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IIOCSE OF LORDS . Monday , Acgcsi L The Lonl Chancellor , the Earl of Shafteshurj , and Ltird AVJiarud ;( fe , tlic lords Commissioners , having taken tlicir scats in front of tlie throne at a few lninuit 5 to four o ' clock , and the numbers of the House of Commons , wixJi the speaker at their ! ie : id , having appeared at the bar , ou lieii . g suniixonui by thu Yeoman Usher of the lackltod , ilr . 1 ' uhuan , the commissiou forgiving the oyal assent / ' to divers hill ; ,, the titles of which art- parti cularly lucnauacd" —atiojitjnj-tlie jihraseolojrv u = eU ill the commiSiJOU—ivas tlicu read , a ;» l the i . ilis in question , forty-nine in numhi-r , received tin- Itoval assent , with the accustomed formalities : — ,
Customs' Laws Kepeal Kill , Customs' Management BUI , Customs' Kejulatiun Bill , Smuggling Pieviution liill , Shipjiins and >' : ivij ; ation Jtill , Uritish Vessels' Registration Bill , Customs' Duties Kill , Warehousing of Goads Bill , Customs . Bounties and . Allowances Bill , Trade oi Btiri-& Possessions Abroad Uffl , " Isle of Man Tra « ie Bill , Stamp Duties , ic . Hill , Compensations Courts of Law Bill , Bills of Exchange , &c , Bill , Administration of Justice { Court of Chancery Acts Amendment ) Bill , Militia I ' .-iy EilJ , Heal Probity Biil , Testamentary l ) is ] . ositions Jiili , Bonded Corn BUI , Lunatics Bill , Masters and Workmen Bill , Co : il Trade ( Port of Lonnoi . ) Bill , Stock in Trade BUI , Jo : nt Stock Companies Bill , Railways Selling anil Leasing Bill , Darl . y . Court , Westminster , Hill . Land Itcvenue Act Amendment Bill , Waste Lauds ( Australia )
Bill , Poor Law Act Amendment ( Scotland ) Bill , Crinunal Jurisiliction of Barristers ( Ireland ) Kill , Gniud Jury Presentments ( Dublin ) Bill , Leeds and Bradford Uailway Extension Bill , Glasgow Junction Railway liill , Binningham and Gloucester Extension Railway Bill ; Oxford , "Worcester , and WV . verhamnton Extension Bill , London and South Western Railway Bill , South Eastern ( Greenwich Branch ) H-iilnayBill , Londonderryaiid Coleraine Railway Bill , Oxford and Rugby Railway Bill , Erewash Valley Railway J KM , South Wales Uailway Bill , Monmout h and Hereford Railway Bill , Glasgow , Ban-head , andXcilston Railway Bill , Dublin Fipcwater Railway Bill , Duddeston and Xichelles Improvement Bill , Yoker-road Bill , "White's Estate Bill , Ellison's Estate Bill , and Rochdale Vicara-re Bill . '
The Speaker , with the members of the House of Commons , then retired , and the Lords Commissioners likewise left the house to unrobe . " ' ' The house was then adjourned daring pleasure . Tlieir lordships met again at fire o ' clock . The Taxing Masters ( Ireland ) Bill was read a third time and passed on a division .
TBS PIEATES VSBEB . SENTENCE . Earl Fobtescde desired to put a question of some importance to tile < noble lord the Secretary for the Colonies , respecting certain foreign subjects who had been recently convicted ofpiracy and murder . He had understood tliat some delicate questions of international law were involved in this case , and that ' grave doubts existed in the minds of a large portion of the legal profession , and of the public , upon the subject , and the question he wished to put was , -whether her Majesty ' s Government was fully satisfied of tha legality of the sentence with reference to the question of international law involved ! " And if not , whether it were not better that the prerogative of tho Crown should heexcrted '
Lord Staxlet said , however heinous might he the offence of which these foreigners had been guilty , he concurred with the noble earl-in thinking it desirable that there should not be the slightest doubt of the legality of the sentence . He had had a communication with his right hon . friend to whose department ' the matter belonged , who had informed him that doubts had been raised as to the legality of the conviction . The question had , therefore , with the concurrence of Mr . BaronPkitt , been recommended to the consideration of the fifteen ndges , and meanwhile the execution of the sentence was suspended . ¦ . ' Lord Stimei moved the second reading of the Valuation ( Ireland ) Bill , bat ultimately abandoned it , in consequence of the opposition offered to the measure by Lord Monteagle and the Earl of Wieklow . Several hills were forwarded a stage , and the . house adjourned . " * . TCESDAT , ACGEST 5 . - Their Lordship ? met at five o ' clock . .
The Marquis of Ct » SEtCABi > E moved that certain petitions which he had presented against the London and York Railway Bill be referred to a select committee , and hoped that no further progress would be made with the bill until the allegations contained in those petitions were investigated . - - ..-. After a short conversation the motion was agreed to .
SMALL DEBTS BILL . The Lord Chancelloe presented a petition from the Society for the Protection of Trade , consisting of l , S 0 l ) merchants , bankers , and traders , chiefly the latter , representing that the Small Debts Bill would leave them without any effectual remedy for their j ; . st debts under £ 20 ; also a petition lu favour of the bill in its present shape , from deputies sow iu London from all the great trading towns aud cities of this country . Tlie noble aud learned lord said , he had now to call the attention of the house to the present state of this measure . In a foiincr session abiU was passed iuto a " law for the purpose ot preventing arrest , even in execution , fcr debts under £ 20 . He had always considered that a most salutary law , and was quite sure tliat neither house desired to have it revoked ; butmauy inconveniences had been fouwdincon .
sequence of the impeifectiua of tliat bill , aud a noble and learned lord iutroducid a bill this session to remedy those defects . It was referred to a select committee , and underwent great consideration ; after which it was adopted hythe house , and sent down to the Commons . From the House of Cuinnions it lad now cyjne bad ; , with amendments , to which he had to call attcDtion . They were of a twofold " character . The me class referred to the bill as it went down , and to these Iip thought their lordships would accede , with some ; verbal alterations in them , aud subject-to one exception , which he would at once explain . A power was given to the Commissioners of Bankrupts to call before them persons indebted in less than £ JQ , to exnmine them and sift tbuir conduct , and , if ultimately dissatisfied with thtin explanation , to commit them to prison ; and the same power
was given to tlie different small debts courts , presided over by a barrister , an attorney of ten years' standing , or a special pleader ; but au amendment had been introduced , the effect of which was , that the Commissioners of Bankrupts , whom he considered the most competent persons to decide questions of this description , would have no such power except where a judgment had been obtained in one of the superior courts . There was scarcely such a thing known now as an action in a superior court for a deht under £ 20 ; and therefore he should propose , to tlie house to disagree to this amendment , the history of which was a little curious . The bill was intrusted in the other house to tlie present Solicitor-General , and no sucli amendment was proposed until lie had been cailvd out of town by his professional duties ; and then , he ( the Lord Chancellor ) did not know from what quarter , it was
proposed and adopted . Tho other class of amendments were , in f : ; ct , additions to the bill , which originally Consisted of eight clauses , but now cams * up with above -tw ^ my . others . . - These , however , were all consequential upon one : clause , tlie tlth , which propped that her ilajesty in council should have the power of extending the jurisdiction in point of ¦ Ideality of any of the small debts courts ia this kingdom , and also hi point of amount , to tlie sum of i'iO ; with the power of contracting in point of locality the jurisdiction of any oae of those courts , where it interfered with that of another . - The clause was'introduced to provide aivnietljr for debts under £ 20 , because tile costs , together with tinprecariousnejs of she ultimate remedy u-. ider ilw existing law , deterred all ptrionsot " ordinary pruOe : ieelVoin bringing actions in the superior courts for less than £ i' 0 , ' and there were very few « t tlie small debts courts whose
authority extended to that sum . A new class of tribunals was , therefore , proposed to he created : and he thought this amendment nor at all iuconsisu-ai with tlie bill , while he was also of ojoniou that the clause was a wise clause , and property framed , and if it had lu e : i intioiiuceil in the shape of a ue ; v bill it would have deserved thwr lordships ' , wannest support . The same remark applied to the eighteen or nineteen other clauses , consequential upon it , and providing for a new system oi tribunals for trying causes where tliu debt v .- ; is under £ 20—tribunals rcudared necessary b y the late alteration in the law . The question was , whether tlieir lonhirips would fed themselves fettered !> y form from adopting these judicious aud useful araenduiedisj They established-a new system , and a uew sc-t of tribunals , awl instead of coming * in 1 _ :- shape of a bill , to pass through its various Mages , tlie
house was called upon hi one'discussion upon'thiiii-as amendments to n&c \» z or reject them . T 3 iis w . s inconsistent with oidinary Parliamentary usa ; . v : tlnir lor . 5-ships must decide whether they would all-ow : t in ' this case : he might just mention that iu the session before last their lordships sent to the other house a Local Courts Bill , containing a clause exactly . i * orrrsp . ondicg with this . Iu one point au amendment would be desirable ; incase of a ;> execution against : he goods fur a small debt there was an exception of the debtor ' s bedding , wearing apparel , aud ather like necessaries , a : id all the tools of his trade , to the extent of £ 10 . Consider-as ' , the description in life of such parties , £ 10 would often cover all tlicir goods , and seemed too large a sum . He now moved , by way of form , tliat this house do agree to tlie amendments made by the other house , with the amendments apou them to which he had referred .
