The Express. — London, England, 1849-05-08 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS.—MONDAY, MAT 7. It. Loan Cnamomsos ten lb seat at 6 o'clock. PRIVATE BUSINESS. SECOND READIN 0 B.—Boroegli of Louth sad Free Grammar School Is Louth ; Lee's Este., ; Hardspoo: Ges and Waterworks, tamed Railway Calamity Compacsatioa Dempsey ; THIRD ERADlNO.—Edieburek sai Northern (Addi tional Capital sad Amestbmat of Ake) Bill. PUBLIC BUSINESS. SECOND ElLADlteo.—Erchesser Bills Bill. PETITIONS PRESENTED. !Urination Bat, —By the Delis of RICHMOND, hem the Borough of Rye, Suttee-briop, sad bola several skim in Sums ; Marquis of LONDONDERRY, from Smith Oneida sad other skews; Bari DELAWARE, from Wit tiest's'', I. Ben st; Viaceant CONBERMIRE, .m.l tram Places' { STANLEY, beat beakers, merobsats, smi MIMS of Loads" Goatskin( 31,771 sigastares ; also from assufacterers of loaders, wig en by 3,000 persose, electors of all po'ibtal °slalom. sad sway of them the mp g= of Lord John Russell at the last election ; Nutritive of Leedom, Glasgow, Searberemils, St. Iva, Hast. lags, Brightm, Halifax, Colchester, Dumb', and Diner' Duke of BEAUFORT. from Gloucester sad Swamies, all ugliest the of the savivties laws. By the Marquis d LANSDOWIM, tree I 1 aChseter sad the Demise Chamber of Dammaree, is fans, of the wig/slim Wit. Bum Hovega.—By the Bari of HARROWBV. tram Sta leyteidge, Neweastle-Ga-Tyae, sad other placer, far the abo lition of limes' to beer-hems& NAVIGATION LAWS. Lard STANLEY on presesting mewl petitions on this velleist, said the politic= whisk he had before pneenud penis, Wt no altered= might bs made in the =legation laws had thumbed 112,000 stinatens, sad to thou which be had presented to-niaht were wended 40,000 more. Oa the presentatioa of the patio* trout Maerhaster by the Marquis of LAMIDOWII3, Left STANLEY mid he &aerated it contained only 448 =patens atter lying at the Exchange for two months. NAVIGATION BILL. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE rose far the pumas of =that their lordship should give a mond reeding to I foe the repeal of a portion of the navigation laws. la making this motion, he felt relived Gem this aseessity of wuring hate that detail which the wail= =Wawa to require, frees the knowledge that then lordships were familiar with the subject, front the pesandkip elsewhere, appall as from ea inquiry Lath* beileW Masa At Wow" time feelings wire opposed to Wm in which lie participated, hi some degree, as au Basil/Mean, and prejudices had bees excited that the measure weak Were WS naval =pressen spa villa thep welt fli nIT fee * w a e ran a " it auir rank among the natiem He bailable«, those of that opinion who =tartan= it ; bat be would first advert tower There was cais poiat apes wink lis Mays= they Man be an agreed , newly, that a would lend to the welfare a the othatry, m well es the Nowise= of any individual, to send what they wanted to moth, sod to obtain that which they wished to import, ia the cheapen and most convenient wean. Although this was a mans whisk it was imps. eible to esstradiet, it would be Was to ezeeptiens i and whereas we were justified is waspeadiag the liberties a the wary, in order to make oar liberties were and pentane= he the welfare of society, so was it sessesery t i sanifice some retisn of the wealth mad teseeress a the e many for the purposes of deform. But he teemed he should be able to satisfy their lo:dallies that the peewees= sad security . of the mercantile navj would see he fa danger of being =- pared by the bill before Oak beihipt. Ina Tepid sketch of the history of the Naaya= Laws from the We of Richard 11. to the press= ae, the =Me lord showed how kw laws, while th. yWA as impaliamat to commerce, bad long ;mord to be of lay me le the navy of the coun try. sod entering upon the enektiss of the shipping trade, proved that British shi might essideqtly rely upon icing able to maintain greend against he am ethos of foreign shipping. Now Maw dews laths thee within his own reelllrction. Otte of fewinsesethewhiskhe