-
portant arm of the military service. The Royal Artillery is
divided iuto brigades, which are again subdivided into bat-
teries. It numbers about 800 officers, 1500 non-commissioned
officers, trumpeters, and drummers, and 20,000 rank and file.
In the brigade of Horse Artillery there are 77 officers, 120 non-
commissioned officers, &c., and 1700 privates. The gunners
of the Royal Artillery ride upon the tumbrils of the pieces;
those of the Horse Artillery are mounted, and follow them.


The Hoyal Engineers, the rauk and file of which corpa was
formerly called the "Sappers and Miners," is also a most dis-
tinguished and useful branch of the service. It is charged
with the construction of fortifications and ent.renchments for
the army in the field, and to carry on mining operátions. It
also conducts siege operations, constructs bridgeR and pontoons
for crossing rivera, and other necessary works. Commissions
in the Artillery and Engineers-constituting the scientific
corps of the army-are now thrown open for public cornpeti-
tion; but candidates must be nominated by the commander-
in-chief before they can present themselves for examination.
This proviso, however, 8eems ollly made to ensure thc previous
character of the applicant being creditable. These two branches
of the service were formerly under the authority of the Board
of Ordnance, but are now merged into the general manage-
mellt of the army.


The foregoing is an outline of the composition of the hard-




REGIMENTAL PRECEDENC& 93
worked army of Great Britain, which in turn is sent all over
the world to protect her rights and interests.


The etiquette of the army as to regimental preceden ce ob-
served when forming the line at reviews is as follows :-


1. The Artillery usually occupies both right and left flanks.
2. The Cavalry is posted next to the Artillery on the right.
3. The Foot Guards next to the Cavalry on the right.
4. The Infantry of the Line on the left of the Guards, ac-


cording to the respective numbers of tbeir regiments. When
the Royal Marines form part of the line, their place is next
after the 50th Regiment.


In addition to the regular army we maintain sorne local
corps, which serve in the colonies and foreign stations. These
consist of-


Three regiments of blacks, which are recruited and stationed
in the West India islands and on the coast of Africa.


Royal Malta Fencibles.
The Gold Coast Corps.
The Sto Helena Regiment.
The Cape Mounted Rifles.
The Cey Ion Rifles.
Royal N ewfoundland Veteran Companíes.
The Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment.
Offenders against military discipline are tried before courts


martial composed of officers selected from the regiment or the
garrison in whieh the prisoner serves. The J udge·Advocate
General, who is a civilian nominated by Government, has the
controlof these tribunals. A Deputy Judge-Advocate, gene-
rally an officer, attends at every trial, and sees that it is con-
ducted according to law. A member is appointed to preside,
and the charge against the accused, which must be in proper
form, is read over to him, and the evidence against and
for him heard and reduced to writing. This done, the
prisoner is ordered to withdraw, and the court deliberates
upon its verdict, wbich, as well as the punishment to follow it,
should it be one of "guilry," is decidedby a majority. The
"proceedings," comprising the charge and evidence, are then
submitted to the general commanding the district, who either
" approves and confirms them," or sends them back for further
consideration, or sets them aside altogether. The result of the
trial is not aUowed to transpire, even to the prisoner, until this
officer's decision is made known.




94 THE ARMY.
The rewards for long and meritorious service wmch are be-


stowed upon our brave defenders, forro a more pleasing subject
than the last: these are given in the shape of titles, pensions,
promotions, and decorations. The sovereign has, as you know,
the right of bestowing any distinction upon a subject. Peerages
and baronetcies are frequently given to the heroes of great
military achievements, and the people of England are by no
means backward in granting the substantial means necessary
for keeping up those dignities, as witness the provision made
for Marlborough and Wellington by a grateful nation, and in
our time for Williams, the gallant defender of Kars, for the
son of the brave and lamented Havelock, and for Lord N apier
of Magdala.


The Order 01 tke Batk is a decoration much coveted by
military and naval officer8. There 18 also a civil branch of
this Order for non-eombatants: it is divided into three
ranks :-


Knights Grand Crosses-G.C. B.;
Knights Commanders-K.C.B.; and
ComfJanions-C."B.


The deeoration is a star. The order of Sto Mickael and St.
George is bestowed ullon oflicers in the army and navy who
have distinguished themselves in the Mediterranean.


But perhaps the most highly-prized deeoration worn by our
army aIld navy is the lately instituted Victoria Cross. This
is a plain pieee of bronze, but upon it is imprinted the magic
motto, "Por Valour," and it is only awarded for the most
devoted and daring bravery in the fieId.


Medals are often struck to commemorate successful aetions
or campaigns, and are distributed to, and worn by, all ranks
that have taken part in them. The medal itself commemo-
rates the campaign; and clasps are frequently added to the
ribbon which suspends it, upon each of which is engraved the
name of the particular aetion for which the wearer has
received it.


Pensions are given to non-commissioned officers and privates,
. who from wounds or infirmity are no longer fit for service.


Out-pensioners receive their pay, and live where they please.
Some, the youngest and most vigorous of these, are enrolled
for further service, if required, and are called out for exercise
every year.


In-pensioners are Iodged and maintained in the Hospitals
at Chelsea near LondoD, and Kilmainham in Dublin.




MILITIA AND YEOMANRY. 95
1 must now draw this very long Letter to a conclusion,


although, perhaps, 1 have not tolcl you all you might like to
hear about our Boldiers. But, before 1 close it, there is a force
which 1 must not omit to describe, as it is the ancient consti-
tutional guardian of our shores, and of late years has proved
an admirable nursery for tbe regular army, 1 mean the Mílítia.
This term, in its general sen se, signifies the whole body of
persons, stipendiary or not, who bear arms for the defence of
the State; but now its meaning is restricted to the forces
raised in our coullties alld commallded by their lords-
lieutenant. Formerly the Militia was raised by ballot-every
person upon whom the lot feH was bound to serve or find a
substitute-but now its recruits are enlisted and bounty given
to them as in the regular army. Every county has its regi-
ment of Militia, the large ones having several: thus Middle-
sex has five, and Lancashire and Yorkshire eight apiece.
Counties upon the sea-coast form regiments of artillery and
rifles; those in the interior, infantry. These are gencraHy
called together once cvery year for training during a perlod of
from twenty to twenty-seven days, or longer, at the option of
the Government. U nder recent Acts of Parliament the Militia
may be permanently embodied, and even sent abroad. During
the late war with Russia, many garrisons, both at home and
in the Mediterraneau, were mauued by Militia regiments so
embodied, much to their own credit and greatly to the ad-
vantage of the State, for we were thus enabled to withdraw
the regular troops from those places, and to send them to re-
inforce our hard-worked battalions before Sebastopol. More-
over, the Militia supplied thousands of recruits for the !ine,-
men who had had sorne experience of a .soldier's life, liked it,
and were already more than half-trained to their duties. The
officers and men of the Militia, except the adjutant and staff,
are only paid when called out for training, or as long as they
are embodied. The commissions oí the former are signed by
the lord-lieutenant of the county, but the adjutant is appointed
by the Queen. In Englalld and Wales we have ninety-nine
regiments of Mílitia; in Scotland) sixteen) and in Irelant:!,


forty-tive. TAe number of men to be called up for 27 days·
training is stated at 128,969.


A somewhat similarly constituted force to the Militia is the
Ye07nanry, but 161'e.atl'] \',ub"1'<i).,-,\\te. tI) it in i"ffil'l)l:t\\llce; Olle
object for which it is kept up being appareIltly to provide
certaiu country gentlemen with a showy uniform, wherewith




96 THE ARMY.
to make a figure at court, instead of the unbecoming footman-
like costume in which etiquette demands that simple gentle-
men must appear at Her Majesty's levees and drawing-rooms.


The last branch of the military service to which it is
neeessary for me to refer is the V olunteer force. Owing ita
origin to the dread of a French invasion, it has survived the
cause froro which it sprang, and has now become a permanent
eleroent in our system of national defenee. At present it
consists of about 160,000 roen, who give their services gra-
tuitously, aIthough a small suro is annually voted by Parliament
in order to defray a portion at least of the necessary expenses
of the various corps .





97


LE'fTER XII.


THE NAVY.


Popularity of the Navy-Early History-Naval Ascendancy-Prizes
of War-Size of Men·of·War-The Boat'd of Admiralty-Rating oí
!::ihips-Officers of a Man·of·War-Stations of Sbips-Pay ofOfficers
-Relative Army A.nd Navy Rank-Commissiolls in tbe Navy-Pay
of Warrant Officers-of Sailors-Pensioners-The Coast Gl.lard-
Royal Marines-Pay in the Marines.


THE navy of Great Britain is perhaps the most popular of our
national forces, and deservedly so. Our army has won us
honour and triumphs abroad, but it is to the navy that we
owe our security at home. From the time when Lord Howard
of Effingham, with bis great sea captains Drake, Hawkins,
ann Frobisher, scattered before them the wrecks of the 80-
called "Invincible" Spanish Armada, down to that eventful
day when Nelson's victorions cannons roared in the Bay of
Trafalgar, it has been our best bulwark against the invader,
and but for our stout wooden walls, his devastating footsteps
might even now be traced upon our pleasant pastures. The
navy has never been looked upon with suspicion as a force
which might be employed by an unconstitutional sovereign to
curtail tbe liberties and rights of the people. On the con-
trary, save during that humiliating epoch in our bistory when
our king was tbe pensioner of a French monarch, and applied
to his vices and pleasures the sums which should have gone
to maintain the fleet, it has been the special care both of
governors and governed to keep up its strength and effi-
ciency. In the year 1707 the House of Lords, in an address
to Queen Anne, said, "that tbe honour, security, and wealth
of tbis kiugdom depend upou the protection and encourage-
ment of trade, and the improving and right encouraging ita
naval strength . . . therefore we do, in the most earn~t manner,
beseech your majesty that the sea affaírs may always be your
jirst and most peculiar care." It will be an evil day for


H




98 THE NAVY.
EngIand when the principIe laid down in this' address is
departed from.


Previous to the reign of Elizabeth our sovereigns had but
few ships of war. The naval force collected to oppose the
Armada was the largest armament that had ever be en brought
together under an English commander. It consisted of 176 ships
and about 15,000 meno But of this fteet only 40 ships and
6000 sailors belonged to the royal navy; the rest were con-
tributed by London, Bristol, Yarmouth, the Cinque Ports, &c.
The navy had not yet become a separate service and distinct
profession. Our captains were soldiers or sailors as occasion
required. At the battle of Flodden Field the admiral of
England led the right wing of the army, and Lord Howard
of Effingham was never bred up to the sea. The career of
John Sheffield, Earl of Mulgrave, shows how naval appoint-
ments were made in the latter part of the sixteenth century.
At the age of seventeen he volunteered to serve at sea against
the Dutch, and after six weeks returned home to take the
command of a troop of horse. Six years afterwards he was
made captain of an eighty-four gun ship, ruthough in the
whole course of his life he had never been three months aftoat.
A short time afterwards he was given a regiment of foot !
Under the first sovereigns of the house of Stuart our navy
degenerated; but the vigorous and able administration of
Oliver Cromwell speedily raised it to a magnitude and power
hitherto unknown. He divided it into rates and classes, and
under the command of Admiral Blake it not onIy equalled, but
surpassed, the famous marine of Holland. James II.-himself
a naval commander and his own Lord High Admiral-ruso paid
great attention to marine afrairs. At his abdication, the fteet
amounted to 173 sail, measuring 101,892 tons, and having on
board 6!J30 guns, and 42,000 seamen. Since this time the
efficiency of the royal navy has steadily increased, and although
there have be en periods in which the combined fleets of France
and Spain and other coalitions have deprived us for a 8hort
time of our ascendancy, the victories of Rodney, Howe, Dun-
can, Sto Vincent, and N elson soon restored to us that sove-
reignty of the sea to which, from our extended empire, our
enormous commerce,* and our maritime habits and prowess,
we may still justly lay claim.


"' Sorne idea may be formed of the gigantic extent of the British com-
mercial marine, from the fact that in 1Sü3 it comprised 20,877 vessels,
of 4,795,279 tons, and manned by 184,727 sailora.




PRIZES O;F W AR. 99
The following table will show the triumphs of our gallant


tara in the last wars, in which they took a principal part :-


SMps taken 01' destroyed by the Naval and Marine Forces
o/ Great Britain in the French Revolutionary War, end-
ing 1802.


FOROE. Frenoh. Dutch. Spanish. Other Nations. Total.


Ships of tb e LiD. . ..... 45 25 11 2 83
Fifty.gun shipa ......... 2 1 O O 3
Frigates .................. 133 31 20 7 191
Sloops, &0 •............... 161 32 55 16 264


--
--
~---


-----Graod Tolal ." ...... 341 89 86 25 541


Number O/ Ships taken 01' destroyed in the War against
Buonaparte, ending 1814.


FORCE. French. Spanish. Danish. Russian. American. Total.


-------------
---------


Sbips of lb. LiD. . .. 70 27 23 4 O 124
Fitly-gun Shipo ...... 7 O 1 O 1 9
Friga.tes ............... 77 36 24 6 6 148
Sloops, &0 ••......••... 188 64 16 7 13 288


----
-----


-----Grand Total .......•• 342 127 64 17 19 669


It thus appears tbat in a period of about twenty-one years
om Heet had taken or destroyed one thousand one hundred
and ten ships of the navies of our ene mies !


The introduction of steamers as ships of war has caused a
great revolution in naval tactics. Formerly the roaiu object of
a commander was to get what is called the weather ,qauge of
bis eneroy; that is to say, to sail on the side of biro froro
which the wind is coming, so as to enable him to roanceuvre
round and rake him by sweeping the whole length of his
decks with his guns in crossing his bow or stern. Steamers,
however, are almost independent of wind or tide, and Bcrew-
steamers combine the advantages of steamillg with sailing.
Our ships are now built very much larger, and carry more
and much heavier guns than they did evell twenty years ago;
in fact, the largest shí ps-of- the-line with w hich N elson and
Collingwood fuught would be considered as roere frigates in
comparison with the mighty men-of-war of the present day.


H2




100 THE NAVY.
Nor is it merely in their size that the men-of-war· of to-day
differ from those of other times. Formerly, as 1 dare say
you know, they were constructed of wood; but, in order to
cope with the terribly destructive power of modern artillery,
they are now covered with thick plates of iron, and, indeed,
in most cases the ships of what may be called our effective
fighting navy are entirely built of that material.


The general direction and control uf aH affairs connected
with the royal navy is now entrusted by her Majesty to the
Commissioners for dischargillg the duties of Lord High
Admiral. From the reign of Queen Anne down to the pre-
sent time, with tIJe exception of a short period during which
William IV., when Duke of CIaren ce, held it, that high
office has never be en entrusted to a single individual. The
commission for performing its duties consists of the First Lord
oI the Admiralty-a cabinet minister-and from four to six
junior lords. Civilians may be appointed to these posts, but
at least two of the lords are always naval officers. l'ractically
speaking, all the power and authority of the Board of
.Admíralty, as the commission is sometimes called, is vested
in the First Lord. Its powers are extensive and important.
By its orders all ships are built, repaired, fitted for sea, pui in
commission and out of commission, armed, stored, and provi-
sioned, despatched on home or foreign service, broken up, and
soldo AH appointments and removals of commissioned and
warrant officers are made by its orders. AH promotiona in the
several ranks (except to that of adnJÍral, to which captains are
promoted by seniority), all honours, pensions, and gl'atuities,
are granted 'upon its recommendation. AH retnrns from the
fleet, and everything that relates to the urder and discipline
of every ship, are sent in and reported to tbis board. The
annua1 estimates of tbe expenses of the navy are prepared by
the Lords Commissioners, and are laid before Parliament by
the First Lord, or by the Secretary to the Admiralty. The
8ums voted are expended by or under the direction of the
board. Tbey also have the direction of alI buildings and
machinery in the dockyards, and no ncw inventions c.'1n be
adopted and no alterations made in them without their sanction.


The ships of the royal navy were, by an order in council
dated 1816, dividen into six rates'k or classes, according to
their size, &c., as follows ;-


* This classification is still nominally in force; but it is practically
obsolet.e, since it does not d~al with the moat important vessels of our
exiating navy-the ¡ron·ciada.