• Aitersome discussion the amendments , with some additional ones , were agreed to . Several bills were forwarded a stage , aud 'he house adjourned .
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HOUSE OF COMMONS , Mo . vdat , Arc . 4 . The house met a : a quarter ' before four o ' clock , soon after which it was summoned to the House of Peers to Lear the commission read for giving ths Hoyal assent to several bills . ' . " ., * .-Tin : Speaker , accompanied by several incmhtrs , proceeded forthwith , aiid vn liis retum iiifunrivd tjje house of tiie names of the hills to which the rojd assent had been so given ( for which sec Lords' r < -pw ;) . . .. L 0 SB 0 X-. 1 SD YOKE KAILVAT WLL . , " ' ¦ Mr . 11 a wes said lie liad a petition to present to which -he was auiious to call the serious alit'irj . mof die house . It warned b y the chairman of ths CamWWgc aiiiVLiiicoh : ilaiiwar Coi > ipa ., Vj who ststt-d ' that v . i ::: hi a ven few < i :-. ; . s his : ittentiM : i had been caikd to several ciiciinis : ai : r . i c < j ! ::: e « til whii : !;« fuiiscrijitiosss to ; ho lundi * ar . a _ i . jrk jlaj- WKV : t :: a ! fmm lite i :-iW : i ; ::: :, ::, he hail " ttc-. i ' a -j- hat »; : o utttU ;•) .-. ; . al : ; i £ i > j » r .. ; , ni-.:: of {]; ,-aiii-g-. d «!] l > cci ^> -a&us to Uiv rJJaw r , eA- aeiuiou ; , alere
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being no such persons in existence as those . who had been represented . as holding shares ; and . that another and a larger proportion of shareholders were persons who were not in circumstances to pay for them . The petition then went on to give , the names of many parties thus circumstauced , but he ( Mr . Hawes ) would not go into them then , as an-opportunity would occur for again addressing tlie house on the motion for the third reading of the bill . The peiitiouer further stated that he was pursuing an inquiry into the subject , aud lie hoped to be able to lay before the house additional , facts respecting it . Under these circumstances , he ( Mr . Hawes ) hoped that the house nould accede to the motion with which he should conclude , —that the petition be printed with the votes of acxtday . .. -.-. ¦ ,- . : Lord G . Somerset . —What course does the hon : member propose to take after that ? ... . Mr . Hawes . —To move tliat the matter be referred to a Select committee . - .
ilr . B . Demson said , that the hon . member for Lambeth had shown him the petition , aud the list of names of pcisous whose subscriptions had been impugned . He did uot go through the list , but on casting his eye over it he saw the name if a respectable solicitor , which was certainly not forged . Mr . HiW £ s said that no forgery was charged against him . .: '¦ - - ¦ Mr . B . Desisox . —Well , not forgery , but the charge was that many persons had appeared . to have signed the contract of whoso existence there was no evidence , and others had signed for sums for which they had no means ofp : iying ; but the name which had caught his eye in hast ily runius ' over the list was that of a gentleman . wliom he knew to be abli to pay more than 10 times the siuu for
which ha had subscribed . He ( Mr . 1 ) . Denison ) opposed the motion of the hon . member , because tlie " present was not the time for such an iuimiry , and becauae the bill had still to go through a strict investigation in another ; place . On the same ground ho should oppose the motipn for referring the matter to a select committee , for which the hon . member intended ttf move . The present petition was not only ' a part ' of . a systematic plan to defeat , if possible , mid if not , at least to delay , the bill over , to the next session . He had seen a circular signed by a Mr . Croucher , a Parliamentary agent , which was addressed to tlie postmasters of every towii in England whereit was supposed that any of tile shareholders in the'London and York Railway resided , in order to ascertain whether letters had been addressed to them with allotments of
shares , as parties who were not known there . As another part of the system to whicli he had referred , lie was i « formedtliatpersoushadwithin . thelastfovty-Eighihours been going round as from tlie House of Lords to inquire into tlie circumstances of parties who had subscribed to the railway . This was very annoying to the committee , as uo doubt its object was to defeat the bill , if possible . Mr . Hawes said that he knew nothing- of the parties promoting or opposing the bill , nor had he any interest in it one way or the other . He had presented the petition because it had been committed to his care by parties who were highly respectable , and because he thought tliat the facts stated were such as the house ought to inquire into . The amount of subscriptions impugned was £ 658 , 000 . Of this amount upwards of £ 200 , 000 were altogether fictitious , and upwards of £ 400 , 000 were the subscriptions ol persons who had not the means of paying for them . He ( Mr .- llawes ) gave no opinion one way or another on the
tacts , but he repeated his belief that they are such as would justify tlie house in inquiring into them . lie would nut read ihe list of uamesin the petition ; he would mention oul y a few . One subscription for £ 25 , 000 'worth of shares appeared to be that of Mr . John Theobald , of Finsbury ; but no such person was known in that 1 dcality , even to thepostraan . Another , a subscriberto the amount of £ 12 , 000 , was Mr . Taylor , but nothing was known of him in his alleged locality ; another subscriber ,: to the amount of £ 5 , 000 , was equally unknown another , a resident in the Charterhouse " , was down as a subscriber for £ 3 , 000 worth of shares . There were besides allotments of shares to clerks in tho Treasury , the Excise , and and other public departments , and many to persons in stations iu life which would not enable them to pay for them . lie repeated tliat he knew nothing of the facts , but , coming from respectable parties who declared that they were able to prove them ; he thought the house ought to grant the inquiry . ' ¦ - :
Mr . " Beiinal said , that aU that thehouse could do could not put an end to the gambling which day by day was carried on by speculators in these railways . "With respect to the case before the house , he thought that more than the eleventh hour had already passed for such an application . If any injustice could be proved hs would support the petition , but he knew , and the house knew , tliat the bill had to go through an investigation in another place ] « yhcre the parties would be examined . ¦ ' Mr . Roebuck —As to the petition before the house , he thought the frauds it referred to were on the House of Commons , and not on the public . The other house had acted on this feeling in tlie case of the Dublin and Galway Bill , which , for frauds somewhat similar to those alleged here , dealt summarily with the case , and threw out the bill . That was the case of an Irish bill , aud he thought that what was sauce for tlie goose should he sauce for the gander—what was law for Irelaudjought-. to ) be law for England . . ¦¦ ¦¦¦ ¦ , .. :
The gallery was then cleared for a division , but ; we understaud that none took place . ¦ ; On our return to . the gallery we found that the opposition to the printing of the petition had been withdrawn . The petition ivas than . ordered to be printed with the VOtCS . , ; Mr . B . BEStsoK then moved the third reading : of the Londou and York Railway Bill . | ; After afew words from Mr . Hawes , .. ) -.,:. . Mr . lloEimcK moved , f « tliat the - bill should be iread a third time that day three months . " - He . said his Ireason for taking tliat course was this : —Tlie House of Commons and the House of Lords had determined tliateertaiu things should be done as a protection to the public , and amongst other requisitions was one that a hon& fide
subsciiptionlist should be prepared . In this instance it was directly asserted by the petitioner that the proceedings up . to that point had been conducted on a fraudulent pretence . His hon . friend would ask for tho suspension of the standing orders ; but was tlie house prepared to suspend them for such a purpose ? Railway proceedivgs had been carried on in such a way as to-astound the community . They could not go iuto any society in which they did not find persons who were mixed up with railway- transactions ; they did not meet even a woman who was aiot interested -in . these matters .: ( Laughter . ) -. The whole tiling was now a monstrous phenomenon . ( Hear , hear . ) Ko harm could arise to the public from waiting ; iu this case until next session ; and there was uo necessity therefore for suspending the standing orders . ; : .. Mr . Hawes seconded the amendment-.