hod had the honour of assisting in brith in We the ether hew of parliarai et was as act ha 1807 for establialeg a free intertwine between the West Indies aid Amities; ma he had the honour of sit tin is that hoes* with one o f the most esuansinate orators that set r lived—he event Sir Wm. Grant, and who always =pressed his amebic= is wit ekes sad lurid terms, and whoa his premises were right, always brought these to a most Infidel coaderisa. That &Myth ed man Maned that the bill he referred to would be fa a to com area and to the intercourse Deem= America and this wavy. He indulged in the most confident predktions as to the effect of that bill. He said if the bill pared there would be is end of all shipping is this amity ; and such wield be the inducement of the Aglarilea going to the West ladisa islands to wen sugar elsewhere, that it would be they doubtful whether any sugar would be imported into this cioun•ry afterward.. New, he had had the curiosity to ass what the e ff ect of that bi ll had been, denounced as it was by marehante, shipowners, and seamen. (Hear.) The bill was to have effect daring the war, sad he bad found that ha 1807, when the bill was passed, lia* were of English skip generally 2,006,000 tens, whilst at the end of the war, the interval Melee been about Wren years. there were 3,14/,000 tuna et Damn erupplum, au iliumaa• Ur nearly 200,000 tons, under the very act which it was so eoll6,lently piedioted would have directly the contrary effect. (Hear.) He then are to consider the system which be bad now to deal with, and to look at the al tered shape of the wiggliest laws. Soma of the most respectable witnesses who was suaincoaed to give evi dence in favour of these laws avowed that until they came to look iato the law more closely they were Dot aware how little protection it really gave. (Hoar, hear.) He held an se want in his hand with the details of which he would not trouble their lordships, contaiain all the rations and eon. particulars of the law upon the subject. fll r t‘ad radius treaties with Buenos Ayres, Vssesuela, RWl3ill, Danmark, Sweden, Holland, Na ples, Sardinia, Tuscany, Greece, the Hans* Towns, sad many other states, every , one of which mere or lees affect= the principle of navigation. They exhibited the greatest variety of provide= and the whole put together such a trees of omfa4on, difficulty, and Weaving eau that it was not at all 'surprising that those who had the deices; interest in making themselves acquainted with the subject and the provisions of these treaties, found it impos sible to discover under what law they were navigating, or ups what principle they were proceeding. (Hear, hear.) This state of things hail had the effect of suspending the efli. easy—if ever they had had say—of the navigation laws. What bad been the effete of the relaxation of these =Yip. Ma laves which had bass going on daring the last 30 years ? Ice 1816 the tonnage of this country was 2,783 000 tons et shipping, whilst in 1848 it was upwards of 4,000,000 11•11. (Hear, hear.) He knew it would be said that daring that time the trade of the world generally bad isereased. He did not with to btu the prosperity of this ecreatay on the admen or Inuit of prosperity of °then. He was glad to see that the trade and commerce of the world had increased, sad was well assured that it would bring beck bosh motives to exertion in this reentry and in. eresead prosperity at how. (Hear, hear.) But then he should be told that the English merchant sad shipbuilder could not we with other countries, and re quired this miserable remaaat of a probative law to bolster hint up is the wallet that he was obliged to wry on in essawitiga with ether wattles. He would Gall the anon this of their Malik@ to the wean in whisk the British skpowserr had And in th eo F twe voyages sad wan= where be was meet exposed to . Ono el the arguments used was the great power the United States of America to ester into unipetition with in. For a yea way years put is the direst voyage between