RA.TING Ol!' SHIPS, lOl


P~rst-rates,-An t1ree-decked ships.
Second-rates.-One ofher Majesty's yachts, and two-decked


ships carrying not less than 80 guns, or which have a comple-
ment of not less thall 750 meno


T/¡ird-rates.-Her Majesty's other yachts, and all such
vessels as may bear the flag or pendant of any admiral, or
captain superintendent of a royal dockyard, and a11 ships
carrying under 80, and not less than 70 guns, or which have
a complement under 750, aIld not less thall 620 meno


Fourth-rates.-Ships carrying under 70, and not less than
50 guns, or the complements of which are under 620, and not
less than 450 men.


Fifth-rates,-All ships under 50 guns, and not less than 30,
or the complements of which are under.450, and not less than
300 meno And


Sixtlt-rates-which comprise three classes :
1. AH other ships bearing a captain.
2. Sloops-comprising bomb ships, and aH other vessels


with commanders.
3. AH other ships commanded by lieutenants, and having


complements of not less than 60 meno
A First-rate has usually on board the foUowing officers :-
1 Captain.
1 Commander,
6 Lieutenants, or more.
1 Master.
1 Captain of Marines.
2 Lieutenants of Marines.
1 Chaplain.
l. Surgeon,
2 Mates,
1 Assistant Surgeon.
1 Paymaster,
1 Second Master.
1 Chief Engineer (if a Steamer).
1 N aval Instructor.
Midshipmen and naval cadets according to circumstances.
If the ship carries the flag of an admiral, there are besides


that officer his ftag-lieutenant and secretary on board.
Ships of lesser rates are officered in like manner; the number


of lieutenants, &c., being proportioned to their complement
and number of guns,


There are three gradations of admirals in the royal navy,
viz. : Admirals, Vice-Admiral8, and Rear-Admirals. Admirals




102 THE NAVY.
bear their Hags at the main-top-gallant mast head; vice-
admiraIs at the fore-top-gallant mast head; and rear-admirals
at the mizen-top-gallant mast head.


All admiraIs are called flag-officers.
1 gave you a tabular statement of the pay of officers in the


army; 1 am afraid 1 cannot put the full pay of the officers of
the navy into the same shape, as there are, as you will 800, so
many variations in its amounts. They are as follow :-


MILITARY ERANCH .


ADMIRAL OF THE FLEET
ADMIRAL
VICE-ADMIRAL •••
REAR-ADMIRAL, and }
COMMODORE of the 1st CIass •••
CAPTAlN OF THE FLEET
COMMODORE of the 2nd CIass,


H commanding in chief (in 00-
dition to his payas Captain)


If not commanding in chief (in
OOdition to his payas Captain)


CAPTAINS,
To the first 70 ...
To the next 100
To the remainder


COMMANDER,
In aH rates


LlEUTEN ANTS,
In command of a ship
All others


MASTER,
Mer 25 years' service


" 20 "
" 15-


"
"


"


" 10
" 6


All others
SECOND MASTER,


"


"


"
"


If quaIified for a Master .••
If not qualified for ditto •••


.e 8. d.
2190 O
1825 O
1460 O


O perannum.


1095 O


O
O
O


1095 O O


365 O O


182 10 O


600 14 7
500 7 1
399 19 7


365 O O


200 15 O
182 10 O


365 O O
328 10 O
273 15 3
2]9 O O
200 15 O
182 10 O


136 17 6
91 5 O


"
"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"


"




PAY OF OFFICERS • 103
.f, s. d.


MmsIDPMAN 31 18 9 per annum.
MASTEB'S AssrsTANT ... 47 2 11


" NAVAL CADET ... 16 14 7
"


CIVIL BRANCH.
PAYMASTER, 1st Clasa ... 600 7 1


"
"


2nd Clasa .. 474 10 O
"


"
Srd Clasa .• 3,49 15 10


"
"


4th Clasa •• 249 8 4
" CmEF ENGINEER,


After 25 years' service, ií quali-
fied for 1at or 2nd ratea 365 O O ,,-


After 20 yeara' service, ditto 328 10 O
"


"
15


" " "
282 17 6


"
"


10
" " "


237 5 O
"


"
5


" " "
209 17 6


" Under 5
" " "


191 12 6
" ASSISTANT ENGINEER, 1st Class 136 17 6
"


" "
2nd Class 109 10 O


" CHAPLA.IN,
According to length


oí aervice, from 182 10 O to 200 15 O
" SURGEON,


According to length
of service, from 273 15 O to 456 5 O


" AssISTANT SURGEON,
According to length


of aervice, from 182 10 O to 237 5 O
" NAVAL INSTRUCTOR,


After 20 years' service .f,237 5 O per ann.}With a tuition
,,15 " 209 17 6 " allowance for
,,10 " 182 10 O" each young
,,7 " 155 2 6" gentleman
,,3 " 136 ]7 6" instructed of


Under 3 " 127 15 O" 5l.
CLERK... 73 O O


" 1 have not included in the foregoing statement 3011 the
officers and clerks of the civil branch, but just enough oí them
to give you a sufficient notion of the rate of pay of officers in
the navy.




104 THE NAVY.
The foIlowing table will show you the reIative rank of


officers in the army and navy :-
1. The Admiral of the Fleet ranks with a FieId Marshal in


the army.
2. Admirals rank with Generala.
3. Vice-Admirals
4. Rear-AdmiraIs
5. Commodores of the First 1


Class, Second Class, and the
Director General of the Medi-
cal Department of the N avy •..


"


"


"


6. Captains after 3 years' service "
7. Other Captains
8. Commanders, Secretaries 1


to Flag Officers, and Deputy
Inspectors General of HospitaIs
and Fleets ... ... ... ...


9. Lieutenants,
Masters of the Fleet,
Inspectors of machinery


afioat,
Masters,
Chief Engineers,
Chaplains,
Secretaries,
Surgeons,
Paymasters,


10. Mates,
Assistant Surgeons,


11. Second Masters,
Passed Clerks,
Midshipmen,


}
}


"


"


"


"


"


Lieut.-GeneraIs.
Major-GeneraIs.


Brigadier-GeneraIs.


CoIonela.
Líeut.-ColoneIs.


Majora.


Captains.


Lieutenants.


Ensigns.


But no officer of the navy can assume command of land
forces, neither can an officer of the army assume command of
any ship.


Commissions and promotions in the navy are not obtained
by purchase, but young gentlemen enter this servíce as naval
cadets, after passing an examination; and promotion to every
subsequent step up to the rank of captain, must be preceded
by a similar test of efficieucy.


Sailors for manning the navy were not long ago obtained,
during time of war, by impressment. Armed partíes, under




PAY OF SAILORS. 105
the command of an officer, called press-gangs, nsed to land at
a port and carry off by force any seafaring men that they could
lay their hands on, to serve in the royal navy. Dllder laws,
now repealed, justices of the peace had power to give rogues
and vagabonds the alternative of going to jail, or serving in
tbe Heet ! But no such measures are now resorted to; sea-
men, like soldiers, entt'r the Queen's service at their own free
will, and receive bounty for so doing.


The pay of some of tbe warrant and petty officers, answering
to the non-commissiolled officers of the army, and of sailors in
the royal navy, is as follows :-


W ARRANT OFFICERS.
~ s. d.


Bos.tswain,
Gunner, )


IstClass 164 5 O per annum.
and


Carpenter,
2nd"
3rd "


127 15
109 10


O
O


PETTY OFFICERS.
Chief Gunner's Mate,


) Chief Boatswain's Mate, 44 2 O Chief Carpenter's Mate,
Ship's Cook,
Gunner's Mate, } Captain of the Fore-top, 39 10 O Captaín of the Hold,
Coxswain of the Barge, } Captain of the Mast, 34 19 7 Yeoman of the Signals,
Stoker and Coal Trimmer 36 10 O
Able Seaman ... 28 17 11
Ordinary Seaman 22 16 3
Boy, 1st Class ..• 10 12 11
Boy, 2nd Class 9 2 6


"


"


"


"


"


"


" ,.


"


" Pensions are granted to aIl seamen discharged after twenty-
one years' service for any cause other than misconduct. Sailors
who engage for what is called continuous servíce, receive the
pay 1 have set against their names as long as they remain in
the service. Those who enlist otherwise receive fuIl pay
whilst their ships are in comrnission, when the ship is put out
of commi~síon tbey are paid off and discharged. It is in the
discretion of the Board of Admiralty to award pensions under
any circumstances.




106 THE NAVY.
Pensioners are divided into two classeR, in and out pensioners


of Greenwich Hospital. This magnificent building, once a
royal parace, was appropriated in the reign of William lIL as
an asylum for seamen, who by wounds, age, or accident, have
become unfit for further active service. When, after the
famous battle of La Hogue, crowds of maimed and suffering
sailors were cast upon their country, Queen Mary, the good
and gentle wife of that monarch, showed great solicitud e for
their welfare, and wished to found an institution to relieve and
maintain them. Upon her death, which took place soon after-
wards, her sorrowing husband set apart the palace of Greenwich
for that purpose. It has been greatly improved and enlarged
SÍnce then, and it stands a national memorial of one of our
greatest naval victories, and a monument to the memory of her
who, amidst the exultations that followed the triumph, díd
not forget those whose blood had been shed to gain it.


The rules and provisions for the enforcement of discipline
and good order in the navy are embodied in an Act of Parlia-
ment passed in the 19th year of George lIL, and offenders
against them are tried by courts-martial, nearly in the same
way as in the army, except that the court must be held in a
ship afloat, and that its decision does not require confirmation,
and is made public directly it is delivered.


The Coast Guard until lately was partly under the control
of the Admiralty, and partIy under that of the Excise. It was
manned in a great measure, and commanded, by men and
officers from the navy, but was a separate service. It is now
incorporated with the royal navy_ Its duties are to capture
smugglers and to prevent the landing of contraband goods. To
carry out these, small fast-sailing vessels, ranging from one
hundred and fifty down to twenty-three tons, carrying from
five to thirty-two men, and commanded by lieutenants in the
navy, or by civilians from the merchant service, cruise about
Our coasts. Stations also are formed on 8hore from which
patrols ;\re sent out, and where watch is kept day and night.


The Coast Volunteers are a sort of seafl1ring militia, trained
for service with the navy in case of emergency.


The Royal Naval Reserve consists of volunteers from the
mercantile service, who undergo a certain amount of training
annually in time of peace, and hold themselves at the disposal
of the count1'y in time of war. Merchallt vessels, whose crews
comprise a certain proportion of naval reserve men, have a
right to carry the Blue ensign, ordínary merchantmen being




ROYAL MARINES. 107
restricted to the use of the Red ensign; while men-of-war
bear the White ellsign.


The corps of Royal Marines ia under the control of the Board
of Admiralty, and forma part of the establishment of the navy.
It serves on board our ships, and garrisons the royal dock-
yards. The date of the formation of this force has not been
exactly ascertained: we firat hear of it in the year 1684-. It
is now separated into two sections, the Marine Light Infantry
and the Royal Marine Artillery; the former consists of four
divisions, which are stationed respectively at Chatham, Ports-
mouth, Plymouth. and Woolwich, and number more t.han one
hundred companies. There are thirteen companies of Marine
Artillery, the head-quarters of which are at Portsmouth. The
following is atable of the annua! pay oí officers and men in
the Marines :-


OFFlOERS.
1st Colonel Cornrnandant
2nd Colone! Cornmandant
Lieutenant Colon el ...
Captain, having higher rank by brevet
Captain ... ... ... ...
1st Lieutenant, after 7 years' sarvice


" under "
Adjutant, besides payas Lieutenant
2nd Lieutenant
Cadet


Light Infantry.
;;6 B. d.


702 12 6 .. .


Artillery.
;;6 B. d.


... 365 O O ... 476 1 3


... 310 5 O ... 326 19 7


... 247 17 11 ... 257 O 5


... 211 7 11 ." 220 10 5


... 136 17 6 ... 142 19 2


... 118 12 6 ... 124 14 6


... 118 12 6 .. .


... 95 16 3 ... 101 16 11


... 66 18 4 .. .


NON·()OMMISSIONED OFFIOERS AND PRIVATES.
Sergeant Major
Sergeant
Corporal, 1st ClaBs


" 2nd"
Private, 1st ClaBs


" 2nd"


54 15 O .. .
33 9 2 .. .
27 7 6 ...
24 6 8
21 5 10 .. .
18 5 O .. .


74 18 Di
44 9 8!
42 11 8
39 10 10
26 4 8i
23 3 O


Gentlemen enter this service as cadets, and are instructed in
their profession on board TIte Excellent, gunnery ship, at
Portsmouth. The most proficient are chosen for the Marine
Artillery, the junior officers oí which force are aelected from
the most capable of their rank in the general body of the
Royal Marines.


Promotion in this corps goes entirely by seniority.
AH the rewards for long and distinguished services and


bravery, that 1 mentioned in my letter upon the army, are
open to officers in the navy and Marines.




108


LETTER XIII.


TH E CIVIL SERVICE.


Nature of the Civil Service-Treasury-Seeretaries of State's Offices-
Board of Admiralty-Board of Trade-Iuland Revenue-Customs-
Post Office-Poor Law BoarJ-Audit Office-Public Record
Oflice-l'ayrnaster-General"s Office-Military Offices-Parliamen-
tary Oflices-Board of Works, &0.


1 NOW come to that branch of Her Majesty's services which is
so intimately connected with "How we are Governed" -the
Civil Service. The Civil Service is the name now used col-
lectively for all the Civil Offices under the Crown. Every
.9Ile holdiug a post under the Government that is not a Tegal,
nava!, 01' military post, la called a Civil Servant-from the


-Prime, Minister down t? a peully postman.' The illfluence of
tIie(Jb:TI:..semce.iS-Y~tlKr~át: Itlíaa the entire oon"Uorüw:-.áil_
~ffai~§"Qf th.e COUll,try, including,aH civil matters connected
'with""ílle Army and Navy. It superintenda the customs and


revenues and collects al! taxes. It accounts for the national
expenditure. It builds ships for the navy, and regulates the
clothing, ammunition, and transport of the army. It controla
the governments of our vanous colonies. In fact the Civil
Service is, in other words, the machinery which carnes on
the government of the country.


Tbis machinery is divided into deparlments, and at the
head of each department is a Minist.er of the Crown, or some
great polítical or financia! functionary, who is aided hya staff of
clerks to assist him in the discharge of his duties. These clerk-
ships have since 1855 been open to a ~pecies of limited com-
petition, and are much coveted. They are, however, not open
to the public, as every candidate, before competition, has to
obtain a nomination from some member of the governmcnt,
allowing him to go up for his examÍllation-a very difficult
thing to get now-a-days.


