§ MR. BROOKFIELD (Sussex, Rye)asked Mr. Attorney General, Whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that Barnard's Inn, one of the Inns of Chancery, is to be offered for sale on the 20th of June next; whether it is a fact that this Inn is an ancient Corporation originally established for the training of law students; and, whether the sale, if it takes place, will divert a public property to private purposes?
§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL (Sir RICHARD WEBSTER) (Isle Of Wight)Whatever may have been the original constitution of Barnard's Inn, I believe that, in common with many other Inns of the same character, it long since passed into private hands; and therefore, to the best of my belief, under the present sale no property will be diverted from public to private purposes. As the hon. Member is probably aware, there were other Inns in a similar position, and they are believed to have been private establishments, with a view to the study of the law.