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    ricbed out of that fund to which Bubke attributed so prodigious a power of corruption ? Bubke endeavoured to find his way throug h the labyrinth of nepotism and appropri ation—he failed : a hundred wands of office were wielded , menacingly before his eyes , like a p halanx of Grecian spears ; Mr . . Bertolacci , in our own day , tries the inner doors of the department : the wands again clatter , and , for his presumption , he is expelled from the premises altogether . Between the BuitKE and Bektolacci cases , however , there is this wide difference , —that Bukee was simply an independent member

    of Parliament straining his energies to reduce the corrupt influence of the Crown , while Mr . Beetolacci had an official right to inspect every item iix the estimates of the Duchy . It is said—and we hope the Government will be able to explain away the charge—that Mr . Bjgrtolacci , having been appointed Auditor of the Duchy of Lancaster , was first obstructed iu the performance of his duties , and finally dismissed for not submitting to the British Bank principle of affixing a dishonest signature to a doubtful balance-sheet , jobbed by a Receiver-General and a staff of permanent officials . The House of Commons is the court in which this

    allegation should be investigated , and we trust that no time will be lost before an inquiry is demanded by some influential independent member . The powers of an auditor in the office of the Duchy of Lancaster are clearly defined by Act of Parliament . The question , then , is , was Mr . Bertolacci obstructed in . the performance of his duties ; Mas he baffled in his attempt to exercise his proper functions of check : was he illegally excluded from the

    Council ; was he , by a conspiracy between the Duchy and Ordnance departments ( he being in the Ordnance himself ) , prevented from giving his attendance at Laucasterplace and carrying on his audit ; was his deputy arbitrarily dismissed ; was ho himself met by systematically false statements , and ultimately displaced in order that a more pliant and less officious servant might , be procured ? Then , was the nephew , by marriage , of the Receiver-General appointed to audit the Receiver-General ' s accounts ?

    "Who is this Receiver-General , the husband of Lady Maiiy Fox , a natural daughter of William the lTouitTir ? "We might add a multiplicity of questions , but wo will only suggest that Earls Granville and Habuowuy should be examined with reference to their connexion with the Palatine of Lancaster . Lord Granvilltc , wo trust , will be enabled to affirm , upon his honour , that he was not iu nrrear of rent to the Duchy when he became its Chancellor ; that , as Chancellor , he did not assume an illegal authority , and ignore an Act of

    Parliament in order to coerco Mr . Bjcrtolacoi ; that he never tried to concoal the prices at " which the Duchy lands were sold ; that he did not abet the Receiver-General in keeping excessive balances in hand ; that ho had no direct or indirect communications with Sir Chahlics TkuvrIiYan and Mr , M ^ onskll concerning the inconvenient pertinacity of Mr . IBisktolaoci ; that he did not refuse his countenance to the auditor ' s proceedings , as authorized by letters patent ; , and by the law . Also , that ho has held no public estates at little moro than a nominal rent . The Earl of

    IIarnowiiY , of courne , will iu liko manner bo happy * - ° H'iow that ho fjupported the rights and privileges of the auditor , ; md was not guilty of artifice and equivocation with the viow of closing tlio account'a of the Duchy agninat the ollicor specially appointed to chock them . This in a very serious matter , and must bo thoroughly investigated .

    Unless the rumours alluded to are false , Mr . Bjbrtolacci was required , as auditor of the Duchy of Lancaster , to do that which in an ordinary public company would have justified his dismissal , while , had the company become bankrupt , he would have been liable to stand in Mr . Linklater's pillory . We must arrive , if possible , at the bottom of this mystery ; we must understand the reasons for all the secrecy and collusion marking the administration of immense public estates . What is there wrong in the management , and for whose benefit is it ? We are utterly in the

    dark . The exact revenue is not known ; the sales of land and other property take place behind the scenes ; there has never been an effectual audit , and we hope it is not true that , by proposing such an audit , Mr . Bertolacci startled into a panic the whole corps—Chancellor , Receiver-General , clerks , counsel , axe-bearcr , and bankers . We have more than a public interest in the inquiry . Private character is concerned , and the sooner the scandal is set at rest—if it can be set at rest—the better for the noble and gentle men implicated .