'rhe following list oi tbe cbief Government Departments, to-
gether with a 8hort account of their differcnt duties, will give
you perhaps the best idea of what the Civil Service really is :-




THE TREASURY. 109
First of all is the Trea~ury.-The office of Lord High


Treasurer was first put into commission in 1612. The Lords
of the Treasury are five in number, including the First Lord
and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. A11 these, as we11 as
the two Parliamentary Secretarys4,ins, are political appoint-
nrentB;-:tñd'are vacated on a change of Ministry. The First
Lord of the Treasury has the power of controlling a11 the ap-
pointments made by other members of the Ministry j he
appoints archbishops and bishops, and such Crown livings as
are not vested in the Lord Chance11or, are at his disposal. He
is gellerally, but not necessarily, the Prime Minister. The
Chance110r of the Exchequer now performs many of the duties
in connexion with the Exchequer which in former times de-
volved upon the Lord High Treasurer. He has the en tire
control of the public monies, and of aU matters relating to its
receipt or expenditure. The three Junior Lords of the Treasury
are members of Parliament. They are expected to be in
attendance on the various committees, and arrangements are
made that some of them shall be in the House whenever it may
sito .Tlle:re are tvvo politica! Secretaries-one attending to
financial, and the other tú parliamentary business. The per-
~~~~ary is ~lleo1:liqia1.h!lad ofthe d~E&~~!l.t
The Treasury lS the highest branch of the Execütive, and
exercises its supervision over aU the revenue offices, and so far
as receipt and expenditure are con cerned, over every depart-
ment of the Civil Service.


Tae Dome Office.-The present organization of the Home
Office took place in 1801 ; before that year it had been united
with the Foreign and Colonial departments. The Secretary of
State for the Home Department has direct control over a11
matters relating to the internal affairs of Great Britain. He
controls the administration of criminal justice, and the whole
police force as well as the county constabulary. All official
communications from the Cabinet to the vice-regal court of
Ireland are made through this department, and the Rome
Secretary is consulted by the Lord Lieutenant on aU matters
of momento He is assisted in the A~s.2~"~g~.2.L~ dntias ~y..._i.;~
two under-secretaries and a staff of clerks. / .


. _ .. ?ih-;Fo;·~ifjn-oj¡ice.~Previous to the year 1782 the two
principal secretaries were known as Secretaries of State for the
Northern and Southern Departments respectively. In this
year, however, a re-division of the duties was made, under
which arrangement the Northern beca me the Foreign, a.nd the




110 THE CIVIL SERVICE.
Soutbern, tbe Home Department. The Secretary 'oí State for
Foreign Affairs is the official channel of communication be-
tween Great Britain and other countries; aU treaties and
alliances are made through him, and it is part oí his duty to
extend his protection to English subjects residing abroad. All
ambassadors and consuls are under his control. The Foreign
Secretary is assisted in the diBcharge of bis duties ~_o.
unde~.e.ta.rie&-ttnd a staff of clerks.
-Tite Colonial O.ffice.-The first Secretary of State for the
Colonies was appointed in 1768. The duties of this office are
entirely confined to colonial matters, and consist in exercising
a watchful supervision of the interests oí our colonies, in ad-
ministering tbeir laws and customs, in appointing their
governors, and in directing tbeir government. The Secretary


'oí State íor the Colonies is assisted in fue discharge of his
duti~s by two. under-secretaries anda staff of clerks. ..


The War Office.-The present organization of the W ar Office
dates only from 1854-5, when the extensive Ordnance depart-
ments, the Commissariat, and the Secretary at War were abo-
lished, and the duties transíerred to the Secretary of State for
W aro By this consolidation of offices an establishment was
formed having the administration oí a11 war matters and the
entire supervision of the army at home and abroad. The
Secretary of State for War is assisted in, the discharge of bis
duties ~-UBd~e~1l:!~e_~~f Stat~ and a large staff of
military and civil officials. . v


The India Office.-In 1858, by 21 & 22 Victo c. 106, the
Government, in the place of the East India Company, assullled
the entire administration of the British Empire in India. By
this Act the Secretary of State for India has aU the powers
hitherto exercised by the Company and the Board of Control.
He is assisted in tlle discharge of his duties by two under-
secretaries and tbe Council of India, together with a large staff
of clerks. This Council oí India consists of fifteen members,
eigbt of wbom are appointed by the Queen, and seven by the
directors of the East India Company. They receive an annual
salary of .;tI 200, retain their office during good behaviour, and
are not permitted to sit in Parliament.


Board uf Admimlty.-This office is the representative of tbe
Lord High Admiral oí EngIand, and is now put into com-
mission. The Commissioners are generally members of the
House of Commons, and are composed oí naval officers and
civilians, all of whom are styled Lords of the Admiralty, and




BOARDS OF TRADE, REVENUE, AND CUSTOMS. 111
who, together with the First Secretary, quit office on a change
of Government. The other officers have permanent appoint-
ments. These Lords Commissioners exercise their supervision
over all naval matters, and exclusively control the expenditure
of the sums annually voted by Parliament for the naval service.
They are assisted in the discharge of their duties by a large
staff of officials.


Board o/ Trade and Plantations.-The board, as it now
stands, was appointed in 1786. At its head are a President
and Vice-President, who quit oftice on a change of govern-
ment, t1e other appointments being permanent. This office
is divided into the General, the Railway, the Marine, and the
Statistical Departments. It exercises its supervision over all
matters of public interest connected with the commercial enter-
prise of the U nited Kingdom.


Board of Inland Revenue.-The Inland Revenue Depart-
ment comprises Excise, Stamps, and Taxes. Excise applies
chiefiy to duties levied upon articles of cOllsumption of home
production. The duties on certain foreign articles formerly
part of the Excise duties, are now transferred to the Customs.
Excise duties were first levied in 1626. The Stamp duty
was imposed in the reign of William and Mar¡ in 1694. The
Income-Tax was introduced in 1799 by Pitt. Formerlyeach
of the departments was under a separate Board of Commis-
sioners; in 1834 the Board of Stamps was united with the
~oard of Taxes; and in 1848 the Board of Stamps and Taxes
was consolidated with that of the Excise. The Board of Inland
Revenue, under a chairman, deputy-chairman, and four com-
missioners, with their various staff of officials, now controla the
whole duties of Stamps, Taxes, and Excise.


Board of Customs.-Customs are duties charged on commo-
dities, export or importo The Customs are regulated by
various Acts, in which specific directions are given for the
entry, discharging, and shipping of all goods, inwards and out-
wards, with certain prohibitiollS and restrictions as to the im-
port and export of ,certain goods; also for regulating the
coasting trade, which term designates all trade by sea from any
oue part of the United Killgdom to any other part thereof.
In 1853 the several Acts then in force for the management. of
the Customs were consolidated. For the collection of their
duties custom houses are appointed. In these houses exporta
and imports are entered; the duties, drawbacks, and bounties
payable or receivable, are aettled; and ahipa are, as it is termed,




112 THE CIVIL SERVICE.
cleartd out. The principal oflice is in Thames Street, near the
Tower, London. The Board of Customs consists of sU: Com-
missioners, and a large working staff of clerks.


In addition to the aboye named oflices there are the Post
Oifice, under the Postmaster-General, who is usually one of the
ministry, and who exercises supervision over the conveyanee of
our letters; the Poor Law Board, consisting of four Commis-
sioners, the Lord President of the Council, the Lord Privy Seal,
the HQme Secretary of State, and the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer, who, assisted by a stafI of inspectora and clerks, ad-
minister the laws for the" relief of the poor in EngIand; the
Audít and Exchequer Ofoe, which inspects the whole of the
public accounts and investigates aH advances of money on be-
half of the public serviee; the Public Record Office, whieh con-
tains all our valuable nátional archives; the Paymaster-General'8
Office, which superintends the payment of the Naval, Military,
and Civil Services; the .J.fílítary Oj/ices, whieh are those of the
Commander-in-Chief, Adjutant-General, Quartermaster-Gene-
ral, and J udge Advocate-General; they are all under the
immediate control of the Commander-in-Chief, and under his
direction govern all movements of troops, grant commissions,
alld make the necessary staff and other appointments-in all
matters relatillg to pay and allowances these departments are
controlled by the Secretary of State for War. The Parliament
Ofoes, which have special duties in connexion with the House
of Lords and the House of Commons; the Copyhold, Inclosure,
and 2'ithe Commission Oj/ice, w hich facilitates the inclosure of
all waste lands not within a prescribed distan ce of any city or
town; the Ecclesiastica~ Commission Office, whieh was estab-
lished in 1834 for the purpose of equalizing the ineomes de-
rived from bishopries, church livings, and clerical ofliees j for
the general managemellt of church property, and to organize a
proper distribution of the church funds. The National Debt
Oj/ice; the Woods, F01'ests and Land Revenues Oj/iCl!, whieh has
the entire management of the royal forests and woodlands, and
the manors and lands of the Cro\vn in Great Britain and Ire-
land: all sales, purehases, and exchanges of Crown or publie
property, are made through this department, subject to the
sanction of the Treasury; the Board of Work.~, which controls
aU expenditure eonnected with the maintenance or repair of
the Royal Palaces and the erection and furnishing of the chief
public buildings and oflices: it regulates all the great metro-




BOARD OF WORKS. 113
politan improvements and submits to the Treasury all estimates
of the cost of public works.


There are various other offices eonnected with the Civil
Service which would take up too much spaee to enumerate,
such as the officell in Scotland and Ireland, special offices at
home with technical duties, &e. &e.


I have, however, given you an aceount in this chapter of
the influential offices in the Civil Servic€-those offices that
bear direetly on our system of government and show how we
are governed.


1




114


LETTER XIV.


THE LA-W.


The Common Law-Statute Law-Civil Law-Roman Civil Law-
Equity-Conflicts of law and Equity-N ew Pl'ocedure-Interpre-
tation of tbe Law-Tbe Sheriff, bis Office and RespoDsibility in exe-
cuting and enforcing the Law.


1 SHALL now proceed to the second division of my subject,
the


"PRACTICE OF THE LA W OF ENGLAND."
Our law is of two kind8, the unwritten, or Common Law,


made up of ancient customs,* either general, affecting the
whole kingdom, or special, having force only in particular
places; and the written, or 8tatute Law, made and altered
from time to time in Parliament, as 1 have described in a
former Letter. The Common and the .Statute Law,are de-
clared and interpreted by the decisions of the judges contained
in the law reports.


The law thus composed may again be divided under two
heads: the Civil Law, which relates to the rights of the
people amongst themselves, giving remedies by action, in
which thc person aggrieved is called the plaintiff, and he
against whom the proceedings are taken the difendant; and
the Criminal Law, which is put in operation by prosecution,
in the name of the Sovereign, against evil-doers.


A particular code of Civil Law derived from the Roman
Civil Law, and some portions of the Roman Canon Law, is
adopted in the Ecclesiastical and Admiralty Courts, and the
Courts of Probate and Matrimonial Causes, which severally
decide cases relating to the discipline of the clergy, and the
regulation of divine service in churches; questions of prize


* A .. custom," to be good in point of law, must bave existed!rom
time immemorial.




EQUITY. 115
during war, and cIaims that arise out of accidenta and ship-
wrecks at sea; adjudicate upon disputes relating to the form
and validity of wills; and grant separations and divorces to
married people.


Equity is a principIe acting in conjunction with the law to
soften and correct ita operation in certaill cases, by taking
cogtlizance of those trusts alld confidences which, although
binding upon the conscience. a Court of Cornmoll Law is un-
ab1e to enforce. For a long time after ita introduction,
Equity was a principIe, separate, .and sometimes antagonistic,
to the Iaw, and was administered in courts of ita own, pre-
sided over by júdges trained to its practice, assisted by advo-
cates who made it a distinct profession. Y ou can imagine, 1
daresay, without much difficulty, how questions both of Law
and Equity might be mixed up in one dispute, but it could
not be decided by the tribunals of either acting separately.
Thus, under the oId system, if an estate were given to me on
trust, to pay the rent and profits of it to your unele, and to
allow him quiet enjoyment of it, 1 should be considered, in the
Common Law Courts on one side of Wcstminster Hall, the
sole owner of the land, and might bring an action against him
as a trespasser upon it; but in the Courts of Chancery, on
the other ~ide, he would be the real beneficiary owner, and 1
should be treated mereIy as the channel through which his
property carne. Again, if 1 had a patent invention which you
unlawfully used, 1 could have obtained from an Equity judge
an injunction commanding yon to cease from using it without
my permission; but 1 should have had to bring an action at
Common Law before 1 conld recover damages against you for
infringing my rights. So in the case which 1 first put, your
uncIe could not have pleaded in a Court of Law that 1 was
merely a trnstee for him, but as snch, Equity would have
restrained me from proceeding further in my action. Thus
an appeaI to two tribunals was frequelltly requisite to obtaiu
redress for a single wrong, or to settle one and the same
dispute.


Proceedings in Chancery were protracted and expensive in
the extreme. A suit sometimes lasted for twenty years,
or longer still, and costs more than the valne of the subject-
matter of dispute were frequently incurred. Every person
interested to the most remote degree, whether in Law or
Equity, was made a plaintiff or defendant as the case might
be, and if any of them died, or, being a. female, marded, the


12




116 THE LAW.
SIlit abated, or ceased, and the proceedings had to he begun aH
over again.


These anomalies and stumbling-blocks in the path of justice
no longer exist to the same extent as formerly. The principIes
of Equity are now, by recent IegisIation, acknowIedged and
acted upon in Oourts of Oommon Law, and Oommon Law
reIief and compensation is in Iike manner granted by Oourts
of Ohancery. The practice of equity has been rendered much
more rapid and inexpensive, and suits do not abate as long as
the parties or their representatives are qualified and willing to
carry them on. In America, whose legal code is founded
upon our own, Law and Equity are administered indifferentIy
in the sama courts, by the same judges, and are applied as the
justice of the case demands. We are progressing, although
not so rapidly as might be desired, towards an eqllally simple
and desirable procedure.


The laws are interpreted and administered by the Judges
in the courts 1 shall mention by-and-by, and their decisions
are executed or enforced, in the name of the Sovereign, by the
sheriffs of the various counties into which the kingdom is
divided. The office of the sheriff-shire reeve, or shire gereffa
-is.of great antiquity; it is held for one year onlyat the
nomination of the Orown. All arrests for debt are made by
the officers of the sheriff, who is responsible for the safe cus-
tody of the debtor. He has also to summon juries to serve
upon trials, and to carry out the extreme sentence of the cri-
minal law. The powers which he exercises in the election of
members of Parliament 1 have already sketched, and 1 will
briefly notice those judicial functions which he has to perform,
when 1 write to you about the proceedings in an action at law.
As keeper of the Qlleen's peace in his county, the sheriff is the
first man in it, not ex.cepting the lord-lieutenant, who, as the
successor of the earl, as 1 have told you already, was once its
chief military governor. By virtue of his office the sheriff
possesses the powers of a justice; but being the executor of
the law, he may not act as an ordinary magistrate in adminis-
tering it. He is bonnd to defend his county against 11.11 the
Queen's enemies, and must take into custody 11.11 traitors and
felons; and to enable him to do so, may summon to his as-
s}¡;taD.ee all tb.e ~eo~le in. tne emmty uD.der tne raI\.K 01 a })eer.
This is called the posse comitatus, or power of the county.


Suen are tlíe duties aIld pawers al' the sherit/.·a,s áetiaeá 6y
la.VlS UQW in full fotce, but in. practice he il> nardly ever calted




OFFICE OF SHERIFF. 117
upon to perform them. Ris deputy, the under-sheriff, trans-
acts a11 the legal, judicial, and formal duties of the office;
the police relieve him from the trouble of looking after crimi-
DaIs; and the time has passed in which our Dational defences
could safely be trusted in his hands, however brave or loyal he
may be. It is still a distinction to hold this post of high sheriff,
as none but gentlemen of character and sufficient property are
usually llominated to fill it. They have to accompany, and
entertain the judges of assize through their county, and to
