SCOTCH BURGH REFORM BILL.
ONE of the Glasgow Papers of last week has been sent to us„ marked with a large black cross, to challenge our attention. Our contemporary (the Scots Times) finds fault with the recommen- dation which we gave two or three weeks ago, for the postpone- ment of the Scotch Reform Bill to another session. Unfortunately for himself, however, he states the grounds of his censure ; and we find them to be founded entirely upon a perversion of what we had stated on the occasion to which he refers. We objected to the bill proceeding this session, because of its imperfections, and particularly because it did not deal with the most important of all questions, that of boundaries and jurisdiction. Oh ! exclaims our candid censor of the provinces, this is no reason at all for delay, in respect that the boundaries are fixed by charter, and the jurisdiction is well ascertained by the laws of the land. Did we say any thing to the contrary ? Nos but did our friend in the North never hear of any proposal for extending the boun- daries of the burgh over thickly-peopled districts which have grown up since the date of the charters he mentions, beyond the boundaries therein defined? did he never hear of any suggestion as to the propriety- of regulating the jurisdic- tion of the magistracy to be chosen under a new and more popu- lar mode of election ? or did he never hear it mooted, that it might be possible to separate the judicial from the purely ministerial functions of the magistrates, in order to avoid the somewhat ano- malous mode in which the former are at present administered? It was towards these difficult subjects that we looked when we re- ferred to the question of boundaries and jurisdiction; and which the bill does not touch. We would recommend our Glasgow friend to direct his attention to them as soon as possible, in order that when the Commission opens, he may be able to lay the result of his cogitations before it.
We are more and more convinced that we were right in the advice we gave to delay the measure till next session : and we recommend our contemporary to peruse the Report of the Select Committee on Municipal Corporations (which we have since seen), and he will probably be satisfied that inquiry ought to precede legislation.
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