Eagle= aad the United States the Enlist' shipowner bed gam uniweeneed. Now he tweak state the kw: is the year 1836 the tonnage of weal of this wan, engaged in suSie with the United Mats was WM sees, and the Amason Wasp we 1,265,888 tens; =Mot in the year 1818 tbe wend a IMAM Inane= in the Awake& teethe wee 1,177.80 lee, the =id= Men only thee the te =isk li rp k gingivitis& with the Agent= eep", Is aid Mk Awake. hat tint imp ye. F a Balk shingle hal eateallig ales_o. _awl at =neat *nee Ilse a warn peoperika of inikk dap 24is ties tabu kw thane hed we hien helve. ,11: : :::t7=1:11`,..,,,'"_„,hydss= , of wee, 16411? Oft he twig* vase* we webs the per& albs Vatted State4mis wen 1,177,188 We Dirldia, sad of all giber alum Iwo* that the Emilia was employed to eke= et sin se sem= the mown of all Moan MiFfieff the dessription i hru f i rkpir ear dilig = bees had out es a b utlikely to vim with to ,beer .) ( ln othar word% oat of 100 vends imaged la the trade el the United States there were albs United Maio wash 63, of British vessels 30, ad of all ahem 8. (Moor, hear.) So that was the advisee= we elimked hi tile =protean, state, Wheat nay wislews Hem the imigetteis law ; sad the pespecties we led makenteel bed bun thirty per meth And ay =lllB4lll= Ils melds= a his Mks able to essitina• Wilk a few dap he had had pat tato hid Beni a WM inni a ma rageslible iiipowase, whe add MO he Wad a pest camber of Mtge, mid the imak of Me experiew was Mgt hie ships sew id sesk geed begins, or ands sub yediabb voyages, es th ey did wham they Wel haw= two Melia ports, sash se the Brazils sod the Medisiewsemon hem Calm le the Baltlo, &a He sow app ieshed a mkt =selentart cR the la quake, away, the prepatisa ef kedge rata; and =frig le bade wa ded oa there by easeelled all taikili r ef Whelk gl=ig l i gn issif. „.. lBll _ readtre a larp ts the bade dill giber pryers, that • this Elbe, =I suer a ea gininierge frees the Rl= The sable mannistke t we t Lae stubtiail matter (which wee wiT ari Viassay beard in the piny), to show that the Lade yea la a stale if persaamt sad essolili 4184 8. 1 1110 a with the wile if sl Europe. Me would go on to Banda—the Bable—orhisk bed lama bell at se sae le the biomass by whisk we ems =pond to other danger. Ilan had see cub Wand ef the of Amble= ships, and bola WI Ma they WWI lln irk bat key bed sub been direitell is ligiais i rat i re Ming wee oboe sod vfoftV4 was kw. At Bt. P be band Metals* of Entish b =ag in 1848 war= isms, sled if all ships British, 221,00 lig& Tligi hat hoed hi their Ni_...e mkt Frames the dhedgentige to whisk Bai the a slipping was ax- Sli is el hags number of westr s Z: BB catered the pub of Pings, vers =lapilli te leave km hi Mika Eon Ilinglimi Mil beim eseepsilal le WIWI ether aellissis to thaadvialip dim skit Moored =than Imam Amnia bed WIWI le be es fawned, sad bee eisim was sank= ) 7 oat, 210 spongy was ad dim than sloe was Slab* palled se throw open the whole trade of the Bibs to her parts, and now liaglaud was imaged la a diem sits with Salami um* the same subject. This, thenskoo, halo the ems with raped European esmsemes, whit was the elan of the savigatios laws upoa the alentes, where an sztessise of privilege was sailed for is this respect ? The Caesdas had avowed thatthe whole of the trade of the Bt. Lawmace depeaded upon the decides of the Saglielt legielature in regret to the mitetatien laws. They were sow stnta piing easiest the mmitlose efforts of the United B:atss, and the did is wig lmsdt7 , W ecesequenee of the mush, which drew Wilke esnyine trade, and diverted it into American chum Males ter thee opening the trade of the River IS. Lamemme would enable Canada to stand its ground. BmillesAlimeda was logsabat greatly spots this river for themmineeneees ',the 011•131110 which appertained to that *PM Mash@ was 'elided to that freedom of iatereourse wide& the deleted with this easatry, the rafted of which woad hazard the emuseilloa salleistimg biomes her sad —a essueziou whisk their habblys, is eennette as doubt desired to