THE RENTED MANOR. 45 



of punislimcnt, viz., the receiver. The law as it 

 stands, in this instance, as in many others, opens 

 a door hy which the worst criminal can escape 

 detection, crowned by the fact that the great 

 ^^ unpaid'' upon tlie Bench, mostly parsons, inva- 

 riably do all in their power to let off a villain 

 with as little punishment as possible, while they, 

 at the same time, make themselves amusingly 

 remarkable by the funny character they get for 

 impartiality, in committing themselves mucli more 

 frequently than they commit the prisoners brought 

 before them. 



If we had ^^stipendiary magistrates," as they 

 have in Ireland, tlie laws would be acted uid to 

 (though Ireland is no example for that) and crime 

 of all sorts largely decreased. We see the good 

 effect of a professional judge in the County Courts ; 

 but there again the legislators have stejDjDcd in 

 with a mischievous infliction, called ^'a sj^ecial 

 jury," of five men, selected from much the same 

 class as the thieves and poachers, save that they 

 are ^' householders," and are not absolutely in 

 rags. It is a farce for a gentleman to attempt to 

 defend himself in some localities if charged as a 

 *^ Lord of the Manor" with wrongfully seizing 