provide a. sufficient ascort of javelin men for their protec-
tion. They sit on the right hand of the presiding judge at
criminal trials, girt with a sword; and when there is a.
"maiden assize," that is, ODe at which there are no prisoners
to be tried, they present him with a pair of white gloves.
When they have done this, and presided at any election that
may take place during their year of office, they have done
a11 that is required of them. So that when in future Letters
1 te11 you that the sheriff has to do this or that, you will
understand that his deputy, the under-sheriff, has to do it for
him.




118


LETTER XV.


TRE COURTS OF LA W AND EQUITY, AND THEIR
PROCEDURE.


The Superior Courts-Circuits of tha Judges-Their severa! Commis·
sions-District Courts of Recorn.-Counsel and Attorney-The Inns
of Court-An Acti',n at Law-The Pleadings-Thé ,:rul'y-Tbe
Trial-Tbe Verdict-Judgment by Default-The Costs-Execution
-Judges in Equity.


Á "COURT" is defined to be a place wherein justice is judi-
eially administered. As the power of executing the Iaws is
vested by our constitution in the Sovereign, it follows that all
courts of justice derive their power from the Crown.


TheprincipaI courts of Common Law hold their sittings in
Westminster Hall, and are three in number-the Court of
Queen's Bench, the Court of Common PIeas, and the Court of
Exchequer. The judges of the two former are called Justices,
those of the Iatter Barons. The Lord Chief J ustice of England
and four justices preside in the Court of Queen's Bench; the
Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and tbe same number of
justices sit in that court; and the Lord Chief Baron and four
barons in the Court of Exchequer. These judges hold tbeir
oflices for life, aud can only be removed for miscondLlct upon
a petition of both Houses of Parliament to the Crown. For-
merly eaeh of these eourts had a separate jurisdietion: the
King's Bench only heard criminal causes, and such as relatecl
to the eontrolling of inferior tribunals; the Common Plel.\s
was for trials between subject and subject; and the Exchequer
decided only such causes as related to the collection of the
revenue. N ow, however, these distinctions, long since evaded
by legal fictions, are done away with by statute, and a prívate
person may bring his action in any one of these courts. But
the Queen's Bench still retains special jurisdiction in certain
particulars; it keeps all inferior courts within the bounds oí
their authoríty, and may either order their proceedings to be




THE CIRCUITS. 119
removed for its own consideration, or may prohibit their pro-
gress altogether. It controls all civil corporations in the
kingdom, it commands magistrates and others to do what the
law requires in every case where there is no other course pre-
cribed, and has both a criminal and civil jurisdiction.


Twice a year, in the spring and summer, the judges of these
courts go round the whole country on circuit, to try actions at
law and criminals. The sittings which they hold in the
principal town in each county are called Assizes.


England and Wales are divided into eight circuits, as
follows :-


THE HOME CIRCUIT :
Assize Towns-Rertford, Chelmsford, Lewes, Maidstone,


CroydOll, Kingston, and Guildford.
THE NORFOLK CIRCUIT :


Assize Towns-AylesbuI'Y, Bedford, Huntingdon, Cam-
bridge, Norwich, Oakham, Leicester, Northampton,
and Ipswich.


THE MIDLAND CIRCUIT ;
Assize Towns-York, Leeds, N ottingham, Lincoln, Derby,


and Warwick.
THE OXFORD CIRCUIT:


Assíze Towns-Abingdon, Oxford, Worcester, Stafford,
Shrewsbury, Hereford, Monmouth, and Gloucester.


THE W ESTERN CIRCUIT ;
Assíze Towns-Devizes, Winchester, Exeter, Dorchester,


Bodmin, Wells, and Bristol.
THE NORTHERN CIRCUIT ;


Assize Towns-Durbam, Neweastle, Carlisle, Appleby,
Laneaster, Manchester, and Liverpool.


TBE NORTH WALES CIRCUIT:
Assíze Towns-Newtown, Dolgelly, Carnarvon, Reau-


muris, Rutbin, Mold, and Ches ter.


THE SOUTH W ALES CIRCUIT :
Á88ize Tow'M-Cardiff, Haverfordwest, Cal'digan, Carmar-


tben, Brecon, Preston, and Ches ter, where the Welsh
Cireuits join.


Two judges go on each of these circuits, except the last
two, and in turn transact the civil and criminal business in its
towns, except in the county palatine of Lancaster, in which
the senior judge always presides in the criminal, or Crown
court. On the Welsh circuits only one judge attends, on
account of the smallness of the business to be transacted.




120 THE COURTS OF LA W AND EQUITY.
In the more populous couDties a Winter Assize, or Gaol


Delivery, is held, for the trial of prisoDers, aDd in a few in-
stances the judges also take civil business at the same time.


The judges transact the busiDess upon circuit by virtue of
five separate authorities, only two of which 1 need mention
here, in treating of civil procedure, namely, the commission of
assize, authorizing them to hear and determine disputes relat-
ing to land, and the commission of nisi prius, which empowers
them to try aH actions pending in the superior courts that are
ripe to be heard. These causes are appointed to be tried at
Westminster, before a jury of the county out of which the
dispute arose, nísi priU8 (unless before) the day fixed, the
judges come into that county to hear and decide it.


There are also distinct Courts of Record, such as the Courts
of Common Pleas of the counties of Durham and Lancaster,
the Passage Court of Liverpool, aDd the Court oí Record of
Manchester, haviDg the same procedure as the superior courts,
and an unlimited, or limited jurisdictioD, as to the amouDt
they can award, accordiDg to their constitution.


ADy persoD may briDg, aDd defend, his own action iD
persoD, but almost a11 the business of our courts of law is
carried on by couDsel and attorneys, seIected by the partíes to
act for them. The former are of two classes, serjeants-at-law,
and barristers, some of whom are appointed Queen's counsel
by patent from the Crown-aH these faH under the general
name of Counsel. From the most eminent of these the judges
are seIected. The Chief Justices and Chief Baron are ap-
pointed by the Prime Minister; the lesser, or puisne judges,
by the Lord Chancellor. The privilege of calling persoDs to
the bar to act as barristers in EngIand is excIusively held by
four ancient societies-viz., that of LiDcoln's Jnn, the MiddIe
and Inner Temple, and Gray's Inn. Until recently studeDts
had only to pay sorne fe es and to eat a· certain number of
dinners in the halls of these societies to entitIe them to be
called to tke bar; but they have now to undergo a preliminary
examination in general knowledge before they are admitted as
students, and they must also pass an examinatíon in law, or
attend lectures instituted for their legal education, before they
are granted the degree of barrister-at-law, which confers the
liberty of practising in all English courts (except those in
Doctors' Commons, in which those only who have taken the
university degree of Doctor of Laws have audieuce as ad-
vocates), and gives a legal right to the title of esquire.




AN ACTION AT LAW. 121
An attorney is one who is put in the place or turn of


anotber to manage his affltirs. Attorneys are now formed into
a regular society, to which, in conjunction with sorne officials
named by Act of Parliament, the examination of persons
desiring to become members of this profession, and the charge
of the rolls or lists of persons duly entitled to practise in it, is
contided. Once admitted and sworn, an attorney may practise
in any court except the Court of Chancery, to act in which he
must be admitted a Solicitar thereof. Persons are admitted by
the superior courts after they have served for a certain time as
clerks in the office of an attorney or solicitor, under a legal
instrument called articles of clerksltip, and have passed an ex-
amination in law. They are then considered to be officers of
the courts. The judges exercise strict supervision over their
conduct, and may strike their names off the rolls, should it
be proved to their satisfaction that they have been guilty of
conduct deserving such a punishment. Attorneys and solici-
tors have to take out a certijicate every year, upon which they
have to paya fee for leave to pursue their vocation.


The actions most commonly brought in the courts of eom-
mon La'" are to recover disputed debts or demands, the
possession of land, or a compensation in money called damages,
for acta committed or neglected to be done whereby the plain-
tiff suffers an injury in his person, property, or reputation.


When an action is to be brought, the plaintiff lays his case
before an attorney, who issues a writ summoning the defendant
to appear to answer the complaint of the plaintiff. Thia
" appearance" is made by his lodging with the proper officer
of the court, a writing statiug where notices and further pro-
ceedings may be served upon him. The next step is the
delivery by tbe plailltiff of a statement in writing of his
cause of action, called the declaration. The defendant's
answer to this is called the plea; this is also in writing.
Parties may now bring both the law and the facts of their
cases into question. Formerly, by disputing the one, they
were held to admit the other, and thus great injustice was
frequentIy done. The declaration and pIea form part of what
is called the pleadings in an action, the objects of which are to
ascertaill what is really in controversy between the parties, so
as to exclude all that is immaterial or irrelevant. Thus the
plaintiff having stated facts constituting his cause of action,
tIJe defendant is obliged to deny them, or, confessillg their
accuracy, to avoid their effect by assertillg fresh ones, or, ad-




122 THE COURTS OF LAW AND EQUITY.
mitting them, to deny the legal effect contended for by the
plaintiff. The plaintiffthen replies in like manner, and the de-
fendant rejoins, until some fact is asserted on the one side, and
denied on the other, or sorne proposition of law is relied upon
by the one, and disputed by the other. The questions thus
mised are iS8ues in fact of law, according to circumstances.
The latter are argued before the judges of the court in which
the action is brought, and decided by them; the former go
before a jury.


The pleadings on either side, and the issues joined--that is,
accepted as the matter in dispute by the parties-form the
record of the action.


AH natural born subjects between the ages of twenty-one
and sixty, who have an income of 10l. from land or tenements
of freehold, or 20l. from leaseholds, or, being householders,
are rated to t11e poor at 30l., are qualified to be jurors. In
Wales the qualification is one-fifth less than aboye ; but in t11e
City of London no man can serve upon a jury who is not a
houseJlOlder, or occupier of a shop or counting-house, and
worth 100l. a year. A book called the Jurors' Book is kept
by the sheriff, in which is entered the names of a11 qualitied
persons, and from tbis he selects the panel, or list, which, in
obedience to the writ 'lienire facias juratores, he sends to tbe
sittings, or assizes, and summons thosc persons included in it
to attend the1"e under pain of a penalty of not less than forty
shillings. They receive no remuneration for their services.
Thus is formed the common jury.


If either plaintiff or defendant wish to have their case tried
before a higher class than this, they may demand aspecial
Jitry. The special jury list, kept as before by the sheriff,
contains the names of more wealthy persons than tbe common
jury. They are selected and summoned in the same way, and
paid one guinea apiece by the party who required their ser-
vices, unless the judge orders otberwise.


The following persons are exempted from serving on juries :
-Peers, judges, clergymen of aH denominations acknowledged
by law, doctors of laws, advocates, barristers, and solicitors in
practice, officers of the army and navy, of courts of law and
equity, and of the customs and excisc, physicians and surgeons,
pilots, persons engllged in laying down buoys for the Trinity
House, the household of the Sovereign, sheriffs' officers, parÚlh
derks, and aH persons aboye sixty years of age.


When a cause is ripe for trial, the attorneys for either party




TRIAL BY JURY. 123
make out statements of the facts and circumstances of their
"Cases in writing, which are called briefs. They then gene rally
8e1ect a queen's counsel or serjeant to conduct the case, and
one or more barristers to assist them, giving each a brief, upon
which is marked the fee by which they propose to reward
these services. The fEle of a barM.8ter and a physicián, is
considered in the light of a free gift, or lwnorarium, which
cannot be demanded or recovered at law.


A jury of twelve househo1ders is then empanelled as follows :
The names of al! the jurors summoned are written each upon
a separate piece of paper and put into a box; the officer oí
the court selects twelve at random, and these form the jury.
Thejudge having taken his seat, and thejury sworn to give a true
verdict between the parties, the trial commellces. The junior
counsel for the plaintiff opens the pleadings, stating the issue to
be tried; the leading or senior counsel then states the facts of
the case to the jury, after which the witnesses, by whose testi-
mony it is ta be supported, are examined by the caunsel for
the plaintiff. generally in turn-this is called the examination
in chief. The defendant's counsel may then c1'Oss-examine the
witnesses as they are called farward, to test the truth of their
story, and require them to answer as to such other circum-
stanc€s as may favour the defendant's case, and explain what
they have already stated. Afterwards the plaintiff's counsel
may re-examine them upon any new facts that may be tlms
brought out. When all his witnesses have been called (if none
are to be examined for the defendant), the plaintiff's connsel
I!UrJlS up their evidence to the jnry-that is to say, points out
the leading facts, and eomments upon thern. The defendant's
connsel then repríes upon the case, and shows, if he can, that it
has failed. If the defendant calla witnesses, theyare examined
in the same manner as those for the plaintiff have been, his
counsel having now the right of cross·examination. Counsel
for the defendant then sums up,and the plaintiff's coullsel
replies upon the whole case. Tite judge now reads over the
evide~ce on both sides to the jury, and makes such observations
upcn it as he deems proper. The jury are then desired to con-
sider their verdict, w hiel¡ they return either for the p1aíntiff or
defendant; if for the former (suppusing that the actioll is
brought to reeover eompensation for a wrong), stating the
amount of damages to whieh he is, in their judgmellt, entitled.
If the jury cannot agree in eonrt upon their verdict-and they
must be unanimous in returning it-they retire to a chamber




124 THE COURTS OF LA W AND EQUITY.
apart to consult, and if after the lapse of a sufficient time it
appears impossible to agree, they may be discharged by the
judge, and the trial has to be begun over again, if the parties
cannot contrive to settle their di,pute in the meantime.


If either plaintiff or defendant be dissatisfied with the
directions given by the judge to the jury, 01' thinks that their
verdict has been given contrary to the weight of evidence, he
may apply to the judges of the court in which the action was
brougbt, to grant him a new trial; or if the case is decided
against him by the judge who tried it, or by the court, upon a
point of law, he may appeal to the judges of the other two
superior courts, who compose the Court of Exchequer Chamber,
to reverse the decision, and from them he may appeal to the
House of Lords.


Hitherto 1 have supposed thlt the defendant chooses to
appear to the writ; if he does not do so the plailltiff may, by
leave of a judge, go on with the action as though he had done
so, if he can show that the writ has come to his knowledge;
and if the defendant does not plead to the declaration within
a given time, he will be held to admit the claim made against
him, and judgment will be given by default. If the amount
sued for be ascertained-a debt for example-his goods may
be seized to ·satisfy it; but if what are called unliquidated
damages, or damages the extent of which have yet to be ascer-
tained, are sought, the plaintiff has to call upon the sheriff to
assess the damages. The sheriff summons a jury, and holds
his court (which is gene rally presided over by rus deputy);
the plaintiff proves his case, and tho defendant may be heard
in reduction of damages. The jury fix what sum is to be paid,
and it is recovered aocording to law. If the defendant refuses
or neglects to pay in this, as in any other case in which a ver-
dict or judgment is given against him, bis property may be
seized by the sheriff under a writ from the court, and sold to
raise the required sum, or he may be arrested and imprisoned
until he shall have satisfied it, if he has the means oí so doing.


The partíes may agree to accept the opillion of a judge upon
the law and the facts of their case, and when his decision is
given, it has all the force of a verdict by a jury. Actions in-
volving mere questions of account, are often referred to sorne
competent person, whose award is made a rule of court, and
enforced by it.


If the question in dispute be an abstrae\; point of law, the




NEW COUN'TY COURTS. 125
parties may state it for decision to the court in what is called
a special case, without pleadings.


The costs of the suit are generally paid by the party against
whom a decision or verdict is ultimately given, but if an
adion, which might have been brought in a county court, is
brought in the superior conrts for a debt under 20l, the plain-
tiff wiII not get his costs, unless the judge certifies that it was
a proper case to be brought there for trial. If it is brought to
recover compensation for a wrong-in legal language a tort-
he must obtain a verdict for 5t. to entitle him to costs.


In the local Courts of Hecord, a verdict of forty shillings
generally entitles the plaintiff to his costs.


In addition to the sittings held in West)llinster Han, in the
