Shadow of great britain

In the office of the Chancery Hall, Viscount Melbourne and Lord Brougham were sitting on both sides of the sofa.

There were several documents placed in front of them, with names densely written on them.

Behind these names are various felony charges that make people's liver tremble at a glance.

Robbery of large livestock, burglary, breaking and destroying machinery, robbery, murder, treason...

Even if these crimes were taken alone, they would be enough to warrant hanging, not to mention that many of them had multiple charges, so they could only be sentenced to death and executed repeatedly.

Lord Brougham held the list and looked at it for a long time: "There are more than a thousand serious criminals. If all of them are sentenced to hanging, it will be more than the number of hangings in the past ten years combined."

Viscount Melbourne smoothed his hair and said: "Of course I know this, and I have promised these rioters before that as long as they are willing to surrender, the government will definitely consider lenient sentences. Therefore, all of these more than a thousand people cannot be executed. Hangings, even most executions, are not enough. It is no longer the time more than ten years ago, when the atmosphere of freedom has taken root in Britain, and every hanging will be carefully observed by the British people with a magnifying glass, not to mention that Fleet Street still has a It’s a bunch of news media that are blind to the wind.”

Lord Brougham held a wine glass and leaned on the sofa with his legs crossed: "This is indeed a social progress, but at the same time it also brings a lot of trouble to our executive agencies. Although the British courts have always been based on It is famous for its impartiality and independent trials, but now even if the court finally orders hanging, only one-tenth of it can be executed."

After hearing this, Viscount Melbourne said: "Your Excellency, regarding this Swain riot, I think even an execution rate of one-tenth is still too high. The execution of more than a hundred people at once has already caught up with England's The number of executions last year was up.

Regarding this riot trial, I have been angry with Peelton before. Both he, the former Home Secretary, and I, the current Home Secretary, believe that only those leaders and prisoners who have committed unforgivable crimes such as murder should be executed this time. That's it. As for the remaining ones, if the circumstances are not serious, acquittal can be considered as appropriate, and if the circumstances are more serious, the sentence can be commuted to exile or hard labor. "

When Brougham heard this, he frowned slightly and said: "Your Excellency, please forgive me, no one can interfere with the independence of British judges. Although I have the power to appoint judges for vacancies, once they sit in that position , I have no power to remove them from their posts. If there are only a few criminals, I can indeed help you find a few judges with more flexible methods.

However, it is impossible for a few judges to complete a trial involving more than a thousand people in a short time. Perhaps the Home Office could afford to wait, but Fleet Street journalists were not impatient. If they blow the wind, things will only get worse. "

"No, you misunderstood me."

Viscount Melbourne said: "Of course I know that the independence of British judges is sacred and unshakable. Even His Majesty the King has failed at their hands once or twice. When you were a lawyer in your early years, didn't you serve for Caroline? Did the Queen win her divorce battle with the late King George IV?

Therefore, I will not and cannot desecrate the impartiality of the court. On the contrary, I hope that all courts can hear cases impartially and decide whatever they want. My original intention of proposing the establishment of a special trial committee for the Swain Riots to supervise the trial is also to demonstrate the fairness, openness and transparency of the trial. "

Lord Brougham was not a fool. As soon as he heard that Viscount Melbourne was not trying to manipulate the trial, he immediately understood his subtext.

"You want to ask His Majesty the King to issue a special pardon to those criminals after the trial is over, right?"

Viscount Melbourne smiled and nodded: "I have explained to the Prime Minister in advance that I will also visit other members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council one by one later. As long as you, the chairman of the committee, nod in the same way, then I believe that His Majesty the King will respect it." The collective opinion of the committee.”

Viscount Melbourne thought he might have to argue in the Chancery Chamber. After all, Lord Brougham, the senior Queen's Counsel, was notoriously difficult to deal with.

In addition to his slightly cold personality, Brougham's habitually vicious writing style and rhetoric are also intimidating.

As one of the founders of the Whig Party organ "Edinburgh Review", in addition to doing his job as a lawyer very well when he was young, Lord Brougham also had another great hobby: Byron, Shelley, and John Einstein. Ci and other romantic poets who were so dissolute that he was displeased with them attacked him.

Among these attacks, the criticism of Keats was particularly harsh and fierce.

It is said that when Keats was seriously ill, he vomited blood and died after reading a critical article written by Lord Brougham.

Although this kind of gossip cannot be fully believed, London citizens still called him 'Cold Brougham' for a long time.

However, it is actually inaccurate to use 'cold' to summarize Brougham. Because in the eyes of the Whig Party, he sometimes seemed too 'enthusiastic' in his political stance.

In the long-term rivalry between the Whig Party and the Tory Party, the Tory Party prided itself on its emphasis on tradition, while the Whig Party took freedom and progress as its slogan.

But even to the liberal and progressive Whigs, Brougham seemed too liberal and progressive.