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    REFORM PROCRASTINATIONS . It is not a settled point that the Liberal party approves of Mr . Roebuck's profession of faith in the Government on the first night of the session . On the contrary , we have reason to believe that a number of independent l'eformers in the House consider him to have acted with precipitaiton and incaution . He might have y ielded to the general conviction that a new Reform Bill must be postponed until next year , but at the same time he might have withheld his expression of unreserved confidence in the Premier , Lord Palmerston , by saying a few words , has thrown overboard , for several months , every discussion connected with Parliamentary Reform , except , perhaps , the ballot . He may endeavour to suppress that subject , but Mr . Berkeley will certainly renew his motion , and there will be a serious debate , followed , perhaps , by an important division . We may suggest that Mr . Berkeley , or the Ballot Society , should summon by circular every member w lio has declared his intention to

    support the principle of tho ballot , so that , unless its opponents muster in great force , it may obtain a House of Commons victory . Wo should at least enjoy that success as a compensation for the session which is to be sunk in practical legislation , often the most impracticable of all . There ia a general complaint among the independent members that Mr . Roehuck relaxed his hand too suddenly . Lord Palmerston made a clear leap over tho heads of

    Reformers ; before they had struck a blow , they found that a herald had gone forth and agreed to a long truce . Why so submissive to the policy of procrastination , ? Lord Palmerston has promised nothing distinct . He has not said n word about disenfranchising tho rotten boroughs . He noither opposed nor acceptod Mr . Locke Kino ' s motion to abolish the property qualification , but hinted that ho could not see why tho qualification should bo abolished . Lord John 1 £ usskll , therefore , stands

    apart from the Premier iu this particular . The rumour grows strong that before the day of reckoning an alliance will have been effected between tho powers of Cambridge House and AVoburn Abbey , ho that , after all , the father of tho lira I Reform Bill may bo the propoHor of tho second . Yet , to ( satisfy Lord John Russell , Lord Palmkiihtqn will have to explain more than is publicly known respecting the Vienna mission . The Russian war in now inattor of hL-itory , and it can do no harm to confess that Lord John Russell haw been wcandnlously misused with roferoncc

    to that affair , after having Ids tongue tied by a bond of honour . [ % ,-. . - ^ j It is true that the independent members are not bound to act with Mr . Boebttck , who has never been their leader ; but what are they to do ? If they stir a political topic , Lord Palmesston rises and objects— "I thought it was understood that these discussions were to stand over for next year . " So

    Reform is paralysed by consent . It would not have been surprising had the ballot also been postponed . But that is a distinct principle , which has gained many new advocates in the House ; so that the party may fairly expect Mr . Roebuck not to intrude with any superfluous generosity , and profess himself ' perfectly satisfied' with some hesitating pledge that ' that topic' shall be considered and reported upon next February .

    Nothing is to be done this session in Parliament ; but something ought to be attempted out of doors . We are not satisfied with hearing that the question once popular is now only parliamentary . The movement in favour of an amended , purified , and extended representation , should be national ; otherwise its results will be defective and disappointing .

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    WOMEN AND WORK . Among the inmates of Bethlehem Hospital , from 1846 to 1855 , were a hundred and ten governesses , and a hundred and eighty-nine dressmakers . Dr . Hood , in his decennial report—an able and interesting documentremarks : " Among the female patients , the only point which seem to require notice is the " large number of governesses and dressmakers , including milliners and sempstresses . It is no wonder that an elegant , accomplished , and otherwise delicately nurtured lady should pass from unhappiness to misery , and from misery to insanity , in a position which too often is not half so desirable as that of a domestic servant ; and upon the causes which operate upon thousands of the class of dressmakers , who are driven mad by penury , trouble , and perhaps remorse , it is unnecessary to speak . " * We are inclined to believe that the causes which reduce a lady to the governess ' s parlour , in which her position ' is not half so desirable as that of a domestic servant , ' or to the dressmakers and milliners' workshops , or sempstresses' attics , frequently operate in producing insanity ; but there can be no doubt that Bethlehem receives a vast pi'oportion of its female inmates direct from the dwellings of those who treat the tutors of their children as menials , and of those who treat the practical creators of their opulence as slaves , f Well , what is to be done ? Mr . Lilwall and the association , which he so ably and disinterestedly serves , are engaged in carrying out some of the necessary reforms . The Home at 44 , Great Ormohd-strect , has been established for day workers ; the Clifford-street Society undertakes to deal with the ladies who insist upon superb dresses being completed at twelve hours' notice ; bub it is a singular proof of the neglect to which women are exposed in England , that the Registrar-General has invariably omitted from his weekly returns an account of the occupations of females who die in London . " I wrote to him , " states Dr . Lankkbtjsu , " ai \ d ho said , in reply , that , unfortunately , that department of their systom had not yet been carried out . " To say the truth , women have not yet assumed their right position in society . It is an anomaly incompatible with civilization that a woman , if neither married nor indopendent , should not bo ablo to pursue a

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    * Statindon of Insanity . 13 y W . CJmrloa Hood , M . D . Duvid IJiUton . „ t The Oppressed Dremnakers . TJiirteonfU Ueport ol tho K / irlv Closing Association . Kent mid Co .

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    May 16 , 1857 J THE' LEADER 471

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), May 16, 1857, page 471, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2193/page/15/