British Justice in Fiji.

Thames Star, Volume XIII, Issue 4355, 15 December 1882, Page 2

British Justice in Fiji.

We have been favored by Mf Parr, of Fiji, an extensive sugar-planter, who is at present on the Thames en route for the Hot Lakes, with a copy of a pamphlet entitled, •• Farewell to Sir JohnGorrie, Et;,; late Chief Justice of Fiji," being;a, re-print from the Fiji Times of Nov. 25th, Therein Sir John Gorrie is spoken of in terms the reverse of complimentary. We give an extract: — ■

"The last three issues of our contemV porary, the Sura Times, have been Very largely devoted to the. laudation of the gentleman who has till lately honored the colony by occupying the position, of its Chief Justice. First, we Were treated to an editorial in which eulogy so. far pat' ran discretion as to verge very closely on adulation. Secondly, four columns were occupied by the report of the speeches delivered at a dinner conducted on the mutual admiration principle, and at which twenty-three gentlemen were present. Thirdly, over five columns of the last issue are taken up by a further elaboration of the same interesting subject, in the form of , a Supreme Court report; in which is inclu* i'ded the farewell address of-the bar to the Chief Justice, and the sj>«eeh. of his Honor in reply.' . . .As with the editorial," so with the banquet report; injudicious and. inflated as the. laudatitip. may have been considered, nothing con* tamed in either would have entitled it to other commentary than that of a scornful "" smile but for the third matter, which has given the whole subject such aggressiTeprominence as absolutely to challenge ' remark. No one would think of submitting after-dinner speeches to the test of a critical examination, particularly when the twenty«three gentlemen, who consti* ■ tuted orators and auditory, might fairly be expected to represent a large proportion of those whom, in his public capacity, the recipient of their homage had not gratuitously insulted. . „;-. . * The Court report opens with Everett v. the Crown. This is a matter which concerns a gentleman who left New Brunswick, and arrived in this county a twelve* ' month ago, for the simple purpose of | taking up a certain Crown grant which was gazetted by the Government as awaiting • issue, and which, but for his advent, would in all probability have been in> eluded amongst those now advertised for sale as unclaimed deeds. Complications arose which involved him in a lawsuit with the Crown, and now at th.fr end of an entire year the judgment recorded on * the day of the farewell hag practically been left him in exactly the same position as when he began. Yet his hooor the Chief Justice eulogises in self'laudatory phrases the expedition with which cases are disposed of, and the inexpensive character of litigation in Fiji ' , Surely there is sufficient set forth iv the above review of cue case to justify the arbitrament of a superior tribunal between disputants so highly placed ? Yet the Supreme Court system of the colony '.' vests an arbitrary po*er in the hands of the Chief Justice. It is the system which denies an Englishman his right of trial by jury, and which countenances the assessor , farce periodically played before the pub» ' lie, and thereforo the Chief Justice re-' fuses leave to appeal, declines to give the . - Crown the fair opportuney of vindicating its honor and honesty, and the Attorney* ' General, in his valedictory sp^ecli, eulo-, r gised the " broad and liberal basis ttfron":" which the general administration *>f JaiK and equity rested." . . . . , It ,is •' decidedly unfortunate .that tho jpdiojffua ; laudation of a -fetv personal friends should so far bate passed the bounds of moderation, and should subsequently hare been thrown into such bold relief by the Sura Times' juxtaposition, as to make it necessary to place on record the dissent : therefrom of the great majority." It would have been far preferable that^r John Gorrie should have removed ourof our lives without an uncomplimentary word, and that all feelings of irritation, however well grounded,, should ,have passed away with its cause. Nothing .; could have been more easily accomplished if the good taste htid boon displayed of - adhering to that nentral ground for ad» miration afforded by his well recognised '; social qualities.. This, however, a small section of too fervid eulogists would not permit, and hence the unpleasant necessity for taking exception to these adulatory utterances. We wish SirJobn every success in his new sphere of operations, but in the general interest we can neither regret his departure, nor complactohUyn regard the chances of his return in, any ( . other capacity than that of a prifat©.' > citizen. .;