Even within the already left-leaning Whig Party, Brougham was on the radical left.

In terms of law, Brougham was already one of the enthusiastic supporters of the legal reformer Samuel Romilly in his youth.

In terms of human rights, he was an active supporter of William Wilberforce, the founder of the abolition movement.

In education, he was one of the earliest voices in Britain calling for public education. And with amazing action, he did more than just shout slogans. Although he was unable to change the views of Parliament, Brougham still raised funds with several like-minded friends to found the University of London.

As for the political aspect, Brougham is a die-hard supporter of parliamentary reform, and he is the kind of person who would not be able to turn back even if ten donkeys were tied to his neck.

Perhaps it was precisely because of Brougham's radical ideas and ability to act that even though he joined the Whig Party very early, his social reputation was not low. However, it was not until 1810 that he was officially recognized as a member of the Whig Party. The Whig Party confirmed its candidate for parliament.

Neither the scoldings of Keats's supporters nor the vicious attacks of his political opponents made the Lord Chancellor change his expression.

This kind of independent character is almost completely opposite to the Viscount Melbourne who is gentle and lazy and is not willing to argue with others.

Therefore, when Viscount Melbourne came to the Chancery Hall today, he was already prepared for the possibility of hitting a wall.

After all, what he said to Brougham was, to a certain extent, a complete defiance of the authority of the court.

However, what he didn't expect was that Brougham actually agreed.

"Actually, even if you don't come to me, I will ask His Majesty to issue a pardon."

"Huh?" Viscount Melbourne raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise: "What's the reason?"

Lord Brougham said: "Originally, this matter was still in the preparation stage, but since it happened to happen, I will make it clear. Everyone knows that I have been supporting Lord Romilly these years. Calls for criminal law reform.

Although Sir Peel has significantly promoted the repeal of the Blood Acts during his tenure, Nowadays, the death penalty articles in Britain have been reduced from 222 to 56, but in my opinion, some death penalty articles still need to be carefully considered.

For example, hanging for 42 types of forgery is inappropriate. Although in 1830, Parliament passed an act reaffirming the need for the death penalty for these forgery crimes, in fact, after discussions with Sir Radeznowicz, I found that in the past year or so, not a single criminal has been convicted of the crime. He was convicted of forgery and executed.

Sir Radeznowicz put it bluntly: 'The contrast between the letter of the law and the practice of law is perhaps even more shocking. ’

The jury did not agree that a living life had been ruined because of forgery, and many among the judges believed that the sentence was too harsh. To avoid killing a person, juries will often return a not guilty verdict. If this situation continues, then such a law will be equivalent to a piece of paper.

So I have been thinking all this time about substituting lighter but more certain punishments for those who are disproportionate to their crime. Only a law that can be recognized by the public can be truly implemented, and if it can be implemented, it can be called a law. Otherwise it would be indistinguishable from Keats' verse. "

"Keats's verse?"

"Yeah." Lord Brougham took a sip and said, "It looks gorgeous, but in fact it's just useless moaning and has no effect."

After hearing this, the Viscount of Melbourne finally put his heart back into his stomach. He smiled and raised his glass: "It is indeed a correct decision to appoint you to become a justice. If the Chancery Hall decides to continue to promote judicial reform, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will definitely do the same. Full support.”

When Brougham heard this, he suddenly said: "But as you said, although His Majesty the King will grant amnesty to some people, or change the sentence to a lighter level of punishment, the sentence pronounced in the court must still be in accordance with the original provisions. conduct.

If the sentence is changed to hanging in court, the sentence will still be hanged. If the sentence is given lightly in court, it will be equivalent to encouraging riots, and the majesty and sanctity of the law will be out of the question. This time, His Majesty the King showed mercy outside the law, but he will not do so in the future. "

"I think so too."

Viscount Melbourne smiled and said: "Let His Majesty the King be such a good person, he will definitely be very happy. Speaking of which, the current His Majesty the King seems to be different from his brother. He is born with a compassionate heart and pursues humanity. Doctrine. I heard that every time the Old Bailey court sent a death sentence to His Majesty for approval, he always had to read it several times and then order the judge to state the case to him in person before he was willing to sign his name. Last year Among them, His Majesty the King seems to have personally changed the death sentence in 90% of the cases.”

Lord Brougham made a joke and said: "With His Majesty's help, your daily work will be much easier, won't it? If he is as lazy as the late king, according to the usual practice, the Minister of the Interior should approve the death penalty. "

Viscount Melbourne also smiled easily and said: "You are right. His Majesty may know my lazy personality, and also knows that not everyone can be as energetic as Sir Peel. He is always very considerate of his subjects, whether he is the Minister of the Interior or His old brother in the Royal Navy.”

