630 Affairs in General. [Dzc. 
‘ 
bers have no professional engagements, and, unable to turn, perhaps, to 
other occupations, are poor, get into debt, or are estranged from their 
profession, and fall into coarse and corrupt habits ; and are, nevertheless, 
when brought before the courts, treated as clergymen, and their par- 
ticular offences eagerly seized upon by the prejudiced, who blazon forth 
the baseness and profligacy of individuals, and are pleased to consider 
them as general, and almost peculiar to the profession. This last’case 
has‘called forth a number of “leaders,” which are calling aloud for making 
adultery a criminal offence. Now this we think absurd ; for we have no 
doubt the existing law and practice is as well calculated to perER—the 
proper principle of punishment—as anything that can well be imagined. 
The injured husband gets rid of a worthless woman—the seducer (who 
is often the seduced) is mulcted of a sum he can seldom spare, and if he 
can spare, is, in most cases, linked with a woman of whom he is, for the 
rest of his days, ashamed—who can no longer be restored to society, and 
who proves to him, most likely, a curse, and a clog for life. If this is 
not a more effectual deterring than a twelvemonth’s imprisonment—or 
loss of money, in the shape of a fine to the king—or loss even of honours 
—and we can imagine nothing else, except such as the state of society 
will not tolerate—we will give up speculating upon such matters for 
ever. 
The London University goes on swimmingly. The whole set of pro- 
fessors are reported to have 394 pupils distributed among them ; we 
are not sure that the same individual, by attending three or four lectures, 
does not count for three or four. The spirit of puffery, so visible in the 
whole concern, ever since it began to get into activity—by the endless 
advertisements and paragraphings—will excuse us, with sober people, 
for occasionally withholding our credit from their statements. To the 
medical school are assigned 120 ; and to the natural philosophy, chemis- 
try, Latin, Greek, and law chairs, each from 60 to 70; many of them, 
it appears, are elderly gentlemen. One professor, we know, has two 
pupils ; and another, we hear, is likely, very shortly, to make a begin- 
ning with one. Of the medical professors, we have before expressed our 
conviction, that nothing could be less called for. We are disposed to 
think the same of others, especially those of the modern languages, and 
natural philosophy, and chemistry—for lecturers on these matters abound. 
We do not think so of the law-lectures.. The means of obtaining legal 
knowledge, or at least beyond the mere technicalities of practice, are 
inaccessible to young men, in attorneys’ offices. This very illiterate 
class, by an enlightened and fearless individual, may be essentially 
improved and civilized—there is an opening. An account of Mr. Amos’s 
introductory, given in the 7'%mes, amused us. Mr. Brougham sat on the 
right of the chair, representing, it was stated, the bar ; and Mr. W. Tcoke, 
on the left, representing, in like manner, all the attorneys and solicitors— 
whilst Lord Auckland was in the chair, representing, we suppose, the 
aristocracy, who, of course, will feel themselves greatly honoured and 
obliged. But the idea of hearing lectures by ‘ representatives,’ is quite 
a novel invention, and worthy of a university, which is to be the focus 
from which are to spread and radiate, superior knowledge and prac- 
tical usefulness. The mathematical introductory, we hear, was distin- 
guished for < brilliancy of imagination,’ whilst one of the classical, we 
forget which, was as conspicuous for a skeleton dryness, that must have 
been meant for the diagrams. These mistakes will happen. Mr. Dale 
