Sir James Fitzjames Stephen retired from the Bench on Tuesday,
in a speech to the Bar of much dignity and pathos. He denied after full inquiry that the condition of his health had ever been the cause of any failure of justice, and declared that although the great physicians whom he had consulted had advised him to retire for his own sake, they had all pronounced him competent at present for his duties. He dwelt with emphasis on the kindly relations he had main- tained with all with whom he came in contact in the way of duty, and ended a speech received with deep attention, with "God bless you all, every one of you!" There are few, either of the Bar or the public, who will not hope that the effects of overwork will soon wear off, and that one of the most convincing of publicists will once more betake himself to literature, in which he has played a part, as the advocate of the right of society to coerce, the value of which is in our day too often forgotten. Although Sir James Stephen has not yet served his full term of fifteen years, the Treasury, we are happy to perceive, has held him, as one disabled only by his work, qualified for the full pension.
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