§ MR. DISRAELIsaid, he wished to ask a Question relative to the Royal Commission recently appointed to inquire into the custody and management of the Funds of the Court of Chancery. In that Commission there were included two Cabinet Ministers; a Member of that House, highly honourable, but an unflinching supporter of Her Majesty's Government; a registrar of the Court of Chancery, a clerk in the Treasury, and two solicitors; and were it not for the name of Lord Kingsdown, 1205 which appeared on it, that Commission might be looked at with unmodified apprehension. Would the Government inform the House of the object of this Royal Commission?
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERsaid, the right hon. Gentleman had inserted into his Question—which by a skilful construction of language might carry a note of interrogation at the end of it—a strong opinion on the nature of this Commission, which he said but for the name of Lord Kingsdown would excite unmodified apprehension, and the right hon. Gentleman seemed to doubt the advisability of its containing the names of two solicitors. It certainly included the names of two solicitors, and its construction might form a proper matter for discussion in that House, though not at the present moment. The object of the Commission was twofold. In the first place it had reference to questions of great public interest connected with the custody and management of the funds of the Court of Chancery, and which bad formed the subject of inquiry before Committees of that House. The right hon. Gentleman was himself a member of what he might call a strong Committee, which made important recommendations to the House in respect to the management of those funds. Those recommendations had remained—he forgot whether wholly or in great part—without effect, and this appeared to the Government to be a proper subject for further consideration. The Government had also seen the Report of a Commission on what was called the concentration of the law courts in the neighbourhood of Lincoln's Inn Fields. That Report contained recommendations of great importance, and among others, one with respect to the appropriation of the funds of the Court of Chancery; and the Government were of opinion that the appropriation of those funds could hardly take place without entailing certain public liabilities in connection with the Consolidated Fund or in some other form, in connection with the erection of the new law courts. That being a matter of great public interest it was thought desirable to institute inquiry regarding it. There were also interests connected with the suitors which it was desirable should be inquired into, so that care might be taken to do full justice to them in this transaction. It was for these purposes that the Government had come to the resolution to appoint this Commission.