After a short uiscussion , ia which Mr . W . Patten , Mr . Aglionby , Mr . Ward , Mr . > B . Dcuison ,: and Mr . Collett took part , . : . j . Mr . Koebuck withdrew his amendment , aud the bill was read a third time and passed . Mr . . \ Uckin . \ o \ presented several petitions against the Anatomy Bill , aud one against . the practice of iufcrnicut in towns . ' : j The hon . member then gave notice that oarly next session he should call the attention of the house to ! the resolution of the Stli of April last— " That the prcyjtice of interment within tlie precincts of the metropolis , and of large cities is injurious to the health of the popiilatiou , aud demands the serious attention of Parliament . " On the motion for the receiving the report on "the Appropriation Bill , ¦¦ ;¦ .-.: ¦
Mr . Hcme called the attention of the house to the practice of exacting fees or receiving gratuirjei ; from flic public as the eondiuin of their admittance to cathedrals and other public buildings . He thought that such practice was highly improper , and ought to be discontinued . Sir It . Feel had always expressed an opinion that there was great advantage in giving every access to our ancient cathedrals that was consistent with their safety . That position was , however , liable to one restrictionnamely , that security should be taken for the safety of the monuments and other works of art contained within them . He then gave the . House an account of a recent order of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster , for giving the public free admission-into the north and south transepts aud iino the nave of Westminster-abbey . ' A small charge was still to be made , as iu continental churches , for permission to visit the different chapels . - Mr . W ; Cowi-ek considered the statement of Sir R . Peel verv satisfactory . .
A conversation on this subject then took place , in which Mr . Williams and Mr . P . Borthwick joined . The report was then brought up , and the bill was ; ordered to In- read a second time to-morrow . : The report on the Silk Weavers Bill was alsobrought up and -agreed to . ¦ . - . .
AKO 2 HES , PAKLIASttSNTABT MOBAXJ-xT . ( Not from the Cat and Fiddle ) . ' Mr . Hawes then proceeded to bring under tho consideration of the house the conduct' of Mr . Wray , the receiver of the metropolitan police district , in his transactions with Mr . lionham in the year ISSfi . He showed , that at that period Jlr . Wray was the retained aiid paid agent of tlie South-Easteni Railway Company to promote the success of a bill iniftuuteu into Parliament on tticir behalf . He iifen alluded to the letter which Sir J .- Graham had
written to Mr . Wray , expressive of his strong disaj probation of Mr . Wray ' s conduct ' at that period , and quoted several precedents and several strong declarations of the House of Commons iu thebest" times of our history for tlie purpose of showing that some' severer punishment should have been inflicted on Mr . Wray than a nierelct-• e ' r ' of reprehension . It-appeared from tlie ' evidence taken before the committee that Mr . Wray , on behalf of the South-Eastern Railway Company , jwW tlieiitm of £ 300 dtrned front lie sale of ' ' railway sham to ' Mr . liphJuim Foa HIS StSVICES AS A SIEHBEE OF 1 UAT HOUSEi AND AS A
HEajJES OF . A SELECT COMMITTEE TO -H-niCST THE KILL OF that cojmusv was EEFiBKED . It appeared also that Mr . Bonliam was under pecuniary ; obligations to Jlr . Wray . Mr . Wray was , therefore the last person who (• u-M to have . reproached Mr . ' Eoiiliiuii on the subject ; . aadof all this parties who came under his consideration ¦ -is chairman of the committee iippuinted to examine into this tmufactiois , there was Hot one -whose conduct appeared to him ' to be so indefensible as that of Mr . Wray . ilciiercfoic railed upuii the house to ' declare that the , i'inidi : c : of Mr . Wr ; iv desrrvi-d not only its serious auimad-VfreiuB . lmt : s : ; o ( li .-. iiinHlied him from lioiOiiig aiiull ' icc of ini » t :: iij resjionsiUlisy under tlie Crown . Sir J . ' . MiS OKiham « : is net ini-lined to ( ii ?; ra ; . .- the prc-< rviVi : s ? : ii : iui < ot i >\ the Hwuc « " Cvaai ;!! :, wLieh Jlr . Uawcs had quoted as a ]> i licublc
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¦ ^ ——^ —— . ^ i — . ^^ — to the , case of Mr . Wray .. Neither ; was he ; inclined to palliate the conduct of Wray , which lie considered highly culpable ; for to the best of . hia judgment he ( Sir J . Graham ) had endeavoured to do impartial justice in this ease , and to giro eff . ct to the recommendation of that committee over which . Mr . Ha > yes had . so ably presided ; Mr . Wray was utterly , unknown to him ; and he had received no . application either from the friends of Mr . Wray or from any of his colleagues in . ofiiee before he aililressud to . Mr . Wray that letter , which Mr . llawes had so severely criticised . . Fur that letter he alone » as responsible .. He msght have acted wrongly in writing it ; but , if he had t 0 act . again , he should act again exactly iu the same manner . . After defending his uecuslon at considerable length , he alluded to the . sharc wliidt Mr . Bonliam , liatl had iu this transaction . Mr . Bonliam had committed a . grave error , which he did not even attempt to defend ; but liu h ; id done . nothing to compromise his honour , and he ( Sir J . Gruhum ) , was stiil as proud as he ever had been to call Mr . Bonliam his friend . ;
. MivSiiejl contrasted the laiiguageof tho committee which had investigated Mr . Wray ' s conduct with the language of Sir J . Graham ' s letter to that gentleman , anil complained that Sir J . Graham Imd ' omittod from his letter : iU mention of the most material charge against himnamely , that he had paid money to a member of Parliament for services rend red by him as a member of a particular committee . He contended that Sir 3 . Gratiain had been guilty of a dereliction of his duty , if there were any truth in the old maxim , "Judex duuuiatur , cum nocens absolvitur . " Mr . W . Patten regretted that Mr . Hawes had again brought forivard this very painful subject , lie was of opinion that suflicieuthad bocrt . done already lo satisfy the justice of the case . Except as a matter of ^ indiscretion , the conduct of Mr . Bonluunaud Captain Boldero was perfectly unimpeachable , so fur as regarded their personal honour . Considering the pain that this subject had already occasioned all parties , he should take . the liberty of moving the previous question . . .: , '
Lord John Rcssell declared , that tlie question now niis , whether the House would express an opinion upon this transaction or would pass it by without the slightest notice . He considered that Mr . Hawes was justified iii bringing it forward / for it was a very grave offence , aud could not be left unpunished without inflicting a grievous wound on the character of the house . ' The house was , therefore , bound to support the motion , because in supporting it , it would uphold and vindicate its own reputation . The house could not pass this mutter by with the previous question , unless it intended to leave ail impression upon the public mind-that it considered it to be a venial offence to give a bribe to a member of Parliament to influence liis vote as a member of a committee . He insisted that , if the Secretary of State hud uot shown a correct judgment in the course which ho had pursued
