The Express. — London, England, 1847-05-07 00:00:00

require great zeal, wetehfulnew and public spirit. He felt great op erehensione as to the successful working of the anachiaery of the measure. (Ilear, hear.) Where a measure was of so greatly hazardous a nature, and where such doubt existed as to the working of its machinery, it behoved them to avoid all suspicion by not pasting, as a permanent meaner*, what was but an ex periment. Teo Earl of ROSSE was wet rstood to support the amend ment, and to say that the pour-'saw in Ireland would not necessarily cc'. as a cheek on emigration, and the people of Liverpool, who complained of the influx of Irish paupers, knew it well ; while the people of Glasgow ' who were rein better able t.) judge of it, were opposed to soy provision which would aided, the able-boeli.d, while they were in f•• 0117 of a loan fur the relief of the disabled. The Marquis of CLANItICAItDE o'.terved that it would kayo. been impossible to frame any poor-law which should be successful in meeting the calamity under wh i ch Ireland was now suffering. Whether the bet worked for good or ill, of this there reuld be no doeht, that whatever of evil there was In it would.., indsit. ly a terieuted by depriving the measure of its permanent charach r. Nothingwas so likely to disar range the machinery by which the law was to be carried out, and to impede its sevens, as to induct the belief in the minds of those who were to be entrusted with its admien tration that it was a mere temporary measure, not calculated or brought forward with the view of being permanently be neficial to the country, hut as an expeeieet to meet the existing distress. l'are this anseedment, and the guardians would In k upon the permeative power to administer out-door relief not LA a principle of the pour-law, but as a temporary expedient, and might so art epos it as to render the success of the expel...meat impossible. It was a somewhat remark able circumstance, toe, that almost all tease noble lords who had spoken in favour o: this amendment were opposed to the principle of the bill altogether. (Hear.) The object in passing a poor law for Ireland was to legislate for the per manent hope seement of the swiel condition of that country, end if this hill, which was brought forward with that view, was ft Lad bin, and instead of b.iag calculated to effect that object was, as had been elicited, fraught with the ruin of bosh larellords and tenants, the course for their lon :ships to take w.O to refuse their &meet to it altog thee. But if the principle of the measure was good, let them not destroy its effect by interposing • limit, &nil thus teed the people of Ire! end to Isehieve Chet at the expiration of the time fixed' it was the intention of Parliament to revert trick to the present state of things, under which destitution was comparatively without nascence from the law. (Hear.) The Marquis of WESTMEATH supported the amend mew. The Earl of lIADDINOTON and a few words (as was understood) in support of the amendment also, but in too low a tone to be heard in the gallery. Lord MONTEAGLF., presuming that the principle of giving out-door relief would lie carried, spite of the opposi tion which would ha offered to it, his object in moving this amendment wee to make Muse clauses which related to this mode of relief temporary, confining their operation to three Team. Anil were this bill for England instead of for Ire land, and the circumstances of England were in all respects the same as those of Ireland, he was convinced so reasonable a proposition would not be objected to for a moment. (Cries of " Vivid."). Earl GREY objected that the noble lord, totally disapprov ing of the principle of out-door relief, and believing that the opinion of the house in this respect was ad .15t him, was endeavouring by this amendment to induce them by a aide wind and indirectly to accomplish that which they refused to do directly; and fleeing that their lordships would not refuse the adoption of the principle of out-door relief he sought to damage it to its extent so as to render its an omie' application needle slily difficult, if not impossible. (No.) The intention of the amendment was to place this experi ment of the extension of the re stem of poor ',lie in Ireland um ter every possible dieadveneago. What would the noble lore obtain by the proposed limitation which he had not without ? Parliament, without it, might at any (Were time deal with the act and amend it if necessary—but on the other hand, if they agreed to this amendment they would in point of feet they messing a law &campus iag it with a declaration that they had no confidence in it themseleee, and expected it to fail. (Hear.) Look at the state of public opinion in Ireland on the subject of a poor-law. No one could deny that there was a great indisposition to grant that relief to the destitute which ought to be given. The board of guardian. it was notorious did not perform their duty in administering the law there as they did in this country. (Hear.) And with the knowledge of the existence of this feeling, and of the indisposition to grant relief, it wee pro pose •I by the noble lord that in malang an alteration in the law for obviating this difficulty, their lordship. should so make it, as to declare it at the same time as the opinion of (parliament that the alteration w ts dangerous and imprudent. gear.) As to the argument that the English poor-law of 1834 was a temporary merware, it was only made temporary se to a very unimportant part of the law, viz., the commission. The noble and learned lord (Brougham) must know that the commie:ion was the whole ques tion—sod th tee who rereembered the debates upon that met sure would bear him out in the statement that the reason for the limit in that ease was, that tee objects for which the commission was to be established were in their natter* temporary, and it was argued that when the law should have come into full operation, and the machinery by which it was to be earnest out set fairly to work, there would be no longer any need of that central authority. Whether these who took that view were ri tht or not, he would not then stop to inquire. With regard to the danger of intro ducing this system of poor-less to Ireland, he would fay that the ronre critical the experiment wen, the more it was important that they should place its trial under no unneces sary disadvantage. The question for the house to consider wee, whether the principle here proposed to be applied to Ireland was calculated to promote the general good ; if so, they should mark their own confidence in it, by making it permanent; if net, they should refute to pass it. (Hear.) That principle was, that property should be li,ble to the relief of destitution in Ireland, in the same way as it was here,and that those b) whose labour value was given to the land thould receive from it in one shape or another that subsistence for which they had a right to look. That was the west principle which had been recognised for 300 years in England, and which he for one was prepared to recognise, not for three years merely, but permanently, for Ireland. (Cheers.) It bad been raid that some measure of this kind was necessary to prevent the great influx of Irish paupers into England. He did not rest the defence of the bill on any such low ground. It was, however, the opinion in Liverpool and elsewl•tere that the Irish pauper had no right to out-door relief until he landed in this country, and it was coeteuded with justice that it was hard on the English rate payer that the law, by refusing hint relief in his own country, threw him es a burden upon them. This, at least, was eselent, that they could not long continue an:unre stricted intercourse betireen England and Ireland under the same unequal circumstances as now existed, viz., that the destitute poor of the latter country meutt eeme to this in order to obtain relief. (Hear, hew.) Earl FITZWII.LIASI held that as the experiment was one of danger and difficulty, so much the more reason was there for limiting its operation. He disputed tbe peel. don of the noble earl (Grey) that it was the intention of the 43rd of Elizabeth to throw the burden of destitution in England directly on the land. He should support the amendment. The Earl cf DEVON, who was quite inaudible in the gal lery, was understood to support the bill on the ground that it was a matter of justice and necessity. The Earl of RIPON supported the amendment. The Earl of SHREWSBURY wished to know whether the bill gave a right to relief in every care of destitution ? if so, and it continued fee two or three years for 33 weeks in each year, it would gradually extend to half the population in the country, and would increase the burden upon land until it became unbearable, If it did not give such a right of ttlicf, for what purpose wee it proposed, but to provoke the people to greater dissatisfaction ? He fancied he saw all the evils of the measure, and the government bad not pro posed any other, but had withdrawn one of the measures that was to accompany it. and their lordshipe had heard nothing more of those that were to follow. Under these circumstances of difficulty he should support the amendment. The house then di vided—Cnntents 63 Non-contents 50-13 On the next clause beine read, The Earl of ELLENBOROUOH proposed an amend ment to the effect that relief should be extended to women • who lied illegitimate eti!dren, aid their offirpring, which the bill did not provide for. