THE RECORD COMMISSION.
SIR HARRIS NICOLAS is again at work with his sledge-hammer: he has broken once more into a job-shop, and the fragments and ruins of the prettiest little sinecures in the world are again lying about him in beautiful confusion.
Sir HARRIS is certainly one of the most redoubtable persons that ever engaged in a similar task. No pretence of delicacy— 'none of cant—of personality—and very little apprehension as to where he carries dismay and alarm—characterize his controversial *writings. The thing must be broken, bruised, and pounded ; and the sooner it is reduced to powder, the less time lost, and the more good done. Such is the way of Sir HARRIS with his sledge- hammer.
This time, Sir HARRIS'S quarrel is with the new or last Commission for Printing the Records, for not having much if at all improved upon the old one, in whose time hallo, million of money was spent on Editing and Searching, and to no pur- pose. The new members, it seems, are all persons who know little or nothing about records, and who are either too great or too busy to learn. They have, indeed, exchanged an inefficient Secretary for a gentleman of great abilities and much activity ; he is, however, a barrister, and has his profession to attend to. Ne- vertheless, he has turned in good earnest to the work, and has become as great an exposer of jobs and abuses as Sir HARRIS himself. The Commission is still in the hands of the men who have, in the course of a few years, cut up a large allowance of public money, granted for a public and most important object, into very pretty little private fortunes. The fact is, that the whole scheme of the Record Commission is bad, both in the character of the Board and the manner in which its work is done and paid for. The Reformed Parliament ought immediately to dissolve it, and appoint three salaried Commis- sioners, who would give their whole time to the business of print- ing and arranging the Records, as speedily, cheaply, and intel- ligibly as possible. Of this Commission Sir HARRIS NICOLAS and Mr. COOPER should be two,—giving up all other pursuits, of course: they would need the assistance only of common clerks, who should. be perpetually at the work of transcrip- tion and collation, under the eye of the chiefs. The Lord 'Chan- cellor and the Speaker of the Commons might be visitors and referees; and to them annually a report of progress should be made. The members of the House need not be reminded from time to time to look after the employment of the money. We advise all who are interested in the sweeping away of public abuses, to read Sir HARRIS NICOLAS'S pamphlet.
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