towards Mr . Wray , it was the duty ' of the House of Commons to show a better . Sir J ^ Graham' had taken-, credit to himself for the lenity with which he hud acted iu this particular case . With all deference to Sir J . Graham , lie must say , that that right hoii . baronet was not ahvuvs distinguished by the lenient views which he took of the conduct of ' individuals ; as , for instance , of 11 . Mazzini ' s of suborning perjury and promoting assassination , without ever inquiring , during the twelve months in which he had reiterated his accusations ; whether those accusations were true ov false . ' He could never forget the conduct of Sir J . Graham towards M . Muzziiii ; and not forgetting it , he could not allow Sir J . Graham to take
credit to himself for a wish to . spare the feelings of another . He then entered into an examination of the comparative criminality of Mr . Bonlmin , Mi \ Wray , and Captain Boldero . To Captain Bolduro no criminality , in his opinion , attached ; - but Mr . Bonham and Sir . Wray appeared to him to have both been guilty of the ofl ' cnce of bribery . ' ' Could it then be . just in the Government , after receiving the resignation of Mr . Bonliam and Captain Boldero , to let Mr . Wray , the briber , escape with a letter , merely slating that he must not act as a barrister . whilst he filled the-situation of ; receiver of ' the metropolitan police ? He could not concur in any such notion ; and lie should therefore give his . most strenuous" support Ito Mr . Hawcs ' smotion . ' ¦ ' ¦ ' ' . ¦¦
Sir R . Pbei took a review of the whole'of theseitransactions , and in the course ' of it observed , that though lie had been compelled to perform ninny painful acts : in the cour . « e of his life , he had never performed any act so painful to himself as ' that of . recommending lier Miijestjto accept the resignation of Mr . Uonliam . ' He Kan long been attached to Mr . Bdiihani by the tics of private friendship , and now that he was suffering under the pressure ot adverse fortune , he had no hesitation in declaring that , although Mr . lionham liad been guilty of an act of great indiscretion , his private honour was unimpeached , anil his ( Sir R . Pjeel ' s ) friendship for him remained the same as ever . He'lia'd also ' experienced equal pain in accepting tlie resignation of Captain Boldero , although ' be ta ' s not connected with that gentleman by the same ties ' of 'friend ' . ship which bound him to Mr . Bonham .- Captain Boldero
had performed with great industry and integrity all the duties of his office ; aud possessed the entire confidence of the Government . Both gentlemen had acted from inad ' . vertenco , arid not from corruption ; ' aiid he referred to their case for the mere'purpose ' of showing tliat ho consideration of personal- feeling would deter her Majesty's Government from the performance of tlicir public duty in this very painful transaction . ' He then proceeded with great warmth and at some length to argue ' tliat the conduct of Sir James Graham in" writing this letter " did not deserve that censure . which woukl . be . cast upon hi m , if the motion of Mr . ; IIawesi were agreed to . liu contrasted the terms of Mr . IIawes ' s resolutions with tliosu of the Teport of the committee , and showed . that the former ' were much more stringent and severe than the latter . He called upou the house to look at this . transaction as a whole . They would find that Mr . Higuett had been
dismissed—they would find that two oflicers of . the ; Goveiiiment had been compelled to . resign thpit 1 situations .,, If , then , the object of llr . Hawes was to . deter others from the repetition-of . the same offence by . tho infliction . of punishment , had riot enough been done without including Mr . Wray in the same fate ? The Government could not be charged with indifference to this offence ; for it had accepted the , resignation , of office by two of its most valuable and trustworthy servants , on tlie express ground that they had been guilty of error , but uot of corruption . If the house determined ta proceed further , audicompel the Government to . dismiss Mr . Wray , it would be pushing punishment beyond its legitimate object , aud would be involving the Government itself in . the penalty , because its object had been to carry out to the full the . judgment of the tribunals of this house , and because it had erred , if it had erred at all , on the side of lenity in not carrying it out beyond its just limits . ' . : '
Mr . Hume considered Captain Boldero as an ill-used man . Corruption had . not been traced to him , ami yet his resignation had been received by ; the Government , which ought to have rejected it , and which in receiving it had dealt with him most harshly . Hi . ( Mr ! Hume ) had been the friend of Mr . Wray for the hist twenty years , and the publication of Mr . Wray ' s ' share in this transaction had given him ( Mr . Hume ) , the greatest possible pain . He concurred with tho speakers ' who preceded him , that the animadversion of Sir J . Graham ! on Mr , Wray ' s conduct was quite sufficient to meet the justice of the case . . He looked upon the conduct of the South-Eastern Railway Company as more censurable than that of any other party in this transaction , and tho point in which he considered Mr . Wray to be really culpable , was that he had lent himself as their agent to a . very reprehensible offer to a . member ef Parliament . He could not support the motion of Mr . Hawcs . . I ¦ . -.
Lord Eiimsgton expressed his surprisu that Mr . Hume should come forivard to exculpate so strongly the agent of a guilty transaction . ' ¦ ¦ Mr . Ward declared his intention of opposing this motion : The question involved in it was . simply this" Has the punishment already mulcted on Mr . AVray been sufficient , or has it not V lfe was of opinion that it had been sufficient , and that the house would act harshlj if it persisted in running down such small game as Mr . Wray . He then entered into an exculpatory statement of that gentleman ' s conduct—made an appeal ad mUettc&rdiam on his behalf aud on that of his family—and asked the house whether it was determined to destroy a man for an offence on which there liad been passed a censure , which he felt severely at present , and . would , feel severely to the end of liis existence . . He should prefer meeting lhcse ievolutions which inflicted a punishment disproportionate to the offence , with a direct negative , rather than wiih the amendmtnt of the previous question proposed by Mr "W . Patten . , ¦
Colonel Peel expressed his sympathy for Mv , Bonham aud Captain Boldero ; explained tlie circumstances whicli led to tlieir tendering , and to the Government ' s accepting , their resignation ; and entered into a statement of facts to show that as men of honour they were exonerated frum all blame . Knowing what they did now . tliey admitted that tliey were guilty of indiscretion hi holding shares in any company ; , but indiscretion was the whole of their offence , for they had no power whatevtr to influence the decisions of the Board of Ordnance oil any projected railway which might be submitted to its ' consideration ! Sir Jons Easthope expressed his intention of supporting the motion of Mr . lluwes ; but averted tliati . no doing ho had no wish either to destroy or to press hard upon Mr . A \ ray and his family . ,
Sir R . Isclis observed that , as a ' member of tho committee , he had Mt that tlic ' sentlnco of the report fell with too great severity on these three gentlemen ; ' lie . therefore could not concur in the rssolutions of Mr II « we < which went far beyond Uie report , and fell with crusiiinseverity on the head of Mr . Wray . Appealing to the justice and not to the mercy of the house , Mr . Wray had a right to expect that the hou 3 e would not agree to these resolution ; . Mr . Mitchell contented , tliat it would not be justice to allow Mr . Wray to remain in ofiiee after Captain Boldero and Mr . Bonham had been compelled to resign it . lie was the briber , aiid they were- only the seduced .