Lord Brougham blinked and smiled: "Unfortunately, other people in the House of Lords may not think so. When the House of Lords was meeting a while ago, I heard those old-fashioned people complaining that His Majesty is not as tasteful and stylish as his brother. He doesn't care about the timing of his speech. When he's drunk, he likes to tell everyone a long story about the ship's pre-war mobilization. Even if he speaks elegant French, you can smell the smell of Caribbean tobacco in his mouth."

Out of politeness, Viscount Melbourne only raised the corners of his mouth slightly and did not laugh out loud.

He said: "The guys you mentioned didn't think much of him before His Majesty ascended the throne. His Majesty himself probably didn't expect to inherit the throne. For a long time, he was a transparent person in the royal family. No matter what Whether he chose to follow General Nelson when he was young or later threatened his father to join the House of Lords, this all shows that His Majesty is a person who craves attention. Although in some places, what he does is not appropriate, but he really wants to be A wonderful king’s.”

Brougham picked up the handkerchief and wiped his mouth: "So, you gave him this opportunity to show his mercy in front of the British public and pardon those mobs?"

Viscount Melbourne chuckled: "It's just a coincidence."

Viscount Melbourne did not want to say anything clearly, and Lord Brougham did not intend to continue questioning.

As a professional lawyer, he doesn't like worldly matters very much, and his independent personality makes him more concerned about specific implementation.

He just asked: "Now that the candidate to show mercy has been determined, who are you going to give the task of putting a bucket of shit on yourself? It is only theoretically possible to influence the judge's decision, and this kind of initiative makes people take the initiative. Rolling into a mud pit can only be done by a guy with a brain problem."

Brougham's words hit home another purpose of Viscount Melbourne's trip.

Viscount Melbourne reorganized his language and analyzed it slowly: "We all know the sensitivity of this trial, so we can't find a guy with a bad reputation to do it. That will only make the reporters on Fleet Street cheer and the citizens of Britain. They were furious..."

"That makes sense."

Lord Brougham said seemingly casually: "It would be great if you could persuade the Archbishop of Canterbury to take charge of the prosecution."

"Then it's unnecessary. The prosecutor doesn't have to be that innocent."

Viscount Melbourne hurriedly interrupted the other party's whimsical thoughts, knowing that Lord Brougham might have guessed his thoughts.

In this case, he did not intend to beat around the bush, but asked directly: "I intend to hand over this matter to the London District Attorney's Office, or to be more precise, to your most protégé Arthur Hastings." Si.”

"Oh..." Lord Brougham put a hand on the back of the sofa and looked up out of the window: "I have to say, your mind is very jumping. From a religious leader in Britain, you suddenly went to the University of London. The stronghold of atheism."

A simple sentence brought Viscount Melbourne back to the cold reality from the relaxed and carefree mood just now.

Brougham's difficulty was immediately apparent.

The reason why he was so easy to talk to just now was not at all because he had a good temper, but because Viscount Melbourne's thoughts were on the same line as his.

Once the two have conflicting ideas, there will be hail in the face and violent wind and rain in an instant.

However, it is not that Viscount Melbourne cannot understand the other party's thoughts.

As a newly established school, and it had just received its teaching charter not long ago, the University of London does not have many well-known alumni.

A few days ago, a recruitment advertisement featuring Arthur Hastings was published in The Times.

In the blink of an eye, Brougham's most proud disciple would be asked to carry the explosive bag. There is absolutely no such reason in the world.

What's even worse is that Arthur has just been shot in Liverpool. According to Brougham's temper, it would be considered polite not to explode directly.

To smear the student at this time is simply not taking him seriously.

However, Viscount Melbourne also thought of this early on, and he used the words he had prepared long ago to persuade.

"Actually, if there is another suitable candidate, I don't want to bother him anymore. Even in terms of my personal feelings, Mr. Hastings is quite helpful to me. A while ago, Mr. Faraday and I had a bit of a misunderstanding. , it was he who came forward to help solve the problem. Therefore, when the Liverpool incident occurred, I immediately transferred people from Scotland Yard to strengthen his protection.

However, in my personal opinion, letting Mr. Hastings take charge of this job will definitely be of great benefit to his future growth. To be honest, the Ministry of Home Affairs has also recently been considering amending the Metropolitan Police Act of 1829. Everyone sees Arthur's abilities and achievements.

Although exceptional promotions are not allowed to a certain extent, I have always promoted capable young people. If Arthur can do a good job in this prosecution, he should be promoted to Assistant Superintendent after the reorganization of Scotland Yard, and those who doubt his concurrent position as Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions of the London District Attorney's Office can be suppressed.

In addition, at the last Privy Council meeting, didn't we discuss the list of knighthoods for the next year? The specific candidates have not yet been officially determined. If Arthur can close the case before the list is submitted, I think he definitely deserves this honor for his merits. "

When Lord Brougham heard this, the displeasure on his face was still there.

He was about to argue with Viscount Melbourne, but before he could speak, he heard a knock on the door.

"Your Excellency, Mr. Hastings has returned from Liverpool. Are you free to see him now?"