Page:A colonial autocracy, New South Wales under Governor Macquarie, 1810-1821.djvu/285

 inserted a notice in the Gazette on the 10th of December releasing the two magistrates from further duty in the Supreme Court.

Bent at once wrote to Macquarie that on reference to the letters-patent for the establishment of the court he found that the Governor had "no power of discharging from that duty, &hellip; the only mode by which they can be relieved &hellip; being the appointment of new members in their stead. A discharge of the members without the appointment of others would be a virtual dissolution of the court; and were any Governor entrusted with such authority it would be in his pleasure to postpone or prevent the trial of any actions which might be disagreeable to him and materially to injure persons obnoxious to him, by the expenses consequent thereupon. &hellip; Should your Excellency persist in the right of discharge, and refuse to nominate other members, I shall leave to your Excellency the responsibility attending such an extraordinary attempt at an avoidance of His Majesty's Charter; satisfied with the full confirmation of my opinion, that while such extravagant notions of authority and such measures of arbitrary tendency characterise the administration of this Colony, it would be impossible to give effect to the present establishment of the Courts of Justice, except by an utter dereliction of every sound principle of English Law, an adoption of maxims suited only to a military despotism, and a servile submission to the views and wishes of your Excellency."

Bent's successor had not yet arrived, but Judge-Advocate Wylde was already in Sydney. Macquarie, at the end of all patience, appealed to Wylde and asked him to draw up an order suspending Bent and enforcing his recall. A copy of the Order was at once sent to Bent, who returned the packet unopened. It was then published in the Sydney Gazette of the 14th December, 1816.

The Order quoted the despatch from Lord Bathurst in which Bent's recall had been announced, and went on to describe his recent actions in issuing "certain process, directing the