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE made some observations which were quite inaudible ia the gallery . The Bishop of EXETER mid that, in hie opinion, the amendment, if adopted, would have the effect of exonerating reputed fathers (mom the necessity of maintaining their children. . . After a few words from the Earl of CLANCA RTT, Lord ELLENBOROUGH withdrew his amendment, saying that he would propose it oa the bringing up of the report. The clause was then agreed to. On the second clause heir g proposed, The Earl of WICKLOW, after a few words from Earl Grey, to the effect that the bill brought into the House of Commons relating to the administration of the poor.lasv, would attain the object which he hod in view, withdrew his amendment, that the words, " with the sanction of the Lord Lieutenant" be inserted after the word " commission ers," in the twelfth line. Lord DESART then proposed the insertion of certain words, autherising the guardians to erect houses for the re lief of the poor, the workhouses being found insufficient for the purpose, and to provide food from a store raised by themselves. He would propose that the poor-law commis stoners should be authorised and empowered to direct the buildieg of additional accommodation for the able-bodied poor in case of necessity, and also that they should have power to direct the building of stores to which the able. bodied poor should come far food instead of receiving it at their own houses, which he considered would be most unwise and attended with the wont consequences. Earl GREY said that the bill as it rood gave power to the commissioners to erect buildings to the extent of 4001. without the consent of the guardians. He did not think that the commissioner' ought to peewee an indefinite-power of taxation for the purpose of erecting buildings. With regard to the second amendment he thought that the bill sufficiently provided against the abuse that would arise from sending food to the bosses of the able-bodied, because the commissimen bad the power cf directing is what way relief was to be given. Lord STANLEY hoped that his noble friend would not peers his first amendment as the bill gave power to the eammirioners to require the erection of buildings to the extant of 4001., and as the bill was now to be of a temporary nature. it would be desirable to see how it would work so far. With regard to the second amendment, be would oer- Mealy support the proposition of his noble friend, because it was most desirable that the c'ele-btilied poor should so far give a prof of their destitution as to be obliged to walk to die atoms, when the workhouse was full, for food. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE thought, with respect to the first amendment, that the guardians were the beet judges attic necessity of prividing additional builds for the destitute when the workhouse wan full. He with the noble lord (Stanley), that it was not d to curry food to the Musts of the destitute, but there was a remedy provided againat that by another clause. The Earl of hr. GERMANS thought that there we, no necessity for the amtudment props:eery, as the mainatiallencra had tho power of directing in wbst way relief woo to be given. This would ; tfvctually prevent the abuse apprehended from giving fond to the eh at it ute at their houses. Lord MONTEAGLE said, that without some such ar rangement as was proposed, it would be impossible to make proper provision for the distribution of food. If the opinion of the committee was taken on the second part of the clause, he should support it The Earl of WICKLOW said, that to establish store houses in the different unions, in the present state of the country, would have no other effect than to invite and en. courage plunder. (Hear.) The Earl of ST. GERMANS complained of the han.h. nese of this language. From a tabular statement in his hand, he found that the majority of the habitations, in all the unions, were within tau miles of the workhouse. Power 'wing also given to the commissioners to divide and re arrange the unions, where necessary, the present amend meut was wholly uncalled for. Lord MONTEAGLE said it would be impossible to pro vide for the distribution of food ovar792 square mats, tinier' the amendment was adopted. Earl GREY said the argument of the noble lord, who had last spoken did not apply to the question before the house. The propoeil was, not to confer a power of building stores, but to create a elisabi.ity of ramie:fag relict except out of such storey. In many cases ' it might be the best course to gise relief in this manner ; but it would be clearly unwise to restrict boards of guardians, as would be done by the amend meat now proposed, from giving out-doer relitf, where necessary. in any other manner. After a few words trout Eel Ftrzwlistram and the Mar quis of Wearagavir, The Marquis of CLAN RICARDE said that if the amend ment was adopted, it would neta>sitate the building of a store in every union before a single iiidividnal could be tiered. In the nbion where the noble lord resided who had proposed the amendment, he had ascertained that the work house was not full. (Hear.) After a abort consultation, the Earl of DCOART Con sented to withdraw his motion, and the clause wan agreed to, as was clause 3. On clause Lord STANLEY said he thought it absolutely necessary to take greeter precautions against the jobbing of guardians in Ireland than was done is this country. Li no particular was there likely to bee greater amount of jobbing than in the appointment of officen—(hear, hear)—and he wished to call the attention of the house to the extremely large powers which were given to the guardians in this respect. In England. the average population of the union' was shoat 21,000 ; in Ireland, it exceeded 6000. (Hear.) There were no leas than eighteen unions in Ireland, con s istia gof above 100.000 acres. If the difficulty of assembling the guardians were great in England, it must be still greater in Ireland, and there must be lesa controul over the relieving officer. It would be almost impossible to find relieving-nfiLl oers who would discharge their duty firmly and con.cicn. tiously. In the intervals between the meetangs of the guar dians no such officer namely would refuse relief to an able-bodied man. It was to be feared, too, that the guar dians would frequently select their own relations for the office. The noble lord concluded by moving an amend ment transferring the appointment of the rehering-efficers from the boards of guardians to the commimionen. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE thought the ease put by the noble lord was met by the clam, giving to the poor-law commissioners the power of dismining relieving-officers who did not properly rotor= their duty. • The Earl of Ro DEN and the Earl of La:caw supported the amendment. 