Sir J . Gbauasi hopsd that Mr . W . Patton would adhere to the amendment which he had originall y proposed ; for be should certa . nl y not like to put a diroct nffiMtivu on the resolutions , proposed b y Mr . Hawes . Such a negative would bo objectionable on many grounds , and especially on tlns-that a negative on tho last resolution would be tantamount to a declaration that tho conduct of Mr . Wray was loss culpable than that of Mr . » uni . nl » ami Captain LoWero . To such a declaration he for oni couhl never give his assent . Mr . B . Escott expressed his satisfaction that Ilife ' inoion had been brought ionv ,.- ( l , M it l , a < I e iveu Sir . K . eel an oppo . tumty of stamling u , n ,. anrully lor hisfrie . ul . s Mr . Lou ham n « . l , Ca ,, ain l ! , lWl . w , Tlic . « , ! question tetotaw , ™ , ,,, :, arr , nv occ _ it molvtd itrwl « , i . 1 ' .. . vin : 0 ihuwwd jsr . Wl , iy „„¦ „ ln ( . ,,,, inuntj swwthiwuoembaararUaweul for ti idiidiai-t
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,: ; ,: . ' ,,. ,, ,. . ., ; .,. . ... ,,... ,:.. . ..., : . of certain functions in a-. ccrtaiu way which fell upon him as a member of a committee V : There could be but one answer to that question , and that was , that , whetlier you called it . bribery or used ' the milder name of a . gratification , Mr . . W ray . liad . been guilty of . the offenee of oftering one or , the other to a member otTnrliament . The . guilty party iu this transaction was Mr .: Wray . . Ho was at presen t , free from punishment ; but Mn Bonliam and Captain Boldero had both- 'beeniseverely punished , for they had each been compelled , by a sense of . whafcwas duo to tho house and to themselves , to resign . their offices . Under such circumstances , he should certainly vote for the motion of Mr . Hawes . ' ti ; --- .: "¦ i ; ' "• • • i . , After a short but pregnant reply from Mr . Hawes , who commented with- great- severity ; ,-on ithor . ' . ' . sh ^ ffling " speeches of Sir J . Graham aud Sir H . Peel , the ; house divided , when there appeared , for the previous question , —Aves . 81- . Roes , 18 .- So the resolutions wcre . lost .. ¦ ¦ -,
¦ TheCiiASCEitoE of'theBxciiEQUiiii then moved that the order made on the 31 st ult . for certain returns rebv tive to the Property-tax Commissioners should bo rescinded . . His reason for making this motion was founded on tlie impossibility of ranking the returns in question . . Mr . Home opposed tlie motion , on tlie ground that the returns ' could be made with the greatest ease , ; if the Government would only give the . necessary , orders for their production . ' •• ' ¦ ¦ : . Sir . FiEiUEN also maintained that there could ; be no difficulty in producing ; the returns which he had moved
for . He then recapitulated the grievances to which lie liad been exposed under the oppression and tyranny of the Prdpertyr tax Commissioners ' . Another process had been issued against his goods' for payment of tho income-tax since the p o ' riou ho liad last addressed thu hous . oupon this subject . He should , however , allow tlie Government to' sell them , but ' with this public notice , that he would again bring ) iis case before the liouseat the earliest period in tlie ne ^ t session of Parlsainent . . ' - , ' .- ¦¦ : . ' The order of the 31 st ult ,. was rescinded . , . ' . ¦• . The other orders of the day were then disposed of , and the house adjourned . ' ; ' ' . : ;
- . Tuesday , August 5 . .- . ' The house met at four o'cloelv . , . ., .. : j LONDON AND TORK BAILWATBILL . . j Mr . B . Denison presented a petition from the directors of the'London and York Railway Company , compiaining of the allegations contained in the . petition presented yesterday from Mr . Henry Bruce , " the chairman of the Cambridge and Lincoln Railway Company , alleging the subscription contract to contain fictitious names ami descriptions , and . the ' names of persons ' uriabi ' e to pay the sums' subscribed by them . The direutprs stated , that when they were made aware of these charges they set tlieir agents to inquire into them / and it was found , as far as the inquiry had gone , that the allegations were ' absolutely falso and' scandalous , and they' prayed to be Allowed to take legal proceedings against Mr ; Henry Bruce , by whom they ' were made . "The hoii . ' member hoped the iiousii would now allow him to nioyu ' that the petition be printed with the votes . . '"' . '" ' . ' " ' . ' '
' Mr . Hawes was of opinion , that if inquiry were necessary before , it was doubly so since the presentation of the petition before the house . ' He would support any motion for sti ' eh inquiry , and if he found that he hud been imposed upon and miide the medium ' of conveyinjr misstiitcmcntH to the house , he would not rest until the . fullest investigation had been gone into . " " . ' . ' . ' .. . ' ?' . ' •' ' Mr . T . Doncombe said , ' the object ' of the present petition was to enable the parties from whom it emanated to institute ah " action for dcfa miition against the clients of the' hon . ' meinber for Lambeth . It appeared from the counter-statement that , there was iio ' truth in the allegations of the first petition ; and for the honour of all parties , and for the honour of that'hpuso . ' it was necessary that the desired investigation should not be delayed until tin ) next session . ' ' ' ' ¦ ' - •••;¦•
Mr . B . Denison said that the present attempt was , to say thes least , an attempt to impose on the house in the ' discharge of its duties . It wa 3 for . the house > to say whether , for its own justification , it would take iin the matter and deal with it as one of privilege ! He had given notice of a motion on Friday " night ) the" object of which wiis to allow tho ' parties to defeiid ' themselves in a court of laiv , imd he intended to act upon . that notice . '¦ The motion for printing the petition was then ' . agreed ' Mr . Hawes said , ho would now move that the petition presented yesterday by him , ant ) signed by Mr , Briice , the deputy-chairman' of , ' the Cambridge arid Lincoln company , be ' rcferrejd to a . select committed ; nad , under the circumstances , 'he'hbp ' od thehouse would no t adliere to its usual forms , ' . . .. . ¦ - - ; : After a short discussion , in which . Sir Robert Peel spolio in favour of inquiry , the committee was ordered ami appointed , ' ... ' , . ;
THE F 1 UE AT QUEBEC . ' . Colonel ']) . Dameh , the controller of her Miijesty ' s household , appeared at the bar ; and read the : following answer of her Majesty to tho address of the house of the 1 st instant respecting . the fire at Quebec : — " 1 liavo " received with much satisfaction your address , in which you assure mo that you will make good a sum of inoncy ' ior the relief of the sufferers by the late calamity at Quebec , and I have given directions that-a sum not exceeding JK 0 . 000 shall bo applied fur that purpose . " .-. :
. ' KAILWAT TttAVELLlNO . ' Lord ¦ Palmebstos said , I " wish to ask a question of'the right hon . baronet the Vice-President oi the Board of Trade , and I will ' state the reiiscn why I ask it . I have received a letter from a friend of mini / , a party who is no longer tv member of this house , and he says , he liad observed the statement I made in this house as lo the practice of employing rear engines on the Dover line , aiid that he had witnessed the same thirig ' pn the Birmingham line . He says— "The ; other ilny . ' gqiiig down in tit's fast train from the Weiidon station' to ° Birmingham ,, there was an engine buliiud ; tho train was going at tlic rate , J suppose , of forty oi fifty miles an hour . I remonstrated , ' but in vain ; and in the '' morning at Birniingham I conipliiined of it ; and the answer I received was , that they were in the
constant habit of doing so . " Now , really , if this is the gcucral jiracticc on railways , it does seem to me that it is a matter of io . .. siderab " . e importance , aud that it is very desirable and essential . to . put . a stoj ) toit ( liear , Kearj " ; and , therefoie , what I . wish to ask the right lion , baronet is , whetlier the Board of Trade has at present any power by ilaw to prevent those proceedings , and whttiicr , if they have not , the Government would think-it right to bring in now , before the session is over , some very short bill , giving them some power , in these . matters ? ( Hear , hear . ) A hill might . be passed in the House of Lords tomorrow , and the next day ; and it might come down to us on Friday , and go through . all the stages in one day . A bill of that sort woul J give , a security which her Majesty ' s subjects are crititlvd to . . ¦¦;•• : >
The Chancellor of tlie Exciiecueb . —You must have au engine behind to get it passed now . ( Alauglu ) ¦ : Lord . Palmerson . —The house had better do so , to get the ' engine placed before on the railways . ( A laugh . ) Sir 6 . Clekk said , that a question had been asked on a former evening with regard to the power of the Board of Trades in this respect , and it was then stated that the Board of Trade had no power . whatever to give directions in these matters ; : All they had it in their power to do was to remonstrate with the companies , pointing out to them what they thought dangerous . iu the practical working of the lints . ' If the practice . of running engines behind the tiains became more- prevalent , then it would beri ^ ht for
Parliament enrly in the next session to interfere ; but the noble lord , must see it was impossible to do what , he proposed during ths short remaining period of this . session . As he understood the noble lord , the bill he proposed was to-give additional powers" to theHoard of Trade , but he ( Sir G . Clerk ) apprehended that : after- the difference of opinion which had been expressed ii . that house , on . the subject , before entrusting the Board of Trade with any ndditioiiiil powers , the public would requirethat it should he more fully discussed than it could be at presiint . At the same time , he was perfectly willing to state ithat the ¦ Board of Trade entertained their opinion as to the danger ofbueh a practice as he had refwred to , ¦ ,
HONE CnuSIIJXGiAT ANDOVEB . : . • Mr . B . OsiionNE said , a ( statement was inadei in that lionsu a few nights ago by the hon . member for Finsbury ( Mr . Wakley ) relative to occurrences which were alleged to 'have taken place in a union workhouse iu llainp . shire , which had excited a groat sensation in tho country . Jie wished to asli tlie right lion . Home Secretary whether , in ' accordance with his- promise , he had instituted any inquiries on the subject , aud whether thu lion , member for "Finsbury ' 'would object to state-to ' what -union he referred ? ' ' •'¦ ¦ : ;
Sir J . GnAHASt said , he understood that the hon . member for Tinsbury referred to the Audorer Union .- He ( Sir J . Graham ) hail said' that-he would '; take care inquiries should , be instituted on the subject to which the lion , member called his attention ; and on the . following morning lie addressed a eonummicatuih to the : Poor Law Commissioners , ' directing th . it an inquiry / slioiild be instituted on . the spot . He had n ' ot . yet ' received the report of . tiie inquiry , but he hoped that , before the house rose he would be able to state its result . He , not only-directed that inquiries should lie instituted , but he also ¦ called upon the Poor Law Commissioners . to state ^ whether any information on the . subject referred to bv tliCilion member lor Finsbury had been communicated to them . Thu answer was , that they had received no such informal tion . -, . . . ,. " . . . , '" . ; ., i lir . WAKWS , said , the un | on ' to which he had alluded was that at Audover .