district Courts of Record, and at the Assizes for the trial of
actions, there are the new County Courts, which, with a very
simple procedure, decide cases in which the sum in dispute
does not exceed 50l.; but, with the consent of the suitors, an
action to any arnount, but not of any character, may be tried
there. The judge usually decides both upon the law and the
facts of the case, unless either of the parties desire to ha.ve it
tried before a jury, which in these courts consists of five per-
sonso


Such is the legal jurisdiction of the county courts; and by
an Act passed in the year 1865, an equitable jurisdiction has
also be en conferred upon them. That jurisdiction is given in
a11 suits by creditors, legatees, devisees, heirs-at-law, 01' next-
of-kin, against or fol' an account of administration of property
not exceeding 500l. in value; in suits for the executioll oí
trusts, tbe property not exceeding 500l.; in suits for fore-
dosure 01' redemption or enforcing a charge, the property not
exceeding 500l.; in suits for the dissolution or winding-up of
partnership, the partnership assets not excecding 500l.; and
in sorne other cases with a like restriction as to amount. A
Vice.ChancelIor sitting at charn bers has, however, the power to
make an order transferring the suit to the Court of Chancery.


The judges in Equity are the Lord ChancelIor, two Lords
Justices of Appeal, the Master of the HolIs, and three Vice-
Chancellors. Appeals from the decisions of the four latter are
heard, first, before the Lords J ustices, or the Lord Cbancellor,
and then before the House of Lords. The Lord Chancellor
has the appointment of all Jnstices of the Peace, in the name
.of the Crown. He is the highest udicial fuuctionary in the




126 THE COURTS OF LAW AND EQUITY.
kingdorn, and superior, in point of precedency, to every
temporal lord. He is appointed by the deIivery of the Queen's
great seal into Lis custody. He is a cabinet minister, a privy
connsellor and prolocutor of the House of Lords by prescrip-
tion, and vacates his office with the ministry by which he was
appointed. When royal commissions are issued for opening
the Session, for giving the royal assent to bilIs, or for pro-
rogning Parliament, the Lord Challcellor is always oue of the
coml1Ji~sioners, and reads the royal speech upon t11e occasion.
When thc Sovereign opens or closes the Session in person, the
Lord Chancellor stands on the right of the throne, and bands
to him the royal speech opening or terminating tbe annual
labours of tIle legislature. To him belongs tb!:l appointment
of a11 justices of the peace tbrougbout tbe kingdom. Beillg, in
the earlier periods of our bistory, usually an ecclesiastic (for
none else were then capable of an office so conversallt in writ-
ings), and presiding ever tbc royal cbapel, he becam€ keeper
of the Sovereign's conscience, visitor, in right of tbc Crown, of
a11 hospitals and colleges of royal foundation, and patron of
a11 the Crown livings under the value of twenty marks per
annum in the King's books. He is the general guardian of a11
infants, idiots, and lunatics, and has the general superinten-
dence of a11 charitable uses. And a11 this, over and above the
vast and extensive jurisdiction which he exercises in his
judicial capacity in the High Court of Chancery.


Tbe Master of the Rolls is the only Equity judge who may
sit in the House of Commons.


Proceedings in tbe Courts of Equity are commenced by bill,
claim, or petition: these are written pleadings, in which the
plaintiff sta tes his complaint and prays a remedy. Should
questions ofjact arise in a Chancery suit, the judge may direct
thc iSErne to be tried bdore a COllrt of Common Law. Cases
relating to the interpretation of deeds of settlement and otber
legal instruments, the execution of trusts, tbe granting of in-
jUIlctions, &c. &c., are those which come commonly before
Courts of Equity.


The Courts of Bankruptcy administer the law for the pro-
tection of unfortunate traders and other persons unable to pay
tl.eir debts, and for securing to their creditors an equal distri-
bution of their possessions, called their estate. It is 1l0W con-
sidered worse than useless to lock up an insolvent debtor in
prison (unless it be by way of punishment for dishonest




COURTS OF BANKRUPTCY. ]27
dealing), when, if free, he might be earning money to pay his
liabilities.


When the bankrupt has conformedto the law by making a
perfect di3closure of his affairs, if his conduct has not be en
grossly culpable, he obtains an order of discharge, which frees
him from all personalliability as to his furmer debts, unless
the court annexes to such discharge conJitions requiring him
to set apart a portion of his future earnings for the benefit of
his creditors. The judges in Bankruptcy are called GommÍ8-
swners, and rank with those of the superior courts. Three of
them hold sittings in London, and in s'o!veral large provincial
towns there is a local court of bankruptcv, and one or two
commissioners. An appeal from their courts líes to the Lords
Justices, and from them to the House of Lords.




128


LETTER XVI.


OF CRIMES AND OFFENCES.


Definition of Cl'imes-Treasons-Felonies-Misdemeanours- Punish-
menta-Costa oí Prosecutions-Áccessaries ",nd Accomplices-Nui-
sances-Common Law Offences.


BEFORE 1 enumerate to you the courts of criminal law and
describe their proeedure, 1 will briefly state over what sort of
cases they have jurisdietion.


Crimes and offenees are acts done, or omitted, in violation of
sorne publie law. It is the duty of the head of a State to pre-
vent their eommission as far as possible, and to inflict suitable
punishment upon those who are proved to have taken part in
them; not from a feeling of revenge against the evil-doers,
but to make of them examples to deter others from similarly
offending.


Offenees against the criminal law are divided under three
heads: treasons, felonies, and misdemeanours. The two latter
together represent again two divisions of offences-lst, those
aets evil in themselves (mala in se), forbidden from the first
by the revealed law of God, suen as murder, theft, and other
crimes; and tnd, those which the spread of eivilization has re-
quired mankind to provide against (mala prohióita), sueh as
coining false money, frauds on the revenue, tampering with
signals on railways, &c.


The principal eriroes known to the laws, into whieh it is fit
that we should inquire, are as foIlow :-


High Treason.-This erime now eomprises the" compassing,
contriving, inventing, or intending death or destruetion, 01' any
bodily harm tending to death or destruction; or wounding,
imprisonment, or restraint of the heirs and sueeessors of his
Majesty King George the Third ;" in "levying war against the
Sovereign within the realm," and in "adheriug to her en e mies,
giving them aid or comfort in the realm or elsewhere." AH
the other offences made high treason by aneient statutes, sueh




HIGH TREASON. 129
as irnitating the Royal Sign Manual or the Great Sea!, coining
false money, &c., now rank as fclonies, punishable by imprison-
ment and penal servitude.


The punishment for high treason is death; the law enacts
that the person convicted "shall be drawn on a hurdle to the
place of execution, and be then hanged by tho nock until suoh
person be dead, and that afterwards the head shall be severed
from the body of such person, and the body divided into four
quarters, shall be disposed of as his l\hjesty King George the
Third and his successors shall think fit." The Sovereigll, "by
warrant under the sign manual countersigned by a secretary of
state, may direct that the ofrender shall not be drawn, but shall
be takeu in sueh a manner as in the warrant shall be expressed,
to the place of execution, and that he shall not be there hanged
by the neck, but that instead thereof the head shall be there
severed from the body whilst alive, and in such warrant direc-
tion may be given as to, and in what manner the body, head,
and quarters shall be disposed of." Barbarous and disgusting
as these details appear, the allcient punishment for high treaSOI1
was more revolting still.


Murder is the taking away of the life of a fellow-creature
intentionally, and with malice. The punishment for murder
is death by hanging.
~lIanslau!!hte1· is the taking away of the life of a fellow-


creature unintentionally, by accident, or in sudden anger, with-
out malice. Slaying a person in self-defence is not a crime.
As the ofrence of manslaughter ranges from something very
nearlyakin to murder, down to mere mischance, to which
hardlyany blame attaches, so the punishment for it varíes from
penal servitnde for life, down to a nominal imprisonment, ac-
cording to the circumstances of the case.


Atternpting to murder by shooting, poisoning, stabbing, &c.
These crimes were formerly capital, that is, they were punish-
able with death; but under the Criminal Sta tutes Cunsolida-
tion Acts of 1861, tho punishment was reduced to penal ser vi-
tude, which may, however, exteud to the period of the culprit's
naturallife.


Stabbing, shooting, or throwing explosive or corrosive sub-
stances upon any pcrson, with intent to disable, maim, or dis-
figure, or do some grievous bodily harm. PUllishUleut-penal
servitude, or imprisonmellt with hard labonr.


Robbe1·y-Stealing from the person with violence, or threats
K




130 CIUMES AND OFFENCES.
of violence. It is punishable by penal servitude oi" imprison-
mento


Eurglary-Breaking into a dwelling-house between the
11Our3 of Iline at night alld six in the morning, with intent to
steaI therein; or (having committed a felollY, or being in a
l1011se wíth tlw intentiol1 of committillg one) breakillg out of it
between the same hours. lt is not necessary that the pre-
mises ShOllld he actually damagcd to constitute this offence.
Opening a door or a window that has been closed, is a con-
structivo " breaking" in the eyes of the law. Pnllishment-
penal servitucle or imprisonment with hard labour.


]lousebrea1cing-The same ofrence committed in the day-
time PUlIishment-penal sorvitude, or imprisonment with
hard labour.


F01:qery-Making false bank notes, cheques, signatures,
wills, &c., or altering part of a gennille instrnment with intellt
to defraudo Punishment as above.


Uttering the above-that is, attemptillg to pass them off as
genuine, knowing them to be false and counterfeit. Punish-
ment as above .
.Bigamy-~farrying again ia the lifetime of a wife or hus-


bando Punishmellt as above.
Pirac,Y-Seizing, and stealing from ships at sea; punish-


able by penal servitude and imprisonment with hard labour.
A TSon-Setting fire to houses, buildings, stacks, ships, &c.


Punishment-imprisonment with hard labour, or penal servi-
tude. If a person or persons be in the house at the time it is
set on fire, the inccndiary may be sentenced to penal servitude
for life.


Coining-Making false money. Punishment-penal servi-
tude or imprisonment with hard labour.


Larceny - Stcaling. When committed by clerks or servants,
or from a d welling-house to the value of 5l., and in some other
cases, penal servitude may be awarded; but unless a previous
cOllviction for another felony be proved against the thief, im·
prisonment with bard labour i8 the usual punishment.


Receiving sto len goods, knowing thcm to have been stolen.
Punishment as abo ve.


Emoezzlernent-The wrongful appropriation by cJerks and
servants uf money or property received by them, by virtue of
their employment as such for tbeir master. Punisbmellt-
penal servitude, or imprisonment with hard labour.


Rioting-Rioters are punishable by irnprisonrnellt witb hard




FELONIES. 131
labour; or with penal servitude, if thoy romain together after
being called upon by a magistrate to disperse.


Escaping from prison. Imprisonment or penal servitudef'
according to tho olfence for which the prisoner was in confine-
mento


Returníng from transportation. S.tme punishment.
Assisting a prisoner lo escape, with many other offences, are


felonies. The following are misdemeanours :-
PeI:fU¡'y-Taking a false oath. Punishment-penal servi-


tude, or imprisonment with hard labour.
Cheatin(¡-Obtaining rnoney or goods by false pretences, or


fraud. Punishment-penal servitude, or imprisonment with
hard labour.


Assaults-Unlawful attacks upon the person, without the
intents befare mentioned. Punishment-fiue, or imprison-
lllent with or without hard labour.


Conspiracy-Two or more porsous combiniug together for
an unlawful purpose, or to carry out a lawful one by lmlawful
means. Punishrnent-fine, or imprisonment with or without
hard 1abClnr.


Uttering, or passing base or falso coin. Punishment-im-
prisonment with hard labour; after previous conviction, penal
servitude.


Publisking lióels against individuals, or blasphemous or sedi-
tious statements against religion or government. Punishment
-fine or imprisonment, or both.


Poaching-Trespassing in pursuit, and destruction of game ;
punishable, according to the time and manner in which it is
committed, alld the number of perSOllS ellgaged together, by
penal servitude, or imprisonment with hard labour.


Gamóling- Using fal8e sautes and weiglds-Smuggling-
Sending t/¿reatening letters, &c. &c.-are misdemeanours pu-
nishable variously, by fine, ill1prisonmellt, and penal servitude.


Finally, all attempts to comrnit felonies are rnisdemeanours.
The amount of punishrn:ent to be awarded is within certain
limits, which 1 need not lay down, in the discretion of the
judge. Not more than two years' imprisonment can generally
be given, but penal servitude for life, or any lesser term, can
be awarded for serious offences. Tho punishment of trans-
portation is now abolished, as our colonies are no longer will-
ing to receive convicts, but criminaIs sentenced to penal servi-
tude may be sent abroad wherever her Majesty, through her
Secretary of Sta te, may directo


K2




132 CRIMES AND OFFENUES.
The aboye misdemeanours are of a public nature, affecting


the peace and prosperity of the country, alld the honour of its
government. In sorne of them, such as assaults and libe lB, a
double remedy is open to the injured person; be may put tbe
criminal law in motion agaillst his assailallt, alld have bim
pUllished for offending against tbe law alld breaking tbe peace,
alld he may brillg a civil action agaillst him, alld obtain
damages for tbe private wrong done to his person or character. •
As a general rule, it is, however, advisable to take only one of
these courses, as it is not likely that a jury would give hcavy
damages against aman who had already suffered punishment,
or that a judge would pass asevere sentence upon aman who
had alroady been mado to pay largoly for comn¡,.itting the same
offence. But there are cases in which both civil and criminal
remedies may very propcrly be taken, the one to compensate
an injured individual, tbe other to vindicate an outraged law.


The oost of prosecuting persons for baving oommitted any
of the misdemeanours or felonies aboye enumerated, and others
which have not been mentioned, is paid by the Stato out of
the Consolidated Fund, whether the prisoner be convicted, that
is, proved to be guilty, or acquitted.


Persons who combine together for the purpose of committing
any offence, and act in concert, are aU equally guilty. Thus, if
several men conspire to rob a house, and sorne of them watch
outside to prevent surprise, whilst one of thoir number COIll-
mits a felony within, they are each and aU guilty of his crime.
Persons so assisting are prilncipals in the second degree.


Áccessaries be/oTe the lact are such as command or procure a
felony tu be committed. Those who harbour or assist the
principal felon, by hidillg him, or providing him with mOlley
or a horse, &c. &c., to escape, are accessa¡'ies aj~er the lacto
Either class may be tried with the principal felon, 01' by them-
selves, even although he may not havo been brought to trial.
But his crime IIlust be proved to have been committed.


Ignorance of the law will not excuse from the consequences
of guilt, any one who has capacity to unuerstand it. AH
persons are presumed to know the law, but infants under the
age of seven years are supposed to be incapablo of committing
a capital offence; alld frolU that age up to fourteen it must
appear that they know right frolIl wrong before the law will
be put in force to punish tliem.


Persons of unsound mind are also exempted from puuish-
mellt, as also are those W30 act in subjection to tbe powers of




MISDEMEANOURS. 13~
another, for neither can be said to have a will of their own.
But the frenzy and temporary insanity produced by drunken·
ness is no excuse; for this is the consequence of a vice vol un-
tarily indulged in, and not, as in the case of lunacy and mad-
ness, the act of God, which no man can prevent.


A married woman who commits a felony (other than mur-
der) jointly with her husband, in his presence, and with his
sanction, cannot be convicted, for, in contemplation of law, she
always acts nnder his control. Neitber can she be convicted
of stealing his goods, for in the eye of the law busband and
wife are one; but if she steals them to give to an adulterer,
the latter may be convicted if he carries them off or takes
possession of them, well knowing at the time that they have
be en stolen by his paramour from her husband.


Tbere are numerous misdemeanours of a prívate nature affed-
ing the rigbts of individuals or societies, Bucb as committing
or maintaining nuisances prejudicial to tbe health of aman, or
of the district id wbich he lives (such as chemical works), or
to his or their repose and morality (such as disorderly gather-
ings), or to his or their peace of mind (such as keeping large
stores of infiammable Or explosive substances likely to create
a conflagration, &c.), the expenses of prosecuting which must
be borne by the parties complaining.


Persons or corporate bodies whose duty it is to make or
keep in repair roads, bridges, or buildings, may be indicted
for a misdemeanour if they refuse or neglect to do so.


y ou must understand, however, that althollgh most of tha
crimes that can be committed are defined and forbidden by
act of Parliament, still a remedy exists at common law for
many offences against public justice, peace, or moraIity, that