4e• s • Earl GREY said the amendment was contrary to the whole principle of tho bill, which was to throw the chief responsibility on the guardians, and nut to allow them to shelter themselves under the plea that they would not per form their duty because they had not good officers. It had been the habit of the Irish people, for the last fifty years, to depend fur every thing on the government, and that wart the reason why local glides were ma naged so much worse in Ireland than in England. Tho noble lord opposite (Lord Stanley) had pointed to abuses in this respec • hut he (Earl Grey) believed that no small proportion of those abuses is owing to the circum stance that parties in Ireland have been spending the money advanced from the treasury with, he feared, very little in tention of repaying it. His film connetion was, that when they were called upon to superintend the expenditure of money to be raised by rates payable by themselves, they would exercise .1 good deal more care and strictness in the mode of administration. Trusting to thot chock, and trust ing also to the power which the poor-law commiaaioners ought to pusses, an Ireland, to dismiss, in cases of misconduct, he thought the house would make an injudicious change in this bill if it threw the original appointment of the relieving officers upon the commissioners in Dublin. (Hear, hear.) The Earl of CLA.NCeIiRTY thought the .eliusion made by the noble earl to the boards of guardians was most unjust. Earl GREY : Why, I have just been defending the heard, of guardians from the imputations cast upon them by its noble lord orposite (Lord Stanley). The Earl of CLANCAItTY considered that the noble earl had himself attacked the character and disposition of the hoards of guardians in Ireland is the performance of their duties. (" No, no.") The noble earl had imputed 0 them the dishonesty of burro., iag public money without the intention of repaying it (Cries- of ' No • no.") He (the Earl of Clancarty) had un derstood the noble earl to say that they were willing to borrow public money without the intention of repaying it, and that they would be more careful and thrifty in the ex penditure of the money raised by rates to be contributed te by themselves. If the noble earl had such an opinion of** guardians, he was surprised he should leave to them the appointment of the relieving officers. (Hear, hear.) U such imputations were cut upon them, confidence in them would be shaken, and they would tic incapscitedand unfitted for the proper performance of the important duties emended to them. No more important functionary than that of re lieving officer could be appointed under this bill, and yet no information had been adorded as to the number to be ap pointed, the sealants and emoluments they were to receive. or as to the securities to be required furthe faithful discharge of their duties. Perhaps some one of her Mejeaty's ministate' would afford the house some information in these respects. The Earl of ELLEN BOROUGH said that no man was more desirous than he was to see the poor-law in Ireland administered by the local gurgament, Lut he felt perfectly confident that if the house now proceeded on the supposition that it was possible to import bodily into Ireland the poor- Mtn of England--on the suppositiou that the constitution of society in Ireland was like that of England, or that the introduction of the same law into the two countries which were so totally dissimilar, would produce similar effects, it would create the greatest possible difficulties and dangers and postpone for an indituao period the best hopes of the esta blishment in Ireland of self.govlcoment. (Hear, hear.) Ho much regretted o dthe neoemi. which existed for the amendment which head 'litfloa proposed by his noble friend (Lord Stauliy), • • fine the necessity existed. He He had reacrwith .deeP . eta•pain, regret, and dismay the accounts of the state Of •Irtlend contained in the blue-booha now on the table of theshopee. ,Yrorn those accounts he saw more grounds for apprehension as to the future than from the preset destitathoil which prevailed in that unhappy country. lie saw everywhere a spirit of intimidation which almost deprived him of evert/hope of the future regeneration of Ireland—a spirit of ,inUnsidation which pervaded all classes, from th e higbdi to the lowest, with some few bet brilliant exceptions. (Hear, hear.) The relieving offieno would be required to.ffie above all local inflate:lee, and not to be afraid to be shot at every day. (Hear, hear.) How were the affairs of relieving Ireland now conducted ? Why, by officers of the army and navy, irks had the firmness to carry the law into effect, sad the courage to hazard the consequences of the: firmness, But if it was determined to select these relieving officers from a lower department—from a class inferior to the relief committees themarlres, the law so administered would fail--the whole country would be disgusted with Its failure, and would attach blame to the law itself ; whereas the blame ought to reed upon the instruments thus selected to carry it into operation. He confessed that he did not see, without the adoption of a similar amendment to that now proposed, the possibility of carrying this law into execution in Ireland. Thera was nothing me ruinous or contemptible in legislation, as, having an object to attain, to shrink from the means of attaining it. It was desired to relieve the destitution of Ireland, and let the so. Yernment look the measure in the face ; but if it was ift tempted to legislate for Ireland as they would for England maw similar circumstances, they would accumulate greeter 111111eultie* than even now existed, and increase the dangen egml calamities of that unhappy country. ' The Marquis of CLANtICARDE said that, with di respect to the noble earl who had just spoken, Iss must remark that the government had looked the engem of the proposition in the face, and did not skink from the responsibility of recommending this =mantra for the adoption of the legislature. He, how. war, contended that efficieutly to relieve the destitute poor they must have the co-operation of the other claws of the community. That was the principle upon which the bill was founded. They knew that the people of Ireland were somewhat inapt for self government, but at the same time they were aware that in this respect a great alteration had recently taken place, end they were not afraid to call upon the gentry and middle classes to look firmly to their own interests, and to take such steps as the exigencies of society demanded. As to relieving officers, no appointment, ft should be recollected, would be made without the apprebee lion of parishioners. The Marquis of WESTMEATH said that the elegises at guardian. in the first instance, io Ireland, had been see ducted amid infinite violence and fraud ; and there was a• reason to suppose that there would be less misconduct or has jobbing in future elections, under this bill. Lord MONT EAGLE said that their lordships really ought to consider, at this point, what would be the extent of out door relief for which they would be called on to provide. He would state to them a fact which might surprise them, but which was nevertheless true: In the workhouse of the South Dublin union, there were 2,000 inmates. Now bow many did their lordships suppose had applied for out-door relief. 2,000? No; quadruple that number, and they tit: io n : 7 d would still be below the mark. The number was no leas itIO N P U T T E I R A I A G . 1 (H e ar they In la :r d d own id h c o rs: u(e l t u hlt t ht er. ) were. The feet was the same let them be who they and it sheered the danger and th e per il I nto which they wen about to enter. The Eari of lIARDWICHE thought the appointment of reliecing-offie. rs n most responsible appointment, and con sidered it highly necessary that the beet judgment should be exercised in hi...selection. Ile should rote for the amendment THE EXPRESS, FRIDAY EVENING, MAY 7, 1847. The Earl of WICKLOW tho.ahi it infinitely better that the appointment should be in the of guardiass under the sanction of the comminionetz. The Earl of ItOSSE teliered the only way to get oat of the dintrulty wodd be by =renting the size of the work houses eo us to &pens., with outdoor relief alt , gether. If they did not do that, he should think it better to rots for the intendment. . . In answer to a question from the Eve of CLA NCA "[TY, The Marquis of LANSDOWNE said that it was impsmible to say what w. u'.l be the number of relieving officers, er the amount cf their salaries, as they were to be appointed by the guar liens. If their lordships went to a di% ision, and they did not concur in the amesilment, he should move t' et words be added to the clause, to make the appointment of relieving «Meets subject to the approval of the poor-hex con. - mivaioners. . . Thex lordships then dirided—Conteata 53 Non mate. to Tho ehairsoan then reported progre.e; thehouse resumed, aad immediately aqj surned, at • quarter past 12. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—TnunsDAY, MAY 6. The SPRAILIK took the ehair at four o'clueV. REPORTS.—Bingler Ow Boston, Stamford, wad Birmingham RaiPa ay ;Pawl:m.o and 'homey line) ; Bridal Commereial In surance Company (No. 2); Eastera Colon sni Iladleigh !unction Rail. way, (wile lathe Eau•rrn I:nlain Railway Cmpany); Itartin'a Divor:e ; Southampton and Dorchester Haihrly (New Foreat deviation and hranehre, ; Wexford and Valencia iLuir.y (Killarney to Valencia), uls REPORTS CONSIDERED.