i ; k >; w wuit . On the motion of an h on . member , whose name was not asecrtaintd in the gallery , a new writ , was issued for Chi Chester , for the . election of n member in ' tliv room ofLord Arthur Lennox , who has accepted tlie ollice of Clerk of the Ordnance , vice Captain iloldcro , ivi < iijnud . I Jlr . GKKENvthun moved the-tiiirdroading ofitho Silk Weavers'Bill . ., . . ¦ , Mr . llt'ME objectwl io proceeding fbrttiw withi this bill liu was not ashamed to say that he- Una * - noihlmr of its contenta . It had co . nu down to tho hoa ,. from thu Lwflij ; il had passed ll . rougi , every g . nsfo ' to thu present mb ntohp , and he much doubted whether it had evor been uiintod . -- .-. . ' i
A conversation tlu ,, look placed hetaoou Mr . Orecno , * v 't " ., ' ' ¦ ; ! rburl 0 » . , Sir James OrM ,,.,,, Mr . V l ! o . tlnv , ek Colonel Ilolle . ton . Mr . Villior . Sir John KastlM .,, 0 and « , v ml o . lu-r ni ( , mbttr fro , which , t appchred that mhm , mmMr , ™ . Ins name was not mentioned ) had " thoJcha , ™ df tho bill «! . « . . t came from the Lords ; that he had L , ' b , ! to l « ivc t ,. wn . nnrt hn . l committed it to th « charge of Mr -... vene i tliatM-. reoncas notnuwaequaimedwa » ' »« n » V ^ t l ! 11 ' w 1 » "USCl-rlnini ; , l : lm . thei : on «! ol rado had .... ....,,,. ; , on to ; , , „ . „ , „„ , „ , uueed as a . bill > , a the » vSulaaWo ( tr « Utt | ought I . be in o .
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duced , in a committee of the whole house ; that it was a retrospective bill , - which , was to be considered as coming into operation on the 1 st of January , 1 S 15 ; and to sum up all tiie objections to it in one sentence , that not a single member knew anything about its different clauses . Uiider these circumstances Mr . Warburton moved that it be read a third time-this day two months . . ¦ : Mr . BnoruERTON considered the bill a very useful bill ; but still he could not approve of the very reckless and irresponsible manner in which , thehouse was . legislating
upoirit . ¦ . ¦ ¦ : . - Sir J . Giuham proposed that the further debate on the bill be postponed . till Friday next , in order that hi ! might haye an opportunity of conferring . ' with Lord Dalhousie UP 0 U it .. . .. ... .. . . / . ; : ' Mr . Warb . hkton then . agreed to withdraw his amendment , and the debate was adjourned to Friday next .-
-ItEVIEW OF THE SESSION . Lord John Kussell then came forward to give the house an opportunity of considering in what way Parliament had performed the duties which her Majesty had called upon it to' perform at the - ' commencement jot' the present session . If it were his purpose to imitate the practice adopted towards himself when he held the . seals of ollice , and if it were his object to found a charge of incompetency against Ministers , on tho ground that . a vast number of measures had been delayed to so late si period of the session that there was no time to consider . them properly , lie should have ' no difficulty in finding ampin grounds ; for one bill alone , the l'hysie and Surgery Bill , which had been" materially altered two' or three times after its original introduction , and which / after all , had
U-er i Ujnohiiiiiously abandoned , would have been a sutlicient foundation , fur ' such a charge , lUferring , \ o the Queen ' s speech , he was rejoiced to find that we were not now looking , as we were at the close of the last session , to the settlement of certain diflVrences with France which seemed to threaten a rupture with that country , llejoicing tliat there was every prospect of the permanence ot peace with France , he adverted to the ' questions now pending between this government and that of the United States . Without interfering with the conduct pi' the Executive Government , and without pretending to dictate to it the course which it out to pursue , he ' would merely state that the opinion which he had already given as to the justice of our claims upon the United States , remained unchanged by anything which he had since
heard or read upon the subject . Sir IU I ' eel had declared that he was prepared to maintain our rights , and without asking how he proposed to do so , he would ouly express a hope' that without any loss of honour , and . without any sa orifice of our interests , the negotiations now going on lietween the two countries would be brought to an amicable and successful termination . With regard to our domestic concerns he thought thatwc should not be disiippuintedwith what had been done in the course of the present session , although much had been unsettled , in : iny principles , liad been unassorted , and many practical measures remained to be accomplished . He alluded , in the first place , to the anxious subject of Ireland . Hi : rejoiced that the opinions which had been held by those opposite a few years ago upon this subjeethad been abandoned , aud that the
language held by Sir J . Graham on the subject ot conciliation had- been unequivocally retracted . So fur as they were prepared to take ' a new course , there was just reason for congratulating the house and the country . Many years 'ago , when Lord Grey ' s Government was divided oh ' the subject of the Church of Ireland , not only did they oppose the appropriation clause , which at that time would have effected an amicable compromise oh the Church question , but they had also opposed the proposition for granting to the people of Ireland municipal rights equal to those possessed by the people of England and Scotland . There were other questions also on whicli they raised national and religious prejudices for the sake of opposing the policy of the Whig Government . That course ; which " at the time was a great party move / had at
first been'doubtfully , but now at last had been explicitly , abandoned , -They now allowed that the people of Ireland were entitled to : have the same electoral and municipal rights as the people of England and Scotland ; He contended , however , that they had hardly done what they professed to do—with iespect to municipal nnd electoral rights they had' not introduced a single measure . There had also '¦ been no legislation on the subject of landlord and tenant , on which' they had instituted an elaborate inquiry . The bill which tiicy hnd-introduced on that subject into the : House ef'Lords was one of the ' most . " extraordinary proposals ever submitted to a Legislative Assembly . It had never arrived in the House of Commons , but had beeii abandoned almost without a struggle . The other Irish
measures were the Maynooth College Bill and the Irish College ' s Bill . Keftising to go over tho debates on that subject , he called attention to the fact that Ministers had 'declared that the first bill was to stand by itself , and ti . at there was no intention to endow the clergy of the Koman Catholic Church .-Now if they liad not some measure for that object iu their contemplation , they -were unwise in - allowing' such a clamour to be raised respecting the endowment of the lloman Catholic College of Mayhboth . In his speech on the (• ndowmeu of Maynooth , Sir 11 . Peel told TarHnment that J lie did not introduce that measure on ' account of its justice , but for the sake of - dividing ' the Itepeal Association . Miniiters , therefore / introduce their Irish Colleges Bill , not on the principle of endowment , but on the voluntary
principle , and thus offended one party . without conciliating the . other .- He . wished to impress upon the house tliitt those measures were not only late , but also' imp ' urfuct , and that all our dillicultie 3 both past and present in Ireland , arose , from our always doing justice' isiperfectly and too late . As to the Church of . Ireland , he was convinced that Government would be driven before , long either to endow thu lloman Catholic Church , and to place it on . the same level with the l ' rotestaiit , or ' else to destroy the ostablishmnnf of the latter , and to lcavuit to support itself , , as this lloman Catholic . Church now did , on . the . ' voluntary . ; principle . Either , one principle or the other must be tho foundation of our future ' policy . Government must , . therefore , be prepared to say whicli they would adopt , or the mind of Ireland would
still remain unsatisfied . . At present n ' o . party iu Ireland was content with the policy of the Government ; for whilst there were millions under 0 'Conuell . clamouring for Repeal , there were a number of Protestants equally hostile to the Government . He had formerly proposed that you should give the people of Ireland civil equality before you meddled with the religious question . The Government , however , had followed ii different course ; and , on a re ; view of the conduct . which it had recently pursued , he drew this conclusion—that it had done well in abandoning its former opinions and declarations , but that , in" not advocating some clear and large line of policy , its course
