NEWS OF THE WEEK.
THE Lord Chief Justice (Sir A. Cockburn) has, says the Times of Monday, sent the Prime Minister " a protest" against the appointment of Sir R. Collier to the Privy Council by way of a ,puisne judgeship held for a short period solely to qualify him for the higher office. "It is understood," says the Times, " that the .grounds on which the protest is founded are that the trans- action would be a violation of the spirit of the Act of last Session," made to strengthen the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, "and a colourable evasion of its provisions as to the qualifications required by the Act." There is a rumour, too, as to the accuracy of which we know nothing, that the other Judges concurred in this protest. We can conceive of only one rejoinder to such a remonstrance that would be in any degree satisfactory to Parliament,—namely, that the Government, being bound to comply with the provisions of the Act, had tried in vain .every one properly qualified under it, and had to choose between not making an appointment at all and making a barrister a judge for the express purpose of promoting him. Even that excuse would bp virtually a severe censure on that false economy of the policy embodied in the Act, which was the reason why so many .Judges declined the step in advance. But unless that excuse can be given, it may well happen that Sir A. Cockburn's censure may prove the occasion for a fatal Ministerial defeat.