—BoIton Improvement ; Cornwall Roll. way; south Eastern Railway (Mid Kent and Blurt Tunbncise) ; South Eastern Railway (North Kent line) ; South Eaatern Railway (Strood to Maidstone), Bills. THIRD '•:E.t DlNU.—Ayrahlre and Galloway Railway (Snaithatown to Dahnellingtoo) Lill. PUBLIC BUSINESS.. . _ . PETMONS.—By LoWTtosCait,seniaTictitions front Scotland, to Lwow of the Scotch Marriage Bill, ado petition hi favour of to nitary regulation..—Mr. Ilene, from a place, not IltAni, to the same ellivt.—mr O. Crank, from Brun e ton; Mr. C. BARKZLAT, from Chef. tenharn; Flours, from M .eheater, in favour of the Medical Registration, to. RILL—Sir IL PC. from Iltreford,lin favour of the Health of Towns BilL —Mr. BRIGHT, from Bridgewater, complaining of the use of grain In distilieries.—Mr. D. BARCLAY. iron Wear. mown, in favour of the Navigation Laws.—Mr. E. intsolos, from Peckham, in favour of the datum of the ea-Itajah of Hatton.—Sir J. Gasman, from Selkirkshire, against the Scotch Marriages Bill—Mr. R. Wonvtay, nomerous petitions for the alteration of the Eng:Oh Marriage Act.—Cir W. YAM:MR. from =Rim.'et4 Be.. Or Room, proving for Government measure* to restrain the Indiscriminate sale of fire-inns to Ireland. RE °IQ'S:RED.—On the motto of Mr. Irma, Copy of Instruction. to the Committee of Matter Randers appointed in POI? by the Admiralty, and any reports from them ; Copy of Reports from the Committee of Reference appointed in It 14 on Naval Architecture. —On the motion of Mr. Fallsari, Return of the number of men, women, sad eaildren committed to pt icon for offences against the New Poor-law Art, and the rules and orders of the Foor4aw Commis. sioners sinter the passing of the act, up to the lot April lAA. CRAM% of complaints of Boards ofGuardiarts m Er gland and Wars respecting the conduct of diatriet auditors, addressed to the Poor-law COMO/ie.. +toners, 1. lib copies of the correspondence between the mac parties ' in reference to such complainta—On the motion of ire WK. Veence, certain returns reLdire to the ante of firemren. by auction in Ireand. NOTICES OF MOTION.—Gatio eon Rauvrars, (lar.Laso). Mr. Ilene on a future day to move, that the bill in reference to this subject be not proceeded with, until the IlbeßtiOD of the House of Lords is known with respect to the pealing of the poor Relief (Ireland) Hill. RAILWAY BOAIID REPORTS. Mr. FIUME called the attention of the house to the reports of the railway board, and pointed out some partiality in them, contending that they did not fairly and justly repre sent the real circumstances of the case. Mr. Fraurr defended the railway board, and stated that the commissioners had been most anxious to discharge their duty with impartiality. Mr. H UDSON thought it of great importance to expedite the reports of the railway board, which he considered might easily be dune if the commissioners were so inclined, and if the reports were curtailed it would not only be a general advantage but they would be prepar.d with greats expedition. After a desultory conversation, the subject dropped. I XI rERIAL GAS COMPANY. Mr. AGLIONBY moved fur leave to present a petition from the Imperial Gas Company, praying to be heard by counsel *gaunt the Great Northern Railway (deviatiota between London and Grantham) The motion having been opposed by Mr. GxsettE and STUCTT, woo withdrawn. CASE OF MR. R. G. BUTT. - - Mr. FERItAND wished to know whether it was the in. tention of the government to return to Mr. Butt the line of 1,0001. which ho paid at the time he was prosecuted for spreading the report of the death of Napoleon. Sir 0. GREY said the fine was never remitted in the case of Lord Cochrane, although he had been restored to his rank and half pay, and the government could hold cut no hope of repayment in the case of Mr. Butt. SALE OF FIRE-ARMS IN IRELAND. Sir W. VERNER rose for the purpose of bringing for , ward the motion, of which he had given notice, on the sub ect of the importation and sale of fire-arms in Ireland. He had stated to the house, on a former occasion, that in his own county 1,000 sten:l of arms had been disposed of, and 100 f. worth of ammunition bad been Feld by a single indi. ridual, near his own residence. Ile was prepared with other doeumente of a similar nature ; but before bringing them under the notice of the house, he thoeght it sight to refer to the statement of Lord Eliot, when he moved for leave to introduce the Arms hill, in 1843. The hon. and gallant member then quoted from Lord Eliot's statement the opinions of Col. Miller and Col. McGregor, with respect to the desire of the peesantry of Ireland to possess themeelves of tire-arra', and the dangers with which any facilities for their introduction and WO in Ireland were likely to be attended. If there were any grounds for the introduction of an arms bill at that time, they applied with ten-fold greater force et the present period, notwithstanding which the people bad the greatest facilities fur procuring firearms, and were, in fact, Fenerally in possession of them. The house should bear in mind that the people of that country were now in • starving condition, and was it fit, he would ark, that such persons should be permitted the poesession of fire-arms He believed it could net be disputed that 09 out of every 100 who purchased fire-arms, had not the means of procuring a mouthful of toed for their families. It was a significant fact that, in the county of Tipperary, which was the most dis. turbed in Ireland, the greatest quantity of fire-arms was disposed of. The hon. gentleman read several letters from gentlemen in Tipperary and other parts of Ireland, stating that large quantities of fire-arms bad been sold by auetiou in their localities, and that the greatest aaxMty was manifested by the peasantry to possess themselves of a gun. The system was not confined to any particular district, it extended to the whole of Ireland. The hon. member then read the charges of several Irish jutiges, for the purpose of showing the prevalence of a system of intimidation. Baron Leiroy said that nearly all the serious offences in Ireland were connected with the use of firearms; and Baron Richards gave similar testimony. Mr. Serjeant Howley, in addressing the grand jury of Limerick, said that no precau tion, no care, no vigilance, could preserve life from the armed bands who traversed the country. He had • letter from Lord Olengall stating, that, in Tipperary, auctions for the sale of arms weer constantly being held. The venders were principally of the lower class of traders. Another letter, signed " W. Wilson," said that the police were mostindefatige ble in their endeavours to discover the murderers of bin eon, but they had not yet succeeded. Spain was never in so bad a state as Ireland was at the present time. You could actually get a man shot in Ireland for half-a-crown. It est sold be a great misfortune to Ireland if she ware to lose the present 1mo:1-lieutenant—no one could regret such an event more than himself. That noble lord, however, was reported to have said when he went to Ireland that he would govern that country without an arms bill. He regretted that such an opinion should have been entertained by the government, and hoped that they would now came to a different conch'. aion. The hon. baronet cot:eluded by moving for certain returns in reference to the subject before the house. Mr. LABOUCHERE slid he had no wish to complain of the course taken by the hon. baronet, but he could assure the house that the eh ‘le condition art Ireland had engaged the serious attention of the government. The fact of their having consented to part with the powers before ezieting, had increased the responsibility of the government, end they felt that it was no light matter to undertake to conduct the affairs of Ireland, at such a period, without haring recourse to extraordinary powers. He was able to show that the go vernment had not acted rashly itt pursuing the course they hgd done. The outrages committed in 1847 were undoubtedly more numerous than three committed in 1846; but the house could not corns to a correct conclusion without looking at the nature and character. of those outrages. The re turns on the table showed an immense themese in the number of outrages directed against property, but in the can of outrages against life and the peace of society, the in. crease was very alight, while in what were called agrarian outrages, there bad been an actual diminution. It