was detective . ; and it was worth its while to consider hi what manner it could remed y it . Having shown that there had been no legislation on the invitation of her Majesty to consider the , sanitary condition of the 51001- he next addressed himself to the consideration of tlie finances and trade of the country , lie was not one of those who thought that the income-tax was required b y the necessity of meeting the deficiency of the . revenue . But he thought that if an income-tax was to be proposed , it was wise to introduce it on a large , stale , and thereby free industry from the restrictions placed upon it . ' The Government had fuinlled his expectations upon that point , but had wofully disappointed those / who fancied that it would
give protection to native , industry . There were-three subj .-cts on which the Government of 1840 had proposed to legislate , and on which the present , had failed , to come up to the , moderate doctrines of free trade proposed b y Mr . lluskisson . Those three subjects were—timber , sugar , and corn . On timber and sugar the Government still " ktpt up , as lie thought most unwisely , largo differential duties . On corn , previously to their coming into ofiiee , it was . believed that tho Government was in favour of tho law of WS preventing the importation of foreign corn . L y the pro ' valence of that belief they had carried many seat * at the last election , but after the election their deed . ) were much better thnu their professions . A new law less ' rust , ietive than that of 183 S was introduced ; and proUction was
diimnuhed . by that law , and still more by the professions winch they made , not only 011 imssing it . but on several occasions subsequentl y . The farmers felt that there was less . security-for the maintenance .-of the Corn Laws now than there was in the preceding year , hi consequence of the declarations made b y Sir H . Peel and Sir James Grilhanitlmtm times of cheap corn the ' comforts , moralitv and contentment of the poor were much improved . Could any man of common . prudence , who had witnessed " the state of pHblie feeling during the last ten days , and the anxiety which prevailed ; respecting the harvest , refrain trom . wishing that we had greater ' facilities tor the importatiou of foreign cum ? To Uie uncertainty of the Seasons and to the uncertainty of the sum . h- there ¦ was now ' . added , a legislative . uncertainty , whether 111 ten wcok
s hence , thu duty would bu SioV ' br Is a quarter on foreign corn . This augmented almost incalculabl y speculation aud gambling in corn ; aiid , what was worse , exposed the country to thewant if so nee sary «„ . « rucle . Was it then wisuin tlu , GovernnS rest the . law on its present basis ? !„ addition to all thi « there w « o members of Parliament doclaring that tli . , w was uot 1 k * to , n 0 . permanent , ami that It " ™ " « * £ n nil probability m . two yuavs . M 4 ui : h wcvc iho . » V hen . bovwnment . ought not to leave the country any longer in uncertainty but should begin the next session early , » nd bogin it with the ruvision of the Corn ' l-iws Though . the Government had done much to appror . ci , to « io principle , of troo-trade , It had kept up restrictions on timber , sugar and corn , hostile to its prlnripl .,, , and hostiht to the interests of the eountry . At the pUnt moment the stock of corn in bond was unusually small and ha snould , therefore , movu for „ return oflt Jwi ' H 1 ^ "' OI ) S ^ » CUor » 1 <» T . « ml that . W » idoru , l mitionalmiafonuno
a - . IMhm , touched ^ S jeet of education in Kn la ,,, l ., It appeared from the Z report , tfcat there was a gr . at nwM of our poj uiSn a pm . ui . twhohud _ noroll x lou . or moral ins rJction IU . « d « lWa , » . cowMW « l that state of things „ Zrime ' •""• lu . lv . t . « . Hmi t 0 him tlmturo ° " » , | s "Jnm . leto . mlu . co that lamau . abl . ' . m . w » of i gnore ^ nd crnno For that purpose h « had uMablUhed in to - ^ v Council n Hoard of Kdnnuioi , Hu ner « . k . u w f , 7 e hem 1 intectivM than thos . e which \ V 1 .,- airee Id ,,. " „ "' th . « . M . n . htry for eStabli , hir , S . that board . Sir 1 Vj " * d NnTS HI I" 7 i T " " *«« W H mt , hut . st . lll . c hud objected to the plan of the " AYl-i-Uvernment . . Kp , v . Slr K .. Vcd md hi eoll . n ' ues I d got over tho ol-Mo ,,, whid , they ,.. fl ^ rn , ^ u . ^ ¦ iMiiust U . ¦ He was Bh , d tl , Sin . l that the grant f .. r cducaju »« wns not only , ncn ,, Sttl . hi , year , but was also to « . eased , „ , | ,,. ,,, ! k . „ . „ „ , „ ,, „ . > . ^ ^^ l 'T I" , "" " * ll " lllSa" « - « » «»« »» Wv Vreri , Ui "t . Iwv Lwu-d vuk that iwLle lord had ^ messed oi
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hiin . In leaving these topics , he asked Miiiistcr ^ some firm principles , on which tht-y were prcm -i ' l ! lV c and to show their sineeiCty b y a strict adl . tuV , ! , l ° ilct > principles , and not by voting , as they hj , a qJ ^ » se session , against a test one day and for a t «« t th '" "'' they did not adopt such a course , they e ^ ula 1 " l If pectthat the people would , place luiy ' confid eii " . " W ' decisions of : their representatives . a s u eon , i ' . " "'« this session , and as a preparation tor the r evt p ''"" ut ' was , that her Majesty ' s -Ministers would agree ' u I" "" ' * * some fixed pvineiples : it would be a eonveuii ! iK ! V ' l ! u " minority , and be far less of puzzle to the majority ' ' "'" house . Lord John then alluded to her ihtjestv ' - ' *' - " the continent ; and coniplamed that , as the form * -V *" " dents of appointing Lord Justices in the Sovurti ' ! l '< X '" sence'from England were to be abandoned , ther " * ' ^' he no depository of the Royal power in Eiighmj " i " ! '' t - « « « 1 # 4 *«'« k n A - ^«« >«« \ m . ¦• > 1 ^ fefc « B A ^ * . ^*> A IT * — HI 1 ? 4 <* nei tiuseruu iroui nei uoiuuiioua
. . . ^ . . . ne also i : iin-. ¦ t " her Majesty , who had twice visited . Scotland hi " proceeded to visit Ireland . Hb thought that her . V " might rely on receiving a cordial . welcome whenw- " * St }' visited that country . Yet it was impossible liottu l ^" an inlerence to the contrary . when the verv aiuli ' ., ' lats answer to the address of the Lord Mayor anil emu , J * !' - " of Dublin , put into her ' mouth by he :- Minister /'' "' brought to the recollection of her subjects . The " ' ,,. ^ lord concluded . 'his observations by . moving frtl . ; the bills which had been introduced and aba . uluijj ' ' the present session . li
Sir J . Graham observed , that Lord J . Husseli 1 made a party speech , which he had concluded with a v harmless motion . At the close of a session like the 1 ^ sent , it was not unnatural for Lord J . HusieH u ,,, *'" under review the principal events of it . lie had WftlT' to some measures which had been introduced , aiul tusu 'i which had been abandoned by the Government , and ^ abaudouinent of them as a proof of incompeteiiev Wl . j " part of the Administration , more especially of liiiiu * for' he had pointed out his want of success in his atw ' to carry into law the bills for the reform of the iir ., ^ profession . He ( Sir J . Graham ) appealed to Mr . \ y * l burton and Jlr . Ilawes ,- who hnd had someexpirifiic . g , ' the subject , ' whether great difficulties did not surroiJ any man who ventured tolegisluto up « n medical sioW ,
and could not conceive that he had failed 111 his dim ; , not carrying his Medical Dill through Parliament , ^ . cially as he had every ' chance of ' succeeding , had lie gj postponed it for more important measnros . He a » lttj with everything that Lord J . Russell had said with m , ^ . to our foreign policy , both with regard to Franci-am ' to the United States , for ho was desirous of couthm ;; , . with those countries those relations of amity which ty ' so much for the'mutual interests of both . Lord j ^ j Russell had adverted to the present administrate of Irish affairs , and had alluded to a hasty cxiiressj . jj which he had employed some years ago in the iICa . of del-ate , and- of which he had long jisjo ^ pressed 'his repentance . - He assured Lord j , ^ Uussell that he would not be precluded from rocomin , i
ing any measures which he deemed necessary for the «^ government of'Ireland , by the recollection of anyW speech which " he might- have made , or by any pri-ju ^ which he might have abandoned . He consider * d tlic y rule for the government of that country was to givc i ; equality of civil rights , and to provide for the equalai miiiistration of impartial justice . He defended tln ; j , ' ference the Government had given to the nndownu > n t ( j Maynooth and the founding of academical institutions ;] Ireland ,:, to ; a relorin of the . Municipal Corpora tion Acand an extension of , the electoral , franchise , l > y MHijiiv tho opinions of Lord JMpii ( eagle , but promised that t | ft ! subjects should . not hereafter be uuglectctl . He tliti proceeded to vindicate the conduct of Government im , carrying out ut once nil the recommendations contain ; .