may not come within tbe strict letter of any statute; but no
new offence can be dealt with under the common law, because,
as J have said, it consists only of ancÍent customs. When a
remedy has been provided, or a course of prosecution pointed
out, by a statute, the common Iaw yieIds to it. AH statutes
which impose penalties must be construed most strongly
against the Crown and in favonr of the subject. No person
may be tried or punished twice for the same offence;. if it is
attempted to do so, he may plead autrefois convict (before con-
victed), or autrefois acquit (before acquittcd), to the illdict-
mento




134


LETTER XVII.


OF THE COURTS OF CRIMINAL LAW.


The High Court of Parliament-The Court of the Lord High Steward
-The Qmen's Bench-Office of Coroncr- Of J ustices of the Peace
-The Assize Courts-The Central Criminal Court-Quarter and
Petty Sessions-J urisdiction of J ustices uf the Peace and Police
Magistrates.


N ow that you know the nature of many of thc ofrcnces that
are punishable by onr laws, 1 will show yon by what tribunals
persons suspeded of having committed thcm are tried.


In the Letter in wllicIl 1 described the constitution of Parlia-
ment, 1 told you that the Honse of Lords has the right of
tryillg persolls impeached by the House of Commons. It has
also the privilege, whilst Parliamcnt is sitting, of trying its own
members fOl" treason Ol" felony, but not fOl" misclemeanours. A
peer aceusecl of any of tllese ofrences is tried in the ordinary
way before a jury. A bishop, although he sits in ,the House
of Lorcls, must be tried as a eommoner. Whcn Parliament is
not sitting, pecrs may be tried for treason or felony in the
courts of tIle Lord High Steward of En:;land. This oilice is
of great antiquity, but is not filled now, exeept upon special
oecasions, sueh as the trial of a peer, fol' whieh a person is
speeially appointed to hold it, and when the business is ovel'
he breaks lIis wand of offlce and his functions are at an end.
'rrials in this court are held before not less than twenty-four
peers, including the Lord High Steward, who is the judge. In
trÍals before the Lords in Parliament, a High Steward is also
appointed, llot as judge, but as a kind of speaker to regulate
the proeedure.


The Sovereign is supposed to be thejudge in these cases, and
a majúrity of peera return the verdict of guilty or not guilty, not
upon oath, but in tbe words, "upon my honour."


The Court of Queen's Bench, besides its civil, has a very
importallt criminal jurisdietion; in faet, it takes cogllizance of
aH ofrences, from high treason down to the most trivial assault.




OFFrCE OF CORONER. 135
The Lord Chief Justice is the principal coroner ofthe king-


dom, and all its judgcs are coronen; and justices of the peace.
It may be cunveuient here to state how coroners and justices
of tlle peace are appoiuted, and what duties they have to
perform.


The office of coroner is one of great antiquity and impo1'-
tance. He is so called because he has principally to do with
pleas of the Crown. Thel'e are usually four Of six appointed
for every county of England. They are chosen for life by aU
the freeholders in the county court. Coroners may be ap-
pointed for districts within counties, instead of the cOllnty at
large; and provision is now made for the election and rell111-
neration of coroners, and their removal for inability or mis-
bchaviollr. The Crown and certain lords of franchises, having
a charter from the Crowll for that purpose, may appoint
coronel's for certain pl'ocincts or liberties by their own mere
grant, and withont clcction. In cvery borough having a sepa-
rate quarter sessions, a coroner is appointed, with exclnsive
jnrisdiction within tlle bol'ough.


The office and power of a coronel' are eithel' (1) Judiciihl,
and consist rrincÍpally in inquil'ing when any pel'son is slain,
or dies suddenly, or in prison, concerning the manuer of his
death. A jury is empanelled, and inquisition mnst be found
with the concurren ce of at least twelve of them. T1e inquisi-
tion must be Imd super visurn corporis, fuI' if the body be not
fOUlld, the coronel' cannot sit, except by virtue of a special
commission is~ued for that pul'pose. If any be fUllUd guilty
of murder 01' other homicide by such inquisition, the coroner
is to commit them to pl'iwn fol' further trial, and is also to
inquire cOllcerning their lands, goods, and chattels, which are
forfcited thcl'eby; and must cel'tify the whole inquisition undel'
the seals of himself and jurors, together with the evidence
thereon, to the Court of Qucon's Bench or the next assizes.
Another brancll 01' the col'oner's office is to illquire concernillg
shipwrecks alld treasure trove. (2) }Ylim~terial. He is the
shel'iff's substitute in executillg process, when the sberiff is in-
te1'ested in the suit, 01' of kindred to eithe1' plailltíff or de-
fendant. It is tho supreme court of COlllmon Law in the
kingdoIll, and consists of a chief justice and four puisné justices.
It keeps aU inferior jurisdictions within the bounds of their
authority, and may either remove their proceedings to be de-
termined here, or prohibit their progl'ess below. It superin-
tends aH civil corporations in the kingdom. It cOlllrnallds




136 TRE COURTS OF CRIMINAL LAW.
magistrates and others to do what their duty requires, in every
case where no particular remedy is appointed. It protects the
Iiberty of the subject, by Iiberating persons unjustly im-
prisoned or restrained of their liberty, by habeas corpus or bail.
It takes cognizance both of criminal and civil causes, the formel'
in the Crown side or Crown office, the Iatter in the plea side
of the Court. On the Crown side it exercises jurisdiction
over all criminal cases, from high treason to breach of the
peace; and on the plea side over all actions between subject
and subject, with the exception of real actions and suits con-
cerning the revenue. Error lies from this Court to the Ex-
chequer Chamber.


J ustices of the peace are gentlemen appointed by the special
commission of the Sovereign, at the rccommendation of the
Lord Lieutenant of their county, to assist in the adrninistration
of the Iaw in some cases. They must have a qualification ofthe
value of 1001. ayear, arising out of Ianded estate. Certain
persons, however, such as justices of corporations, peers, privy
councillors, judges, and others, are privileged to act without
such qualification. Their duty i8 to preserve the Queen's peace
by coml1litting to prison any person actuaHy guilty of a breach
of the peace, and tv bind over to be of good bebaviour such as
are suspected of boing about to become so ; also to prevent and
suppress riots and affrays, by apprehending disorderly person8 ;
and they have to adrninister the law at general and petty
sessions, as will be seen hereafter. They discharge these ser-
vi~es without any fee or salary.


The courts of Oyer and TeJ'rniner and general gaol deli'very
are those which are held upon circuit in every COUllty, before
the judges of assize, and commissioners appointed to assist
them.


It has airead y been stated that the judges and commissioners
of assize sit under five distinct commissions; two of these,
whieh relate to the discharge of their civil jurisdiction, have
already been described. The remaining three give them power
to act in criminal cases, and are-3rd, tlw commission o/ the
peace; 4th, of oyer and terrniner; and 5th, general gaol de-
líve1'Y' The duty of a justice of the peace has been IateIy laid
down. The commission of ayer and terminer authorizos tha
persons named in it to inquire, hear, and determine aH trea-
sons, felonies, and misdemeanours; and that of general gaol
delivery to try and deliver every prisoner who shall be in the




Tm~ CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT. 137
gaol when the judges arrive at the circuit town, no matter by
whom they are illdicted, or of what crime they are charged.


The Central Criminal Court iíl the most irnportant criminal
tribunal in this country, as well from the authority of the
judges who preside there as frorn the number and magnitude
of the crimes which are tried before it, It was erected in
1834, and cOlIsists of the lord mayor, the lord cLancellor, the
judges of the three superior courts at Westrninster, the judges
in Bankruptcy, the judges of the Admiralty, the dean of the
Arches, the aldermen, reco¡:der, and common serjeant of Londoll,
the judges of the Sheriffs' Court, and any person who has or
shall have been lord chanceIlor, a judge of ally of the superior
courts at Westminster, or who may be thereafter appointed by
general commission of the Queen. To this court Her Majesty
may issue commissiollS of Oyer and Terminer, and Gaol Ddi-
very, for the trial of aU cases of treasolls, murders, felonics,
and misderneanours committed within the City of London and
county of Middlesex, and in certain specified parts of the
counties of Essex, Kent, and Surrey, all of which constitute a
distl'ict which is to be, fol' the purposes of that act, dcorned
and taken to be one county. The court sits at the sessions
house, in the Old Bailey; and there are at least twelve ses-
sions held in every year, at times fixed by any eight of the
judges at 'Vestrninster. During every session two of the
juclges of the superior courts at Westminster preside in this
court for the purpose of trying the more important offencos.
The remainder are tried by either the recorder or common
serjeant, or a judge from the Sheriffs' Court, cOlllmissioned for
that purpose; on every occasion the lord, mayor or some of
the alderrnen being also present on the bench.


The Assize Courts, Central Criminal Court, and Court of
Queen's Bench, have power to try aH treasons, felonies, and
misderneanours, committed or removed for trial within their
jurisdiction.


The courts of quarter sessions of the peace have a limited
jurisdiction. They are restrained from trying all capital
offences, and many others. 'rhieving, unaccornpanied with
violence; obtailling money or valuables under false pretences ;
atternpts to commit felonies, indictments against nuisanoes,
and for t1e non-performance of public duties ; offences relating
to game, highways, alehouses j the settlement and provision
for the poor; disputes between masters, their apprentices, and




138 'IHE COURTS OF CRIMINAL J,AW.
servants1 are the class of cases usually heard and decided be-
fore them.


The courts of quarter sessions in counties are hcld befo re
the justices oí the peace, whose chairman presides. In sorne
populous counties a barrister of standing and experience is ap-
pointed to that post by the justices, and receives a salary fuI'
his services. In cities and boroughs the recorder is the judg<).
As their name implies, these courts are held quarterly, but in
places where the business to be transacted is considerable, they
sit by adjournment at intervening pel'iods.


Lastly, we have the eourts of petty sessions, which, in
country places, are held befo re two or mure justices of the
peace, and in populous towns are presided over by a stipen-
diary magistrate, who rnust be a barrister of a certitin stand-
ing, and w ho recei ves a salary for his services. The first pro-
ceeding in aU criminal cases, except higu treason, takes place
in tuese courts. Tbey have power to dcal with rnany cases of
a trivial nature surnmarily-that is, to dispuse of tuern by
punishing or discharging the accused upon their own respon-
sibility. The graver class of criminals they commit for trial
to the as~izes or the sessions, according to the nature of the
charge made against thern. Persons suspected of high treaSOll
are generally examined before a Secretary of State, and COlll-
mitted fOf trial or discIJarged by him.


It is not necessary to trouble you with the constitution and
practice of other conrts of a criminal jurisdiction, w hich are
seldom resorted too ]l¡Iy object has been to gi ve you a concise
and practical view of the machinery of our criminallaw, and
this is comprised, to all uS6fnl intcuts and purposcs, in the
courts which 1 llave mentiolled.




139


LETTER XVTIJ.


OF THE PRACTICE OF THE CRIMINAL LAW.


Conduct of Public Pl'osecutious~Arrest of Prisouer" by the Po\ice-
Examination before Magi'Lmtes-Colllluittal or Disclmrge of Pri-
soners-Indictlllents-0ffice of the Gl'and Jury~Tri",I~Challenges
of Jurors-Proceedings at 'l'l'ial-Uourt of Criminal Appeal-
P,,,dons_


WE have no official charged to illstitute and conduct the legal
proceedings itgaillst sllspected perSOllS_ .!\fost Continental sta tes
have a Public l'Tosecutor appointed by governmcnt, and charged
to put the criminallaw in operation; and very Imtlly persons
are of opinion that we ought to have sllch a functionary in
England. It is urged that we have no security that every
offender is brought to justice; and that sorne may escape,
owing to tho proper steps not being taken for their apprehen-
sion. Further, that others, by intimidation and bribes, may
induce the persons they have illjured to defeat jllstice by ab-
senting thernselves at the trial. The trial itself, too, may be
condlleted in such a slovenJy manner as to resuIt in a verdict
of acquittal. There is mnch truth in this; but I am hy no
meallS sure that the appointment of a public prosecntor would
lessen the occurrence of these possible evils. When once ill-
formation is given of the commission of a crime, he is a elever
man, indeed, who can elude for any Iength of time the vígí-
lance and perscvcrance of onr detective poli ce. No public
prosecutor could prevent a witness being bribed; and as to
the conducting of cases in court, I think that as our bar is
constituted-every man vying with his fellow for practice, and
striving to distillguish himself--- it may be better relied u pon for
properly managing criminal prosecntions, than any set of offi-
ciaIs secnre of a position and its stipend. In every town
where there is a bench of magistrates, there are attorneys who
act as their clcrks, and get up the evidence against perSOllS
committed for trial, and instruct counsel to prosecute. They




140 THE PRACTICE OF THE CRIMINAL LAW.
are paid according to the number of cases entrusted to them,
and it is to their interest, of course, that every complaint
should be investigated. In large towns, such as l\Ianchester,
Liverpool, Birmingham, .&c., there is an attorney specially ap-
pointed by the corporation to attend to all prosccutions. These
are, in point of fact, public prosecutors, and, as far as I call
judge, no reflection can be cast upon the way in which they
rnanagc their business, or select coun~el to conduct it.


In the first instance, the pollce are practically public prose-
cutors. They apprchend persons in the cOlumission of crime,
receive information of offences that have been done in secret,
and collect evidence.


J ustice, whether it be in criminal or civil cases, is adminis-
tered in public, and the latter always in presence of the ac-
cused parties. A prisoner must be brought before a magistrate
upon the earliest opportuuity after his capture. The evidenee
tendered against him is heard, takcn down in writing, and
signed by the witness who gives it. This is called his depo8i-
tion, and the prisoner, if committed for trial, has an absolute
right to a copy of this on paying a small fee for making it out.
If the evidence is not complete at the first hearing, but enough
is given to raise a strong presumption against the prisoner, the
rnagistrate has the power of "remanding" him, or sending
him back to prison for eight days, whilst furthor proofs are
being colleetod, or of taking "bail" for his appearance to
answer the eharge. To be admitted to bail, a prisoner mUllt
get two or more householders to be bound to bring him for-
ward when required, on pain of incurring a penalty fixed by
the magistrate, in case they should fail to do so. Sometimes
the prisoner's promise, under a penalty, to appear, is taken as
sufficient. When aH the evidence that can be obtained is col-
lected, the accused is eithor summarily convicted and sen-
teneed, or oommitted for trial to the assizes or sessions, where
the witnesses and nominal prosecutor are bound over to appear
against him; but when the evidencc is insufficient to substan-
tiate the charge against him, the prisoner is discharged. After
committal for trial, the dcpositions are sent to the proper
officer of the court in which the prisoner is to be tried, and there
the "indictment" is prepared and written upon parchment.
'rhe indictment is a statemimt in legal language of the offence
for which he has to answer, and in former days muoh exact-
ness and technicality were required in ita wording. The
slightest error in stating the offence alleged, or the name or




THE GRÁND JUR\'". 14L
surname of the prisoner or prosecutor, or in describing the
property stolen, was sufficiellt to render it invalid, and the
prisoner escaped. Recent alteratiolls in the law, however,
have made it mucb more simple, and any mistakes, such as are
not calculated to mislead the accused, 01' prejudice him in his
defence, may be amended by order of the court. The pro-
ceedings in trials at assizes and sessions are alrnost identically
the same.


The day for holding them having arrivcd, a grand and a
petty jury are summoned by the sheriff of the couuty exactly
as in civil cases j the jury for criminal aud civil trials being
taken indifferently from the same panel. But if a foreigner
is to be tried, he is entitled to demand a jury de medietate
lingure, composed half of Englishmen and half of foreigueril
(llot necessarily his own coulltrymen), whom the sheriff must
summon. The indictments are laid before tbe grand Jury,
which consists usually of thirty persons, selected from amongst
tIle magistratcs aud principal gentry in tho county, who pos-
sess the qualification required of a justice of the peace. They
examine only'the witnosses in support of the charges against
the prisoner, to see if there be a sufficicnt ground to justify his
being put upon his trial. If a majority oí' twelve agree tbat
there is one, thcir foreman, the principal pcrson on the jury,
writes " a true bill" upon the indictment. If, on the contrary,
no sufficiently 8trollg case appeara, he writes "no true bill"