was impassible to cemider the sot jest properly without inquiring how the law was carried into effect in Ireland at that moment. He had the satisfaction of repeating his former statement that the execution of the law by means of the ordinary tribunals had never been in such a satisfactory state as during the past year, and that there had never been such a check put to that impunity of crime which had been ono of the most fearful features iu the state of Ireland. Now he was not prepared to say that there bad not been a considerable importation and sale of arms; but be believed there was very greet exaggeration in the newspaper reports on that subject. He had obtained from authoritative soure's acceuata which gave a very different picture of the state of Ireland from that which was given in the extracts read by the hon. baronet. Col. M'Gregor, who commanded the constabulaiy in Ireland, informed him, that upon the whole the errantry was never more free from political excitement, secret combination, or agrarian outrage ; and that any addition to the crime of the country arose from the distress under which the people suf fered. He observed further, that the returns showed the rumours respecting the increased sale of tire-arms to be greatly exaggerated ; and that a very large proportion of those arms which had been recently purchased, had been bought by respectable farmers, to arm themselves and their dependents against the attacks of depredators. (Hear, hear.) He (Mr. Labouchere) believed that statement to be entirely correct. It was of course natural that immediately after the repeal of the Arms Act a great increase in the sato of arms should have ensued. Forbidden fruit was always sweet; and the Irish in many eases looked upon the bearing of arms as • mark of distinction. But the government had doge all in their power to prevent the abuse of arms faring into im proper hand.. The existing law in Ireland crave them sufficient powers for this purpose, without new statutes. The set known as the Whiteboy Act gave them the means of severely punishing persons who appeared in arms to the terror of their neighbours. In Tipperary recently a body of men who appeared under arms to prevent the sale of ' cern at an suction were found gull,' and sentenced to im prisonment, and 'teen and ffurtet n y:ars' transportation. It war unneeeleary for him to go into details, or he could prove that the majority of the outrages during the present year were not outraues connected with the use of fire-arms . The hon. beronet hid referred in becoming tomes to th e noble person whose name he could not mention without emotion. whose fate it had been during :he Late unhappy year 90 govern the Meted people of Ireland. That estimable nobleman bed lent all his influence to secure ptaco and tranquillity in the country. lie had been most efficiently supported by the army end the police, whose exertions had been most valuably assisted by the clergy of all denomina tions. ' The government would continua to exert their authority to secure peace in time to come, and believing the powers they pommeled to be amply sufficient he must decline to accede to the hon. morals% rte proposal to introduce: an Arm, Biller species of statute which had always proved a failure. With regard, however, to the motion with which the hon baroset had concluded, there leo no objection to it on the pert of the government. Mr. SHAW did not think the present state of Inland at all setisfacton; ' and expressed a strong opinion that the go vernment Indacted unwisely in surrendering the powers given them under the art which expired lot :euriou. He did not think the Whitebny Act would give th-in the autho• city the right ton. gentleman anticipate; and he rued that mummer later they would hive occo:on to recur to the former course of legislation. He concluded by expressing his con currence in all the tributes which had been paid to the Lord Lieutenant. The motion war then agreed to. COTTON CULTIVATION IN INDIA. Mr. BRIGHT then moved for a select committee to in quire into the progress of the cultivation of cotton in India. He said that this questiun was of peculiar importance in the present state of the cotton manufacturing districts of Len cashire. What the ratite was to Ireland, he might say, the cotton plant was to Lancashire. Tke failure of the one could not be attended with more misery than would in evitably follow any failure in the other. There were no lees than 316,000 persons now employed in the cotton mills of the United Kingdom, and it was not an over-estimate to say that 2,000,000 of persons were subsistiug upon the profit of the trade. The miestion was not one, therefore, of a local or a temporary character, but was of a permanent and notional interest; and if the house could do anything to extend the cultivation, it would do a permanent and national good. Now, at the end of 1815, the state of cotton in the porta of this country was 1,060.000 bales, or thirty-five weeks con sumption ; whilst at the end of 1816, it was only 515,000 b dm, or only eighteen weeks' consumption. The prior, which, in 181-5, was 4d. per lb., VAS this year 7d. per In.. or 75 per cent. extra. The consequence was, that many of the mills were stepped. The cause of this was a failure in the cotton crop of the United Stat. in the year 1846. But it was not a very long period since England was comparatively ini'ependent of American cotton, deriving a great portion of her ',spray from her own dependencies iis the east. But during the last thirty years, whilst the United States had increased their growth 600 per cent , India had only increased her growth 50 per cent. The Indian entann ales was by no means improved in quality. It came here in a very dirty state, which was a greet disadvantage to the grower, both as respected the freight he hrd to pay, and the amouat he received for it in the home market. To discover whether this cultivation might not be improved very greatly was the object of the inquiry he desired to institute. lie knew that in India cotton had been grown and used for clothing during the last trio centuries. It was said that there were 24,000 square miles in India suited for the cultiva tion of cotton. The Court of Directors, in 1822, expressed an opinion that the crop would be improved iu quality ; and in 1819 they stated, 10 a report to the government, that their cotton was greatly esteemed in the London markets, and that nothing but attention and persevermace was required to make cotton-wool an export of very great importance. He was quite willing to admit that, dung the last 30 years, the East India Company had been making considerable efforts to improve the cultivation of cotton in India, but, for various reasons, these efforts had not been eatended with anything like tho requiaite success. Certain it was, how ever, that our 'ous in the East Indies were in every way calculate for the growth of cotton ; there was ample space nt land adapted for the purpose, and there was an unlimited supply of industrious and intelligent labourers, whose pay involved far less cost than the employment of slave labour. The question was. Low this cultivation could be most effectually carried on, and it was for the purpose of ascertaining this, as clearly an possible, that he desired the select committee for which he now risked. It was im portant to know what had occasioned the experiment of the company to fail, notwithstanding all their care and expendi ture, what were the obstacles they had encountered, and in what manner these obstacle.' could be obviated. He would urge upon the house that this was a most important subject, for if, by any calamity in America, our supply of raw cotton thence should fait, no lugnage could express the utter misery that must befall vast masses of our industrial pima lation—(hemaliear)—and this calamity might any year befall as from circumstances which no human precaution could avert. It uses further to be borne in mind that in the United States this article was the produce of slave labour ; there could be no question that, sooner or later, by fair means or by violence, 'las cry would be abolished in these states, and this very abolition would, for a time at all events', hurt our supply of the article. The hon. member then moved that a select committee be appointed to inquire into the progress of the cultivation of cotton in British India. Sr J. C. HOBLIOUSE said it was not the intention of' the government to oppose the appoiatment of this com mittee. and ho need not, therefore, enter at any length into the subject, nor had he occasion to offer any defence of the East India Company, the lion. member having in no way specifically accused that company of either ignorance or neglect. 