in the report of the commissioners upon the laudloi-ihgi tenant question in Ireliiiid , and defended tho priiifij ,: , i Lord Stanley ' s bill .. Considering that Lord J . llussell iu ] concurred in the principles of the Jlaynooth Collide Hy and of the Irish Colleges Uill . he was surprised tu & , ! him reviving all the angry recollections conneetwhii ) , thu debates ou those two moiisurcs . lie was somi'ttV astonished at Lord John ' s . reference to . tlie approjiiiativj clause , when . he reflected that the Government of n-liith he was the head , had formally and . solemnly abamlwu , ] that clause . ; The noble , lord had also said tliat the Government would be compelled , to settle the Church question iii ' Ireland , citlier ,. hy elevating the Koiim Guthoiiu Gliuich to tlie level of the Protestant , or bytfc abolition of the Protestant Church altogether , fe
to . the latter , alternative the feelings of the l ' roti-stjintsof England irere distinctly opposed , and he , for one , wuull never give his consent to such a proposition . As tu t ! i : other , branch of the altornative , he . would not argue fc now ; he would , only . say this , that to the cndowiuentei the Uoinan Catholic clergy , a question which m ; at present full of dillieulty , he . had personally no ult * tion . Lovd J . Kussell had complained that the iiulk-ji . the Government in . Ireland satisfied no one . It \ nla old remark : that , you could . not moderate between tuo conflicting parties without , incurring the resentment a both . He admitted that the . Government had not lw as . successful as-it desired upon the question of edm-afe in Eugliind , but still it had . succeeded in doiujj miiA It had founded during the last year , a . number of sehu-A
throughout the country : ; it . had provided better t-itei tion for the masters ; it had improved tho quality oftto cation for the people ; and , by the Factory Act , * liml * cured education for children in the manufacturing & tricts . Lord Jolm Uussell blamed the Government k not-having done anything in the present session ftr ; i health and comfort of the working classes . The Uik was uncalled for . Lord Lincoln had plased on the taifi u well digested bill for that purpose , and he trusted tb : it would . be read and well considered by the couq during the recess . ; At that , expiring hour of tin- y siun he would not revive the . memory of former & bates . He would merely say , that with respect to ii amount of the duties levied on timber , sugar , and curnfc ing tliul . atc Administration , they had all been rcduevilto
mg the existence of the present Government . Actuate his fears , Lord J .- Uussell had stated that this coma ; . owing to the doubtful state of the harvest , was nuwhi position which excited gruat aud almost uiuiaraK anxiety . He was surpi ised to hear it , for there wercc .: 430 , 001 ) quarters of foreign Corn iu bond ; but on tlitfi of August , 1839 , there were only in bond 50 , 000 quarts there were now in the coffers of the Hank sixteen inilfe of specie ; in , August , 1 S 39 , there were only i » : millions and a lialf . Neither then , nor in ti following session , did Lord John Russell propose s 5 alteration in the corn law of that day . What ri ght , It * had he to call upon the Government to do noiv win * had himself refused to do then ? . Lord John Kiissillii spoken of the sliding scale as ' " small by degrees , si beautifully less ; " but what had beconvi . if the noble l « 3
own resolution for iin Ss . lixed duty ? First , it si down to Gs ., then to 4 s ., and last session Lonl John i ^ had some difliculty in convincing' the house that lie'J for any fixed ditty at all . He then entered info . 1 ill *' of the existing corn laws ; and showed that at the \< ti& moment the stock of corn in bond was fast accumuh .-Instead of sharing in the apprehension of Lord J . liss ^ Ministers entertained . a confident expectation tki "* great increase in the price of corn would now takci * - Lord J . Uussell had spoken of the possibility of In : * jestj-paying a visit to her Irish subjects , and had fan * fr . Mii the speech which had been'addressed to Uie )!¦; of Duhliu , that doubts wore entertained of the n . rt >
which her Majesty would receive In Ireland . lh- ' either have misconceived or forgotten the nature i ^ speech . However torn that ' country might be bv » 'i party coiitticts , he was quite sure that the prcs . * her Mnjesiy among her " Irish subjects would h ' . lrli " oblition all their - acrimonious and irritated i > asMoiiA Mr . M . J . O'Connell thai . ktd Lord John Uus .- ^ the mode in' which lie had brought forward the s # - ' Ireland in this deb . i ' te , and contended that it wa ;' ciliated to produce much good in that country . 11 ^ expressed his view ' s generally on the condition of In ? After a conversation , in which Mr . l'lumptre a !* his dissatisfaction with the Mayimoth Uill aniltli ' ? Colleges liill , Mr . Muli ' att condemm-il the conduct c ' '
vernment in retaining the present dutieson ten ami " ' Mr . Villicrs and Mr . Gibson advocated the ropejil l ' 1 ' corn laws , Mr . Darby insisted on the necessity of I *' ing the agricultural interest , and Mr . Sheil reconm ^' Sir U . Peel to follow up by acts the conciliatui ? ! fessions which he had given to tho people of Info" * motion was agreed to . Some routine business was then despatched ;' which the house adjourned . -
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, Pitonor . ATiox of Pau ' uamext . —Stimmnnse issued on Tuesilay morhhi !; ' tor IioUHng a I ' rivy l « j til at Buckingham Palace on Friday , at liulfff 0 clock , when the voy . il speech on the prowP ?; 1 arliamcnt would bo submitted for her llsanction and ' appvobation . Orders have l « e »? for making the necessary preparations fur her W proroguiii g ^ rnrlinincnt- 'in person . - y , ; A I . oubi . T Tun-TiiuMi'Kit . —An annonnccn tf » L < ing been sent forth that the Right Hon . I . 01 ' [ hmn would preach at Castle-street Chare ! , S ^ on \\ odnesday evening last , the mccthig-KO 11 ^ literally crammed at ' scven o ' clock , the hmir » lfv for holding the service . ] I is lordship sclcctcii : text tne 4 , th verse of the ols ' t Psalm , " Agn " - :-thee only , hare I sinned , " &c , ami nreai * , about an hour ; . It appears that his lordsbip ^ ttsed preaching from an early age , ami pro ^ succeeding to the ' peci-nge , laboured in <¦* , ; with tho Home Missionary Societv , wh ' ?^ pleased his father , the late lord , that , in I" - , : ; . deprived him of even-thin !? : with the <^ % :
tho entailed estate . A ponion of the l' ^ P ^ f : hnwcTor , since reverted to' him by the * ' % ; ot hi s brothers ' . His lordship was on m-y Ireland , aiid preached - on-= Th « i-at ?« y o «^ I . liuicllv , and Will preach this ( BTcning ( luu '' Cwmiu-thcn . —C « nitrtai » . ft . Uki'rksmstatjos op Sox i > hm . a ! c » . —Si sJJ j , i SIondat Night . —A letter has been w ^ U * Major of Sntiderland iVom hord llovrick , « y Jactorily ' accounts for the delar that 1 " < * $ issuing the writ . It appears the patent nj , ^ pi-crnge is held in his lordship ' s family oo " ^ . found for sonic days , though dilis cnt ~^ mnde for it i \ mmj the rvivate family ««* " $ by the late earl . " bn Saturday , however ,, » ( 1 , r and the necessary documents wore on "' . ;„ ;•' warded to l . ow ' on . " The rennired l " ' 1111 ' ., '; ,, ^ s- 'onu tlirougii , it is expected ' the writ *'' ; ,,, , ;/ Iwbility lw l-ec-oiv ' ed in Sunderl : " ! " » y " ' -s--) VtMi : irydriy . Tho Miyov will in ^( V ^ . ; ' ' ^ f » i ' l :: y U ' .-xtforillL'KomiHS ' . ik " . : ilui '" " ' . 1-olliiJH .
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Aug. 9, 1845, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1327/page/6/
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