upon it, and in some counties cuts it across, and the prisoner
is entitled to be Iiberat"d if there be no other charge against
him. AH the indictments are brought by the grand j Ul'y froIU
the room in which they discharge their duties into open court,
and thcre their decision of "true" and "no true bill" on each
is read out. 1'h08e prisoners against whom true bills are
rcturned are then assemblcd in the dock, the indictment is
read over to each by tbe oflicer of the court, and he is asked if
he pleads "guilty" or "not gllilty" to the charge. This is
called "arraiglling" the prisoners. Those who plead " guilty"
have sentellce passed upon them at once, and those who pIead
"not guilty" are brought up in turn to be tried before the petty
jury.


Fo.rmerly if a prisoner refused to plead he was sentenced to
endure penance, or the peine forte et dUTe. He was taken into
the prison, laid upon his back in a low, dark chamber, and
weights of iron as heavy as he could bear, were placed upon
bis chost. He \Vas allowed for food three morsels of the worst




142 THE PRACTICE OF THE CRIMINAL LAW.
bread upon the first day, and three draughts of the stagnant
water that was nearest the prison door upon the second. 'l'hus
his daily sustenance was alternated, and thus he was kept, tho
weights upon his body being increased every day, until he
dÜ3d, or (as the ancient judgment ran) till he answered. It was
only by the statute 12 Geo. III. c. 20, that this barbarity was
put an end too


N ow, if a prisoner refuses to plead, a jury is empanp.lled to
try whether he stands " mute of malice," or "by the visitatíon of
God" -that is, if he be merely vexatiously silent, or incapable of
answering by reason of being deaf or dumb, or of unsound mind.
If a verdict to the former effect is returned, a plea of" not guilty"
is entered for him, and the trial proceeds; if the latter, the
trial is postponed, and the prisoner sent to sorne asylum, from
whence, should he recover his sensos, he may be brought up
again and tried.


It is not aLsolutcly necessary that an accused person should
be brought before a magistrate and committed before he can
be indicted, although that is the most ordinary alld proper
course. .An indictment may be preferl'ed withoilt his know-
lOOge, and a "Bench I¡Varrant" for his apprehension may be
obtained from the presiding judge at assizes or sessions. By
this means he loses the fail' advantage which the law allows,
in giving prisoners a copy of the depositions of the witnesses
about to be examined against them; consequently it is a
course which should not be adopted except upon extreme
occasions, and one which has always of late years found dis-
favour with oul' judges, as being a proceeding by means of
which thc law may be employed by designing individuals as
au engine of extortion or revenge .


.An ordinary indictment for stealing is in the following
form :-


* Kent, to wit-
" 1'he jurors for our Lady the Queen upon their oath


present, t!tat Jo!m 3mita (the prisoner), on the first day of
Hay, in the year 01 our Lord one thousand eight hundred
and fifty-eigllt, one gold ring and one box, of the goods and
chattels of James Bl'own, feloniously did steal, tal ce, and
cm'ry away, against tite peace qf our Lady the Queen, !ler
crown and dignity."


" Or whatever the county in which the offence was committed
happens to be.




INFORMATIONS. 143
Any number of prisoners may be charged in one indictment


with an olfence in which they have all been participators.
Only one felony may be charged in one indictment-that is to
say, you cannot indict aman for murder and burglary at once;
but any number of misdemeanonrs may be included, and any
number of indictments for distinct felonies may be brought in
against one prisoncr ; and three acts of stealing, if committed
within six months, from the first to the last, may be charged
in the same indictment.


Persons may also be tried, as we have seen, upon a coroner's
inquisition, without thc intervention of a grand jury; and
likewise upon an instrument filed by the Attorney-General,
called an ex officio information, and npon an information filed
by the Master of the Crown Oflice. The former process has
fallen into disuse and is seldom employed; the latter lies only
for misdemennours, and the nccnsed person is always given an
opportunity of showing cnuse why it should not be issued
against him. Inforrnations of either sort are tried in the
Queen's Bench.


When a convenient number of pri80ners have pleaded, the
oflicer of the court addresses them thus :-


" Prisoners, tltese good men tltat you shall now lwar called
are tlte jurors U'ho are fo pass between our Sovereign Lady
the Queen and you upon your trials >' ~f tlterefore yo u,
or eitlter of yvu, will cTlClllenge tlmn, 07' either of them, you
must challenge them as they come to the book to be sworn,
and bifore they are sworn, and you sl¿all be lteard."


The oflicer then proceeds to call twelve jurors from the list
of th08e summoned, called the " panel," calling each juror by
name and address. The jllry then stand up in the jury-box,
and are sworn one by one, and before the oath is administered,
the prisoner may·" challenge" 01' object to the serving upon
his trial of any person there presento


Challenges are of two kinds-lst, to the array, when ex-
ception is taken to the whole number empanelled ; and 2ndly,
to the polls, when individual jurymen are objected too They
are divided again into challenges peremptory, for which no
cause is stated, and per causam, when a reason is given. Both
kinds of challenge may be made either on behalf of the
Crown or the person about to be tried. For high treason
thirty-five peremptory challenges may be made; in all other
felonies the limit is twenty. In cases of misdemeanours there




144 THE PRACTICE OF TIIE CRIMINAL I.AW.
is no peremptory challenge. If the panel be exhausted by
challenges of the prisoller and the Crown, or either, before a
full jury has been obtained, the practice is to call over the
whole panel again, but omitting th08e peremptoriIy challenged,
and then, as each juror agaill appears, whichever party chal-
lenges must show cause for his objection.


Challenges for cause are either to the "array" or to individual
jurymen. To the array, if tbe sheriff be supposed to have
made an unjust panel; to the individual, wheIl he is supposcd
to be actuated by ill-feeling or favour towards the prisoner
whom he is to try. If the cause be disputed, two tl'iers are
appointed, who hear the evidcnce aIld decide upon oath
whether the panel is improper, or the juror impartial.


When a full jury have b~cn sworn, if the trial takes place at
the assizes or the Central Criminal Court, the crier makes
proclamation in the following form :-


" 11 any one can infol'm my lords the Queen's Justl:ces,
tlle Queen's Attol'ney-General, 01' the Queen's Serjeant, ere
this inquest be taken between OUl' Sovereign Lady the Qucen
and tlw prisoners at the bar, of any treasons, murder,
lelony, 01' misdemeanours, committed or done by tlu:m, 01'
any of them, let hím come f01'th and he shall be hea?'d, fO?'
the prisoners stand at the bar upon their deli'vemnce. God
save the Queen."


The officer of the court then calls the prisoner about to be
tried to the bar, and says :-


" Gentlemen 01 tlle jury, the prisoner stands indicted by
ilte name (JI A. B., 101' that ¡te [and so on, stating an ab-
stract of the indictment, to the end] ; upon tkis ind'ict-
9nent he has been arra/gned, and upon this arraigmnent Ite
lws pleaded that he ís not guilty, and so jor triallw8 put
Mmself upon his countl'y, wltich country you are. Your
charge, tltel'efore, is tú inquire whetlter he be yuilty 01' not
g1¿ilty, and to hear'ken lo the evidence."


This is called "giving the prisoner in charge to the jury."
The trial then commellces. 1'he counllel for the pr08ecution


states the case against the accused to the jury, and calls the
witnesses to support it. The prisoner, or his counsel, if he Las
oné, may cross-examine them, and at the close af the case fOI"
the prosecution may address the jury in his behalf. And here
1 must impress upon you the difference of the proof required
between the parties in a civil and in a criminal case. In the




FOREIGN SYSTEM OF TRIAL. 145
former the dispute is between subject and subject, and tbe oh-
ject is to obtain aH the facts in the readiest manner. Both
sides must give evidence, or it will be presumed that what one
deposes to must be true beeause it is not refuted by the other.
In a criminal case it is vastly different. AH the power of the
State is employed against tbe accused; the Crown is prose-
cutor, and has unlimited sums of money and resources at its
command, to collect evidence, se cure tbe attendance of wit-
nesses, and to obtain men of the highest rank at the bar to
conduct the case. Therefore, as the first object of the law is
to protect the weak against the strong, it throws every possible
shield around the accused against the abuse of power. He is
not bound to criminate himself; it is for the prosecution to
prove his guilt, not for him to prove his innocence. He may
not be heard upon oath to contradiet, or explain, what has been
deposed to by his prosecutors; thereforc the ca~e against him
must be made out beyond any doubt such as would occur to
the mind of a reasonable man, or be is cntitled to his acquittal.


The direct contrary of thcse wholesome provisions appears
to prevail in many continental States. There, the prosecution
starts with the assumption that the prisoner is guilty, and calls
upon him to prove his innocence. He is cross-examined by
his judges with thc view of getting him to make admissions
from which his guilt may be inferred. Poor and ignorant as
the great majority of those ac.::used of crime in aU countriel3
are, it is an easy task fora practised mind to wring from tbe
most guiltless person, by this process of mental torture, some
contradiction or equivocation that may conderon him. Every
aet of his life is raked up against him, and it is sought to
prove that he eommitted the offence for which he is being
triad, by showing that at some other time he was found guilty
of something that has nothing whatever to do with it! W orst
of aH, he may be tried and eonvicted in his absence upon a
charge of which he may be utterIy ignorant. The crueltyand
bad poliey of a system which shuts out reformation to the
convicted, is apparent. Our law is more just and logical. It
does not seek to find aman guilty of murcIer because, when a
boy, he stole apples j but our neighbours across the Channel
would gravely state that fact in the illdictmellt. They prove
previous convictions against a prisoner at the outset of his triaL
We allow them to be mentioned only after it is concluded.
With us a jury are sworn to give a true verdict according to the
etidence, and none is admitted that does not directly bear upon


L




146 THE PRACTICE OF THE CRIMINAL LAW.
the issue to be tried. 1 have no doubt but that you have
heard it complained of that sorne crafty fdlow has escaped
punishment by a mere quibble of law, but you never hear how
that same " quibble" may have protecteJ innoccnt persons from
untrue and malicious charges. Better, say 1, that a hundred
criminals should escape-theyare suro to get their due somo
day-than that one honest man should suffer.


It is not necessary that a prisoner should be seen to commit
a crime before he can be convicted of it. There are presump-
tions of fact, upon which jurors are justified in deciding; for
example, if a man be found near the place where a murder has
been committed, with his hands stained with bloüd, havillg in
his possession a weapon such as lllight have bern uscd to do
the deed, a jury would no doubt find him guilty, nnless he
could explain away these circumstances. Or, if a pcrson be
discovered in possessiün of stolen goods illllllediately after
thf!y have been stolen, and fails to give a reasonable account of
how he carne by them, the natural conclusiün lllust be that he
is the thief.


1 will now return to the proceedings at a criminal tria!.
The ca,se for the Crown having been closed, the presiding judge
asks the counsel for the defence (supposing there be one) whether
he intendR to call witnesses on behalf of the prisoner. If he
reply in the negative, the connseI for the prosecution sums up
his evidencc; and the prisoner's counsel thcn addresses the
jury. If, on the contrary, witnesses are called for the defence,
the counsel for the prosccution does not snrn np his evideuce,
hut has a general reply at the close of the case; the prisoner's
counsel having the right previously to snm up the evidence he
has adduced. When the Attorney-General appears in a
criminal case, he has a right to reply, whcther cvidence be
given for the prisoner or noto N o Qneen's connsel may
accept a brief to defend a prisoner without a licence from the
Orown, to obtain which a fce must be paid, of course by the
person requiring his assistance. The re asan for this rule is,
that Queen's counsel must all hold themselves in readiness to
act for the Orown, and may be called upon at any time to
conduct the prosecutions taken in her Majesty's name.


When both sides have been heard, the prcsiding judge 8nms
up the evidence to the jury, who return a verdiet of "guilty"
or "not guilty," according to the evidence. If the forrner,
the prisoner i8 sentenced accordillg to law; if the latter, he
is dischargcd. The same rule which governs civil proceedings




PARDONS. 147
prevails; the judge lays down the law, and the jury decide
upon the facts. If a legal question of sufficient difficulty
arise, the judge "reserves the point" for the consideration of
the Court of Criminal Appeal, which is composed of ¡tU the
superior judges j and, pending their decision, according to
circumstances, the prísoncr is remanclecl or admitted to bailo


The result of the trial is entered on the indictment w hich
forms the "record" of tho casco If a substantial defect appear
in this, what is called a " writ of error" may be obtainecl, with
the consent of the Attorney-General, which is grantcd as a
matter of course. The prisoner thcn appears in person in the
Court of Queen's Bench and "assigns error" -that is, states
formally in writing thc mistakes upon which he relies, and
demands to be acquitted. The Attorney-General makes
"joinder in error," dcnying that the record and proceedings
are faulty j the question COlIles on fOf argument, and the
judgment is cither affirmed or reveraed, according to law.


N o !lew trial can be obtained u pon a mistake in /act, even
if it be clearIy ascertained after the trial that the witnesses on
either side have been guilty of perjury, or have been rnis-
taken, or that. others can be brought to prove or disprove any
doubtful particular. If it appear that the prisoner has been
wrollgly convicted, the royal prerogative of pardon is exer-
cised, and he is released. If, 011 the other hand, he be wrong-
fully acquitted, thcre is no resource, for, as 1 have told you,
no person can be tried a second time fol' the same offence.
You will easily perceive that this is a great defect in our law j
it is but a poor consolation to a person who has been pro-
clairned a felon in open court to receive in sccret, through the
post, a pardon for a crime he has never cOlllrnitted. The
pardo n should, at any rate, be granted as publicly as the
sentence was proIloul1ced.


L2




148


LETTER XIX.
THE LA W OF EVIDENCE.


Cond!tions of Evidence-Parol-Verbal-Direct-Circumstantial-
Primary and Secoudary Evidence.


You now know how civil and criminal trials are conducted j
but there is a very important subject respecting which 1
must give you sorne information before 1 concIude-that is,
the law of evidence, which reguIate8 what 80rt of testimony
may or may not be received.


Evidence is proof, either written or unwritten, of allega-
tions in issue between parties. The leading rules which tend
to the discovery of this proof, are :-


(1) To ascertain the truth of the several disputed points in
issue j and no evidence ought to be admitted which is not
relevant to the i8sues.


(2) The point in issue is to be proved by the party who
asserts the affirmative. But whcre one porson charges an-
other with a culpable omission of duty, this rule does not
apply, for the pcrson who makes the chargc is bound to
prove it, though it rnay involve a negative, sillce it is one of
the first principIes of jllstice, not to presume that a per~on
has acted illegalIy, till the contrary is proved.


(3) It is sufficient to prove the substance of the issue.
(4) The best evidence rnust be given of which the nature


of the thing is capable. The exceptions to this rule are:-
(a) where it is necessary to prove an entry in a public book,
the origiml need not to be shown j but from a principIe of
general convenience, an examined copy will be admitted j (b)
in the case of all peace-officers, j ustices of the peace, con-
stables, &c., it is sufficient to prove that they acted in these
characters, without producing their appointments; (e) an ad-
missioTÍ of a fact by a party to a suit has, in many cases, be en
considered sufficient to dispense with strict and regular proof,
which would otherwise have been necessary.




PAROL EVIDENCE. 149
(5) Hearsay evidence of a fact is not admissible. The ex:-


ceptions to the rule excluding hearsay evidence are the fol-
lowillg :-Death-bed declarations; hearsay evidence in ques-
tions of pedigree, public right, custom, boundaries, &c.; also,
old leases, rOllt-rolls, survcys, &c" have be en received in favour
of persons claimillg under the lessors; declarations against
interest; rectofs' and vicars' books as to tlle receipt of eccle-
siastical dues in favour of tbeir succcssors; and also entries in
the books of a tradesmall by his deceased Rhopman, ha ve be en
admitted as a proof of the delivery of goods.


Evidcnce is of two killds-parol, or verbal, alld written.
These, agaill, are divided into primary and secondary evi-
dence.


Parol evidence is that which is given by word of mouth by
witnesses.


It is a general rule th¡Lt oral evidence is in no case to be re-
ceived as equivalont to, or as a substitute for, a written instru-