110 would, however, briefle advert to what the company had done in the way of promoting the cultiva tion of cotton in nor Indian possessions. He apprehended that the hon. member quite over-estimated the effect of the inguily he proposed, if he imagined that it would ever make —at all events in our time—the people of India producers of cotton to an equal extent with the people of America. That competition appeared to him quite nut of the question. There were such differences between the two countries, that he doubted extremely whether any failure of our supply from the United States would ever be remedied by the supply from our Indian possessions. One of the reasons why the cul'iration of cotton in India had fallen off of recent years was, that we ourselves, in becoming exporters of cotton goods to India, had, to a great extent, destroyed the cotton manufactures of that country. (Hear, hear.) The lion. member had referred to what the company had been dying since 1780 in the way of promoting the cultivation of cotton in India. The result of their inquiries and of their experiments, conducted with the utmost energy, sad at very heavy cost, was exhibited in an infinitude of folio volumes; an analysis, meisenting a masterly review of the whole subject, was eon rained in Lord Auckland's minute of 1339. A minute with other documents would be laid on the table in a day or two, and which, had the hon. member waited for it, he would perhaps have regarded as rendering the committee he sought unnecessary, so full was the information it c mveyeri, and so lily piepared the theory it propounded as to the best mode of cultivating the article in question. It was not to be sup posed that the growth of cotton in India was neglected as the hon. gentleman's speech might seem to suggest. That growth was earnestly promoted by the Indian government, and though in particular districts the experiments made hod not been so successful as could he desired, yet, upon the whole, the experiments were decidedly satisfactory, and gave good hopes of solid progress. (Hear, hear.) Another reason, why the imports of cotton from India had seemed on the decline, was that latterly the imports from the United States had been so enormous and at suck prices, that the Indian mer chants had not found it worth while to send over their goods to such a wholesale extent as formerly. A third rea son was the diversion of capital i..to the channel of opium speculations, which had last year occupied upwards of one million and a half more of the capital of Indian emenda tors then had been engaged in the same trade the ysar be fore. He would repeat that the promotion of this cultiva tion was a constant anneal with the Indian government, No despatch went nut to India which did not emphatically ad , Tern to the subject, and especially in connection with the promotion of canals and roads, for without the means of conveyance to the ports, the production of cotton in the in terior of India would be of comparatively little avail. (Hear.) Lard G. BENTZ NCH. was more sanguine than the right hon. boronet as to the good that would arise from further inquiry. It had been the declared opinion of Mr. Huskinson that, with due protection afforded it, enough cotton might be raised in our East Indian possessions to supply, not only Great Britain, but the whole world besides—l Ileac, hear) and Mr. Huskisson hod pointed out, further, that every bale of cotton imported from our Indian possessions must be brought into this country in British bottoms. The hon. gen tleman opposite, in talkeng of the increase of cotton produce in the United States, had not observed that the cultivation of this article in that country bad all along been fostered by protection. (Hear, bear.) Whereas, its growth in India was impeded by the most disadvantageous circumstances. There was a great tax imposed upon it, which Ilene rained its pike to tho extent of three half-pence in the pound; while, on the other band, American cotton had been relieved from the payment of duty in this country. We ought most to encourage our fellow-subjects in India. While the United States took but 1,056,0001. person. from us in cotton manufac tures, our Indian possessions and Ceylon took, lastyear. more than four millions and a half worth of these goods. (Hear.) He hoped that the committee would be instructed to inquire into the subject of railway communication in India. The antediluvian media of canals were of little use in giving facilities for the transit of goods. At present the mode of conveying goade, under very favourable circumstances, was by tong, drawn each by two bullocks, and carrying six bales of cotton, of 1201bs. each, twelve miles a day. But the more usual conveyance was a bullock with a pack, which carried two hundred weight eight miles in the day, the cotton often rolling with the bullock in the water. Such difficulties could only be overcome by incressizig the , means of internal communication. This naturally led them to the question of railroads in India, and on this point Lord Havdinge had said that railroads there would make a differ ence to the government of four regiments of infante'', cost- , ing 50,000/. a year, being the interest of one million of ! money. Here was a sum at once which would go far towards constructing a railroad. (Hear. hear.) This was a point ; which in his (Lord G. Bentinek's) opinion should not be overlooked by the committee. There was another point, which if he had mentioned in the previous year he would surely have been coughed down by the free traders, but now Ire apprehended it would be received with a little more attention. If we should be enabled to get our supplies of cotton from India, they might be paid for in our manufac tures, instead of sending away our gold as we were doing at 1 present. Last year the prime minister had told him he should be glad to see the gold going sway for the produce of foreign countries—would the noble lord ex press a similar joy now? (Hear, hear.) He begged to reconne end it to the committee to consider whether, by en couraging the growth of cotton in Indi a by diminishing the ' government rent, and by other means, we might not get the article of which last year we had manufactured to the value of four-and-a-half millions without sending oat to the United States ear gold, and that, too, of the newest coinage, PO as that there might be the smallest possible loss from deficiency in weight. (Hear, hear.) Mr. MANGLES rose to address the house, but An Hon. Member moved that the house be counted, and forty members rot being present, the house adjourned at ten !nitrites past eight o'clock. PARLIAMENTARY PAPER. AMENDMISNT OF SEE NNW PCIIOII.LLW.—A bill for the better administration of the Eoglish poor law has bees printed, by order if the Ileum or Common'. 2he fu tetioes of the poor-law commissioner", creased by the 4th nd sth Wiil. 4, c. 76, expire at the end of the present lesion of parliament, and it is necessary that a new commissio should toe appointed. This is to be of a totally different. character from the old one, and will he constituted as follows:—lts ex-officio member' are—the President of the Council, the Lord Priry Seal, the Home Secretary, and the Chan.ellor of the Exchcrpt,. The working c..tmmisaion to consist of pct.-- 6 Ins a, , potr.ted by letters patent under the great seal, end during her Majesty's pleasure; the float-named in the potent shall be, and be styled, the " President" (clauses 1 and 2.) The commissioner' shall appoint under their veal twe seen- Uric*, and such clerks, miss engem , and servants u may be required ; these being removable at the pleasure of the commissioners (c. 4 and 6). Two couimi•ioners, or the president alone, shall be competent to act in the execution of any powers vested in the commission. All documents under their seal, to have validity, must be &J,ned by at least two commissioners, or, if by the president alone, must be countersigned by one of the cemeteries (e. 7). All rules for their own procedure, or for the guidance of persons employed by them, must be signed by th) ^e commis sioners (c. 14). The salaries of the president, and of the secretaries and minor officers and Ferrante, shall be regulated by the Lord Higli Treasurer ; but no commissioner, other than the said president, shall be entitled to hoc any salary !or remuneration. The president and one secretary may b.• elected into parliament (e. 8 and 9). The new commission to have the power of summoning and examining wines es upon oath, and to enforce the production of books, contracts, agree , muts, accounts, map', plans, surveys, and writings (except title-deeds), but no witness shall be required to attend at a distance grater than ten miles from his abode (e. 11). So much of the old act or acts as squires any minute of the opinion of each of the commissioners to be made in record of their proceedings in cases of final differences of opinion upon any order or proceeding, nr as would require any general report of the proceedings of the commisaionen to be submitted to one of the principal Secretaries of State, is to be r. pealed. But, instead, a general report is to be laid Delon parliament once a year, within six weeks after its date, or, if parliam.nt be not then sitting, wit pin six weeks after the next meeting of parliament (c. 12 and 13). The rules now in use maybe confirmed by the new commissioners ; and any new ones they may make to be subject to dis allowance by her Majesty, with the advice of her privy council I c. 17 and 18). The office of assistant cammiesioner is to be obelished and twelve "inspectors " appointed in stead with similar powers. For conducting any special in quiry, the commissioners may appoint some person who must be either a doctor of medicine, a barristi r, a mi mber of the Royal College of Surgeons. an architect, or surveyor. Any such special inquiries not to last longer than :A days, (c. 19-22.) The new commi-sion to be in force dining five yearn next after the day of the passing of the act (c. 25). ghe Wrong* MAILS. The overland aimed mail,. do /daredlles, to the Medlterrapean, rzrype. Aden, Ce7lan, India, Hung Kong, &0., will be made up on the evening of the 7th May. Tee mail.. fur Vigo, uporto, Liobon, Madeira, Cadiz, and Gibraltar, will be made on en the moraine of the 17th May. The Weal India mails, eachirling throe Ibr jladeo, Honduran, and ,he Havannah, will be mode up on the evenkgethe 17th May. The mails for Britizh North America, Grenada, and the United Mates, will be made up an the evening of the Illth May. TO, overland mails for Gibraltar, Malta, Greece, the lotion Wane* :7 1 1 4 „ . A . den,C ade 4yl o on n , o !i e adia, /1014 . -I , org, and via Southampton. the 11 h May. The molly for New Mouth Wales. Van GleMeree Land, and New Zealand will be made up on the evening of the Met 1107. The mails far the Braid* the River Plate, Monts Video, Parnamo bow, ibid., Madeira. and Buenos Ayres, will be muds up on the evenlng of the 4th June. TO CORRESPONDENTS. r,„• Advertisement., intended for Thaltzpren, London ermine paper, moat be et the °Moe by Two o'clock on the day of publication. HIGH HATER AT LONDON-BRIDGE. Tlllll DAT —Morniair, 21 min. part G; Afternoon, 49 min. poet 8. To-llonnow —Morning, 19 min. put 7 ; Afternoon, 52 nun. Fmn 7. LONDON, FRIDAY, MAY 7. . - In the House of Lords yesterday, Lord BROUGHAM asked the Lord President of the Council whether any important communications from bankers and mer chants of the City of London had reached the govern ment on the subject of the existing state of depression in the money market. lie understood it to be an undoubted fact that the hest description of paper had been refused discount during the past week at 12 per cent. In the north of England, the traders who had received large orders from America complained that, in consequence of the want of money, they could not execute them, and were obliged to stop their mills, the result being to throw an immense number of persons out of employ, while if such orders could be executed, then the necessary / importation of corn for the relief of Ireland would I take place without the exportation • f bullion in pay- 1 trent, as was at present the case. Believing that an immediate remedy was required, he ventured to' suggest that no railway bill should pass during the present session, without a clause being in serted, spreading the payment of the instalments over a much longer period than the companies at present contemplated. This suggestion came on the autho rity of a gentleman who stood very high in the money market.—The Marquis of LANSDOWNE stated, that within the last few hours the First Lord of the Treasury had been in communication with highly respectable parties in the City on the subject , referred to, but as yet the result had not transpired. Lout ASHBURTON was understood to express his belief that the legitimate commerce of the country was in a safe state, the present pres sure haring arisen out of the operation of the Banking Act—Earl Fii AWILLIAM thought it ought not to be taken for e. ranted that the existing difficulties arose exclusively from the construction of railways, and he must say, that he thought - parliament never legislated worse than when the two leading parties concurred in o;inion. Lord BROUGHAM, in explana tion, said I.e had not intended to attribute the existing pressure exclasively to railways; the write of the exchanges, and the export of bullion, no doubt had also participated in producing that result. Lord WHARNCL /PE con tended that the crisis was mainly owing to the bank in not having conducted its operations on sound principles, and that things were not even worse was only to be attributed to the operation of the act of 1844. 1...-rd ASHBURTON doubted the soundness of the prineipb• of the act referred to. The panic of 182.), which arose from a want of confidence in the banks, rather than from an inordinate exporta tion of bullion, had been allayed by increasing the circuity ion by five millions. The present crisis might be described an a famine of money which stopped the operations of the manufacturers of the country.—On moving the committal of the Poor Relief (Ireland) Bill, the Earl of RoDEN admitted that the evils of Ireland were such that they could no longer be palliated, and thought that no harm could arise, admitting the necessity of the measure, by limiting its operation to a certain number of years, then to be dealt with as parliament should think fit- The noble earl concluded his observations with a glow ing enlogium on the character and conduct of the Earl of BEIABOROUG TT, whose career in Ireland he feared would be but too short, but which had been such as to entitle him to the praise and respect of all parties. I The house then went into committee.—Lord MONT EAGLE, in an explanatory speech, moved, as an amendment to the first clause, that the duration of the bill should only extend to a period hereinafter to be named. A protracted and animated discussion en sued, the members of the government strongly urging the necessity of passing the bill without limitation, at the conclusion of which the committee divid. d, when the amendment was carried by a majority of 13 against ministers, the numbers being 63 to 50. In the course of the previous discus sion Lord ABINGER intimated his intention of moving, should the amendment have failed, that any persons entering into a state of matrimony after the passing of the hill, should have no right, or these de perdent upon them, to relief, while the Earl of ELLENBOROUGH expressed hie intention of moving, on bringing up the report, that unmarried women and their offspring should be entitled to relief, a class for whom no provision was at present made. Some further amendments having been proposed and withdrawn, the committee arrived at clause four, when Lord ST.IN LEY moved as an amendment that relieving officers should be appointed, not by the guardians, as contemplated by the bill, but by the Poor-law Commissioners. After some discussion the committee divided, when the original clause was carried by a majority of six in favour of the government, the numbers being 59 to 53.—The Earl of SHAFTESBURY then reported pro rens, and the bill was ordered to be recomm itt e d this day. In the House of Commons, Sir W.VERNER brought forward the subject of the sale of fire-arms in Ire land, alleging as an indisputable fact that 99 out of every 100 of those who purchased fire-arms had not the means of procuring food for their families; and concluded his observations, which comprised a variety of details as to the mode and mariner by which the sales by auction of arms and ani manition were carried ou, by expressing his re- Bret that the Lord Lieutenant had on goin g to Ireland expressed Lis intention of govern ing without an arms bill, the nee , ssity of such a measure being now so incontestibly proved.