ment, where the latter is required by law, or to give effect to
a writtell illstrument, whieh is defective in ally particular
essential to its validity; or to eOlltradiet or vary a written in-
strument, either appointed by law, or by the eompaet ofprivate
parties, to be the authelltic memorial of the facts whieh it re-
cites; for by doing so, oral testimony would be adrnitted in
the place of a specics of cvidellce decidcdly superior in degree.
But parol evidence is admissible to defeat a written instru-
ment on the ground of frand, mistake, &c., or to apply it to its
proper suhject, or in some instances to explain the meaning of
doubtful terms.


The general rule with regard to the admission of parol
evidence to explaill the meaning of a deed, is, that it shall not
be ad mittcd except: (1) w here, although the deed is clearly
enough expressed, some ambiguity arises from extrin~ic eircum-
stances; (2) where the language of a charter or deed has
beeome obscure, aud the construction doubtful from antiquity ;
(3) where the grant appears uncertain, owing to a want of
acquaintance with the gmntor's estate; (4) where it is impor-
taut to show a differellt consideratioll cOllsistent with that
stated in the deed itself; (5) w here it becomes necessary to
show a differellt time of delivery from that at which the deed
pllrports to have been made; (6) wherc it is sought to prove :lo
customary right not expressed in the dced, but which is not
ineonsistent with any of its stipulations; or, lastly, where fraud
or illegality, in the formation of the deed is relied on to avoid it.




150 THE LAW OF EVIDENCE.
Parol evidence is usually given upon oath; and formerly


Quakers, Moravians, and others who are forbidden by their
religion to take one, although they might give evidence upon
affirmation in a civil action, were incompetent to give testi-
mony in a Criminal Court. By a recent Act of Parliament
this distinction is abolished, and persons who have conscientious
objections to being sworn may make an affirmation that what
they are about to say is the truth; after which, their evidence
is admitted. It is a general rule that persona must be sworn in
the manner most binding upon their conscience. Thus, the
Christian is sworn upon the N ew Testament with his hcad Ull-
eovered; the Jow upon tho fivo books of Moses, with his hat
on; the Mahometan l1pon the Koran; the Hindoo by the
river Ganges; the Chinese by breaking a saueer, anll praying
that he may be similarly destroyed if he be guilty of á false-
hood. I diots, lunatics, and children ",ho do not understand
the nature of an oath, cannot be admitted to give eviclence.


Husband and wife may not bJ witnesses fol' or against each
other in criminal cases, except when a charge of bigamy is to
be proved, and in sorne cases where the wife accuses her hus-
band of having injurcd her or deprived her of her liberty.


Prisoners upon their trial may not be examined upon oath
upon their own beha1f, but if several persons be joilltly in-
dicted, any one (lf them may be called as a ",itness either for
or against his co-defeudants, excepting only in those few cases
where the indictment is so framed as to give him a direct in-
terest in obtaining their discharge. Evidence may be given
by persons who have been previously convicted of crimes, hut
snch testimony i8 always received with suspicion. Witnesses
may only state what they know of their own knowledge; wh:ü
they have heard from others is not evidcnce, beca use its accu-
racy depends upon the truth of the speaker, and he is not
upon his oath. BlIt if the person to whom tbe words related
was withill hearing, and had an opportunity of contradicting
them and did not do so, then the porson ",ho heard what was
said may give it in evidence, for the silence of him to whom it
related is considered as an admission that it was true. 'L'he
best or primary evidenee must always be given. Thus, the
contents of a written document may not be heard upon parol,
or a eopy of it admitted, because the document itself provides
the best evidence of what is stated in it. Bllt if it be a writing
such as from its position cannot be brought into conrt-an in·
scription upon a wall for example-a verbal account of its




WRITTEN EVIDENCE. J51
contents or a drawing of it may be admitted. In pedigree
cases, and sorne other, in whicll reputatíon is the only proof
that can be given, hearsay or secondal'Y evid~nce may be
given. Thus, entries in old Bibles, recitals in deeds, dates
and particulars on ancient coffin-plates, &c. &c., are received
as evidence.


W ruten evidence is proof by the production of written records
or documents.


An examined copy of, or extract from, many papers of a
public character may be admitted to prove a fact; and if such
as are of a private nature happen to be in the custody, or under
the control, of the adverse party, upon giving him notice to pro
duce it, and his neglecting or refusing to do so, a copy or coun-
terpart may be used as secondary evidence, or part testimony
may be given of its contents.


Evidence thns composed is eitller d¿rect or circumstantial.
Dircct cvidence is such as plainly pro ves that a person did or
said something. Circumstantial evidence is a combination of


.. circumstances from which it may be inferred that he did so.
l have already given you sorne instances of this latter kind of
proof in my Letter upon the criminal procedure. The former
requires no description. The admissibility or non-admissibility
of evidence is a question for the judge. Its value in deter-
mining the issue, remains for the jury to considero


l have given you but an impel'fect outline of this important
subject in the space which is left me. Half the discussions in
our courts turn upon the law of evidence, and its study is one
of the principal labours of those who follow the legal profes-
sion. But l trust, however, 1 have said enough to make you
understand what is meant, when you hear sorne statement
which to the uninitiated may appear to be conclusive proof,
objected to in a court of justice as not being evidence.




152


LETTER XX.


CONCLUSION.


1 MUST now draw our correspondence to an end, not hecause
1 have exhallsted the subject tipon which 1 haye touched, but
because 1 have gone as far as is for the present desirable. It
has been a labour of love to me, and to you, I hope, it will
be a source not only '.Jf amusemellt, but instl'uction. 1 trust
that the little illformation which I have imparted will only
make you thirst to acquire more knowIedge respecting the
progress of our glorious cOllstitution, and the theory and prac-
tice of a Iaw which, taking it aH in aH, is the soulldest in
principIe, and in practice the purest of any codc, ancient or
moderno In the politics of parties and the fate of cabinets
you cannot at your ages, be cxpected to feel lUuch interest;
but every girl and boy in England ought to know the great
value of the rights which they inherit; and what can be a
more fascinating study than to trace through the pages of
Blackstone, Hallam, 01' Macltulay, or De Lolme, the struggles,
sacrifices, and triumphs of the brave and good IDen who won
and protected these rights for us 1


It is the fashion, nevertheIess, with a certain class of our
puhlic writers and speakers to cry down the institutions of
their country and to applaud to the echo those of foreign
States. They IDay be perfectly conscientious in what they
advance; but they are evidently too ready to expose the
faults of our system, and not so williug to acknowledge the
benefits which ought, in common fairness, to be set off against
them. Such reasoners are too prone to fal! into raptures at
what they have seen, or heard of, abroad, after a very super-
ficial examination. Strike a fair balance, and what country
under the sun is so free, so happy, so secure as our own 1 We
have a Queen upon the throne who, as a IDonarch, is an ex-
ample to every crowned head, and as a Christian gentlc-




CONCLUSION. 153
woman, a pattern to every fireside. W e h~ve an aristocl'acy
that has learned to carry its pride without offence, and is
ever active in its endeavoul's to do something for the peopIe
in return fol' the privileges which it enjuys. We have a
middlc·class that is raising imperishable monuments to its
own industry and enterprise in every quarter of the globe.
We have strong, honest workmell, without whose skill and
strength those monumentS' wouId nevel' rise. 1.¡Ve have Poor
honourably and bra\'eIy toiling, Pour ignorant and starving,
POOl' vicious ami degraded, but 1 think that there are few
amongst the community at large that are not adding their mite
to the gl'eat work of encouraging, educating, providing for,
and reforming them.


Can we look abroad to find that a better government than
oul' own exists 1 No; with aU its faults and shol't-comings-
and they are many-the British CJllstitution stallds pre-
eminent amid~t the rnling systems of the wurld. That this
may long cl)ntinu~ to be the c,tse must be the fervont prayer
of every loyal and patriotic Englishlllan, as it is of


y oul' affectionate fathel',
A.B.




IN DE X.


ARCHBISHOP of Armagh, 23
Archbishúp of Canterbury, 23
Archbishop of York, 23
Accessaries before and after the


fact,132
Act of general pardon, 52
Act of settlemcnt, 17
Act of toleration, 73
ActioIlS at law, 121
Adjutant-General, 84
Admiral, 101,102
Admiralty office, 110, 111
Aldermen, 70
Appeal, Court of, 25
A ppeal, Lords J ustices of, 125
Appropriation bil!, 56
Archdeacon, 78
Army, the, 81-96
Armyand Navy, relative r:lllk of


officers, 104
Army pensions, 94
Arson, 130
Articles of clerkship, 121
Artil!ery, Royal, 92
Assaults, 131
Assizes, the, 119
Attorney-General,48, 49
Attol'ney, an, 121
Audit and Exchequer Office, 112


BANKRUPTCY, Commissioners of,
127
Bankrupt~y, Courts of, 126
Baron, title or, 24
Barristers, 120
Barristers, revising, 42, 43


Bath, Order or, 94
Bencficed clergy, 78
Bigamy, 130
Bill of Rights, 13, ]·4
Bills, passillg-, 52, 53, 54
Birluiugham, 32
Bishop, 23, 76, 77
Board of Customs, 111
Board of lnland Revenne, 111
Board of Trade, 111
BOO1rd of Works, 112
BOl'oughs, disfranchised, 31
Boroughs, lodger franchise in, 29
Boronghs, ne\\', 39, 4'()
Boroughs, occupation franchise,


28,29
Boroughs, occupiers of, 30
Boroughs to return oue member


to Parliament, 38, 39
Boroughmongers, 4·1
Boundary Cornrnissioners, 37
Brevet rank, 88-
Bribery,38
llrigacle, a, 87
British Constitution, origin of, 3
Budget, the, 55
Burglary, 130


CABINET COUNCIL, 47
Calling to the Bar, 120
Canon, 77
Canterbury, Archbishop of, 23
Ca\'alry, the heavy, 91
Cavalry, the light, 91
Central Criminal Court, 137
Challenges of grand jury, 143




INDEX. 155
Cheating, 131
Church of England, sketch of,


71-74
CbuTcbw3.rdells, 66
Circuits, the, 119
Circumstantial evidence, 151
Civil List, 19
Civil Ser vice, the, 108-113
Clergy, ordination of, 79
Coast Guard, 106
Coast Volunteers, 106
Coining, 130
Colonial corps, 93
Colonial Office, 110
Constablc, the, 65, 66
Commander·in·Chief, 84
Commissary General, 85
Commissioners of Ballkruptcy, 127
CommissiollS, price of, 88
Commissions, purchase of, 87
Cornmittee of Supply, 56
COll1mittec of Ways and Means,


55,56
Common councillors, 69, 70
Common law, the, 114
COll1mon Plcns, Court of, 118
C0Il1111011S, House of, 8, 18, 27, 28,


42
Commune Concilillm Regis, 3
Composition, 30
Consols,58
Consolidated Fund, 18
Conspiracy, 131
Convocation, 79
Copyhold and Inelosure Office, 112
Cornwall, Duchy of, 19, 20
Coroner, office of, 135
Connty Conrts, 125
Counties, 24
COllnties, divisions of, 32
Counties, joint occupation in, 33
Counties, occupation franchise in,


29,30
Counties, property franchise in, 29
Counties to be di vided for eleetion


purposes, 40
Conrts of A ppeal, 25
Courts of Banl<ruptcy, 126
COllrt of Excheqllcr, 118


Courts of Law and Equity, llS--
127


Courts of Oyer and Terminer, 136
Courts oí Petty Se~~1om, 138
Courts of Qllarter Sessions, 137
Court 01' Qneen's Beneh, 118,134
Courts.martial,93-106
Courts of Record, distinct, 120
Criminal Appeal, Court of, 147
Criminal Law, Conrts of, 134-138
Criminal Law, practice of, 139-


147
Crown Lands, 18
Crown, prerogative of, 16-20
Curia Magna, 3
Customs, Board of, 111


DEANS,77
Defendant, the, 114
Depót, tbe, 86
Dioceses, j nrisdietions of, 75
Disraeli, lVIr., 28
Dragoons, 91
Dragoon Guards, 91
Duchy of Cornwall, 19, 20
Duehy of Laneaster, 18
Duke, title of, 23


EARL, title of, 24
Ealdormen, 24
Ecclesiastieal Commission Office,


112
Electors, qualifications of, 42
Embezzlement, 130
Engineers, Royal, 92
Bquity, 115
Eqllity, Jlldges in, 125, 126
Equity, procecdings in, 126
Estates of the Healm, 16 el seq.
Evidence, law of, 148-151
Exchequer, Court of, 118
Exports, valne of, 62


FELONIES, 129-132
}<'elldal Svstem, 4, 5, 6
Fielfl Offlcers, 86
Foreign Office, 109, 110
Forgery, 130
Funds, the, 18, 58, 59




156· INDEXo
GAMBLING. 131
General Gaol DeliverJ, 136
General Oflicers, 86
General pardon, Act of, 52
Gentlemen at Arrns, 85
Grand Jury, the, 141
Gray's Inn, 120
Grey, Lord, 27
Guards, the, 85


HAllE AS CORPUS, 11-13
Hackney,32
Half-pay, 89
Hearsny evidence, 151
High 'freason, 128, 129
Highways, surveyors of, 67
IIomage,5
Home Office, 109
Horse Artillery, 92
Rouse of Commons, 8, 18, 27, 28,


42
House of Lords, 8, 22-6
Househrealáng, 130
Household 'l'roops, 85
Hnssars,91
Hustings,44


IMPORTS, value of, 62
India Oflice, 110
Indictment, fonn af, 142
Inland Revenlle, Board of, 111
Inner Temple, 120
Inns of Court, 120
Ireland, 22, 42


JUDGE Advoeate General, 93
.T udges in Eqllity, 12:>, 126
Judicial Cornmittee of Pri vy Coun-


ci],46
Jurors, 122
J ury, the, 122
J IIry, trial by, 123
JlIstices of the Peace, 136


LANCASTER, Ducby of, 18
Lancers,91
Larreny, 130
Law, actions at, 121
Law, th~ 114-117


Leed., 32
Letters Patcnt, 24
Libel,131
Limited Monnrchy, 20, 21
Lincoln's Tnn, 120
Liverpool, 32
Local Government, 63
Londoll,Universityof,32, 33, 36, 37
Lord Chancellor, 25, 125, 126
Lord Chief Earon, 120
Lord Chief Justice, 118, 120
I~ord High Steward, 134
Lord Lieutenant, 64
Lord Shaftesbllry's Act, 11
Lords, Honse of, 8, 22-6
Lords J ustices of Appeal, 121


MAGNA CARTA, G, 9 .. 10, 11
l\fagnnm Concilium Regís, 3
Mauchester, 32
l\fanslaughter, 129
Marches, the, 23
Marines, Royal, 93, 107
Marqnis, title of, 23
M aster of the Rolls, 125, 126
Mayor, 70
Members of Parliament, disquali-


ficution for, 43
Members of Parliament, election


of,44
Merthyr Tydfil, 32
Micel Gemote, 3
Micel SyIlOU, 3
l\fiu,l!c Temple, 120
l\fid-Lincolnshire, 34
Military Offices, 112
Militarv Train, the, 91
Militia; tile, 95
Ministers, pension of, 4·9
Ministrv, Offieers of State who


form· the, 48, 49
l\fisdemeauours, prívate, 133
Money, priee of, 59
Municipal Corporations, 69
Mnrder,129
Mntiny Act, 56, 84


NATIONAL Debt, 57-62
National Deht, amonut or, 61




INDEXo


'~


157
National Debt Office, 112
Naval officers, P"Y of, 102,103
Naval pensions, 105
Naval pensioners, 106
Navy, tbe, 97-108
Nisi prius, 120


OCCUPIERS, registration of, 30, 31
Opposition, tbe, 19
Order of the Bath, 94
Ordination of c1ergy, 79
Oyer and Terminer, Courts of, 136


PARDONS, 147
Parliament, 7, 8, 18
Parliament, dUl'ation of, 43
Parliament, memuers 0[, 43, 44
Parliament offices, 112
Parliament, opening of, 50, 51
Parol evidence, 11,9, 150
Pay of officers in the army, 8R,89
Pay of non-commissioned offieers


and privates in tbc army, 90
Payrnaster-Genel'al, 84
Paymaster-General's Offiee, 112
Peaee, JusUees of the, 136
Peers, legal dutics of, 25
Peers, privilege of, 25
Peers, votes of, 25
Perjury, 131
Petty officers, 105
Petty Sessions, Courts of, 138
Piraey, 130
Plaintilf, the, 114
Poll, 44
Poll-books, 44
Polling places, 35
Poor, guardians of tbe, 69
Poor La", Board, 112
POOl', relief ot; 67, 68, 69
Post Office, 112
Prremunire, 77
Prerogative of tbe Crown, 16-20,


26
Press, tbe, 14, 15
Prince of Wales, 19, 20
Princess of Wales, 19
Princesa Royal, 20
Privileges of Peers, 25


Privy Council, Judicial Committee
of,46


Prosecutions, public, 138, 139
Public Record Offiee, 112
!'uisne J udgcs, 120


QUARTERMASTER GENERAL, 84
Quarter Sessions, Courts of, 137
Qucen Consort, 19, 20
Queen, Dowager, 20
Queen's Bencl!, Court of, 118, 134
Queell's Counsel, 48, 120


RATES,65
Realm, estates of tbe, 16 et ser¡.
Rear-Admiral, 101, 102
Retorm Bill, 1832, 27, 28
Reform Bill, 1867, 28-40
Regiments, names of, 91, 92
Regiments, strengtb of, 85, 86
Registers of voters, 32
Rent charge, 78
Represelltation oftbe people, 27-


40
Returning Officer, tbe, 43
Revenue,18
Revenue, Inland, 111
Revisil1g Barristcrs, 42, 43
Hiotil1g, 131
Robbery, 129, 130
Rolls, :!\Taster of the, 125, 126
Rotten Boroughs, 41
Royal Arti1lery, 92
Royal Consol't, 19, 20
Royal Engineers, 92
Royal Marines, 93, 107
Royal Marriage Act, 20
Royal Naval Reserve, 106
Hural dean, 78
Russell, Earl,27


SAILORS in Royal Navy, pay of,
105


Saltord,32
Schiremen, 24
Scotland, 22, 42
Srutage.82
Seats, distribution of, 31
SeIjeants-at.Law, 120




158 INDEX_
Settlement, Act of, 17
Sberiff, office of, 64, 116, 117
Sberiff, pricking for, 65
Sberifi; Dnder, 117
Ships, rating of, 101
Sinking Funds, 60
Smart money, 90
Soldier, derivation of, 82
Solicitor, a, 121
Solicitar-General, 48, 49
Sovereign, the, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20
Speaker of House of' Commons,


25,50,51
Speech from tbe Throne, 51
Spiritual Peers, 22
Standing army, origin of, 81
Statute Law, the, 1U,
Stock brokers, 59
Stocks, the, 58, 5!j
Stolen goods, receiving, 130
Subalterns, 86
Supply, Committee of, 56
Surveyors oí' Highways, 67


TEMPORAL PEERS, 23
Test Act, 73
Toleration, Act of, 73
'l'ower Hamlets, 32
Town Council, 70
Trade, balance of, 62
Trade, BOard of, 111


Troason, 128, 129
'freasury, the, 109
Tria!, foreign system of, 145
True Bill, a, 141
University of London, 32, 33, 36,


37


VESTRY, 65, 67
Vice-Admiral, 101, 102
Vice-ChanceJlors, 125
Victoria Cross, !j4
Viscount, title of, 24
Volunteer force, tite, 96
V oters, Registration of, 34
Votes of Pecr" 25


WAR OFFreE, 110
\V arran t Officars, 105
Ways and Means, Committee of,


55,56
Works, Board of, 112
Winter Assize, 120
Wittena Gemote, 3
W oods and Forests Office, 112
Writs oí Summons, 24
Written evidence, 151


YEOMANRY,95
Y comen of tlle Gnard, 85
York, Al'chbishop of, 23


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