—Mr. LABOUCIIERE defended the course pursued by the government, and contended that a very large portion of the arms which had been purchased recently had been bought by respectable farmers for thei; own I Protection ; and he could prove, if necessary, thst the majority of the outrages of the past year were in nowiso connected with the use of fire-arms. lie could not give his assent to the introduction of an arms bill, being convinced that such a statute had in variably proved a failure.—Mr. Balmer moved f or a select committee to inquire into the progress of th e cultivation of cotton in India. The motion was con. sented to by Sir J. C. Ifoanovax, and supported by Lord GEORGE BENTINCK, at the termination of whose speech an hon. member moved that the house be counted, when there not being 40 members present, At stood adjourned until this day. THE Irish Poor-law came, a most unwe:eome guest, into the new House of Lords. Scarcely one of the members could be barely civil to it. Still, intro duced as it has been, sent up by a vote of the Low , r House, and being the only permanent nicimire tar Ireland, it would evidently have been too outrageous to reject it, at least without at the same time doing what Lord JeouN Itesseu, requested of the Irish party—to suggest some ether alternative. It being unadvisable to slay it outright, tie next anxiety was to make away with the intruder in a quiet and insidious way. It is curious to observe haw eager and ingenious their lordships were in proposals to r fleet this great end. Every one hiul a different ' poison to recommend : they were of all degr ees o f force, from Lord STANtetr's arsenic to Lord loNr• eacte's opium. The latter succeeded in first administering his dose, which is quite sufficient to lender the Irish poor-law a very dormant and inoffensive measure during the brief period of its existence. A poor-law, under say cir cunistanoes, must be in some respacts a law of coercion to more classes than one. There is no statute that could be passed which requires to be voted in a more imperative form. And, with all the aid and arms that the statute ran afford, it requires, even in a pacific country like England, a stern will and consummate skill to execute it. In Ireland, how much more does it require of the highest administrative powers and gnalitics ? But a poor law upon trial, with a year or two of allowed existence! In that state who is there that would respect—who is there that would execute it? Those interested in defeating it have every encou ragement to do so, by the near prospect of a certain reward in the defeat and repeal of a law prayed to be inexecutable. The only good to be expected from an Irish poor law was, that it would act as a screw upon the pro prietorial chess that it would tax the absentee, and forte the worthless, indebted, or negli4ent landlord to sell a property the duties of which had become too onerous for him. A temporary poor-law mast utterly fail of producing any moral effect whatever. And even granting it permanent, it must have failed in numerous localities of the south and west of Ire land, and would have required other auxiliary measures to render it operative and effective. Had the poor-law passed, as was proposed, a new parlia ment might have come forward with these auxiliary measures. But now the pole-law will be inoperative not merely in indigent districts, but in wealthy and froward ones, and will present to the view of a new parliament such a number of failures in all parts of Ireland, that the legislature will shrink altogether from this, or from any mode of gr piing with Irish ill. The obnoxious bill is threatened with far mote fatal amendments than being stamped as temporal. The able-bodied poor are to be st:icken off the list by one peer. All the married are to be excluded from any right to relief by Lord ARIN'.ER. The landlords and farmers are to be forbidden by the Duke of WEttiNG•rox, under heavy penalties, from paying their labourers in any way except with lit. HOWRING'S new coins, the poorhouse alone being privileged to pay in meal. A cabbage garden of a quarter of an acre is to be as complete a bar to relief as marriage or 1-gitimate offspring. After all these exclusions and in junctions, the difficulty will be not to relieve paupers, bat to find any that will be entitled to reliet In this shape even Lord MONTEAGLE might show some buweLs of compassion towards the bill, and ought indeed to vote for its tunoc.mt permanence. But we must o we utterly despair of its sur viving. The conspirators are too many, and all are too anxious to have a stab, for any hopes to be enter tained of either patience being observed or indulgence shown to the doomed victim. Ir is to be hoped that Lord Moarreit will proceed with his Ilealth of Towns Bill during the present session. As we anticipated, there have been no parish demonstrations against the measure in the pro vinces. The officials of some metropolitan districts " '" stand alone in their oppcsition. But even in London there is as much parochial actien for as against the bill. The vestries of aristocratic St. James ' s and de mocratic Whitechapel, the medical association of the Tower Hamlets, more familiar than any parochial board can be with the actual condition of the poor in that locality, and the paving board of Goodman's fields. notwithstanding large recent outlay, have passed resolutions as favourable to the measure as those of the Marylebone meeting have been un favourable. Throughout the country the greatest readiness has been saown to forward the bill, as far as the ex pression of opinion can do it. And so vigorous has been the demonstration of this desire, that even those interested in the present state of things have con tented themselves with gminbling, dissatisfaction. Nowhere has the parish spoken out against the public except in certain parts of London, and that in the teeth of the Registrar-General's last return, which gives the lie direct to vestry representations. Petitions are pouring in from every part of England in favour of the act. Nor are these the common-place sheets of parchment with names to them which can always be got up by a little well-organised pressure. Their framers have not relied on the well-known arrangement; the table in a thoroughfare with pen, ink, and paper, invitingly displayed, and an active gentleman to hook little boys and idle loungers, into writing their own names, or forging others more respectable, " for fun." Three petitions are not only genuine, but emanate from the best-informed classes of the community. Thus York prefers to send its petition signed by 1,170 persons of this sort, comprising magistrates, guardians, clergy, and medical practitioners, to one with ten times the number of signatures, proluiscu ' °ugly gathered. So Halifax forwards its petition signed by the clergy of all denominations, the whole of the magistrates, 125 of the local commissioner, and many others of almost equal weight. A separate petition kas emanated from the me dical body exclusively, and bears the sip ture of every practitioner in the town of Halifax. I These are facts which show with what utter disregard to party or sect the bill is supported. Petitions generally provoke counter-petitions, and require the minister, who would gauge the opinion of the con , try by them, to strike a balance of one set of signs• tures against the other. Here there is no such necessity. Vested right and private interest are ashamed to parade themselves in such a cause. Such big words as " centralisation," and " paralysis of local activity," are felt to be insufficient to hide the selfishness and supineness which lie underneath them, however unconscious the objectors may be of motives so discreditable. Dirt has found no defender out of the metropolis. Thus supported by the humanity and intelligence of England, it seems impossible that government should postpone this measure, if the public business will allow them to bring it to a third reading before the approaching dissolution. We cannot suppose that the noisy opposition of few metropolitan parishes will weigh much against the opinion of the country at large. But if it were felt that the metropolis hid it in its power to impede the progress of the measure, we should very much prefer to adopt Lord LINCOLN'S plan, and London for the future operation of a separate Why should should England suffer because Marylebees vestry insists on retaining its powers' It would be wiser in Marylebone district to say quietly to 11 8 TY • lcbonc vestry, "Gentlemen, you arc under a mistake. We do not want you, and we do want an improved sanitary legislation. You may tell Lord 1410.0 . Erd you will not have his bill. W-. 011111 tell him we -sill have