seabeds, bat which amid sely be maielniaed by aide( ildriv towards bar. With nowt la do West Plk sobabo, Great Britaia was bound t• seises her 'Wind= with the lesst possible de lay, sad is his eseessience he believed that the g reat you Wahl be reheat in their favour with great safety. It mos Ids belief that mosopely was not the seas by wile SAW mershente wished to awry on their balsam Is lowsled Mat, as the noble Ind led sateibily staled that he should be pnpme~les the sesserenset it a 'Mary ia respect to this lasesurn be night be pinethloa le say the government west eye IS poopirsdio mat ob. oaawfraamas of in re- Is ee d is . Lord BII.OI7GHAII melt, Is the place, express his mmellited add *et the prorat es was either a fin trade se In the awn distant 'degree °omegas' with it. Cot affeeties asst have among to his whim irked, (Idol Limaismose) had he set eased in his pelt vssiden, me dismeens to his earderar, rasmely, that of • parilesionary iseise dmegoll with the esesesity get supporters to the mums His noble filmes teens for sat Mentz */ she eadlplisa laws from the maiden of free trails nod ~..hells _wan that ha might eaten a law slay Mem hem abase mile to when glory ansistei la their mimed iSfileiNiff. Par doubtless den might he ems who thought that because they had rota Is, Is.. trade s they meet also vote for altseptiai what =1111“ told was the mherable roman of pen Bet who was the greet hake --• wise Ike great epistle of fres trade ? Whew was the esdpeneal sedherity men will& were based all the Meets of the len neded ? Destrikes. it was Dr. Adage limith. Bet thee/nal writer bad di ski stated that imemeek ne embees II of musk km kevertmee to • coustry this its seem of NW dehmes, so he nomad the navigation laws—w WWI new se iamb sea down—in that light, and Lim batik promemed en unqualified a 7ie ma those laws Mika it was am propmed to . Washington, the sea need healer - and father alimerissa freedom. simai teed his year of disk 1781 se 1712. bY • wed of the nessmityMe dimouregiag Amiga skipping, wall itai o do main the emssioney of Amadeus shipping. Mediate, that most mina eteldeman, disdorahhed his period of gems nset by JVmg the Latium of Washington, bri= of • free trailer Vas his fteP. OT ; and it was who iket mernadiMed a system of null/sties laws. Lot Mai She fres Men ease Mr. Heddemn, whose spendwa Wert hese essuentely quoted, nor his policy strictly Vol. Mand oat by those who now clothed their acts with his au *lnky. "No dealt." said Mr. Hasitisson, " year marine mut always be M properties to you commerce, but there ame eamises whoa es astegoniem will seise between these ems dolman of year anaPasa, and in that *unionism your 4111111111111.1119 must of nesessity yield to your marde." lb solo irked bad referred to the date of the Lumina comments' navy, and bad stated that the ismer mealiest in Bri nh shipping Is that part of lie world was owing to the abolition of protection Meths (Lord Brougham) having seems to the same informa tion as his noble friend on this tidied, had extracted eme or two manes edentate& to throw a light epos it—end, ea examining on. of the cooks before tke cumin" it appeared that the statement entails& in page 467, of - Mr. Potter's book wee Welnet to say fake, fora poetics only of the American ;ris therein &canted, • feat Midi the witness &d -lete questioned. There was mother quails put to the wfteme, white was " Can any degree efiessrasy be I I seedbed to this record," to which he replied "Certainly est." Wes this • nutritive diciest ? Cer,aidly not. Was it eves winterise? No. Wes it not even minims ? (Hear, hear.) There was another of his noble friend's state ments with rennet to which he wished to sty a few words. It was is relation to the reciprocity treaties; but those who opposed the repeal of the navigation laws, had nothing to say to those treaties. There was no earthly connexion be tween thema and the navigation laws. What they did object to WM to suffer Frans to import into Inland the produce of Runts from her own shores. In oomOliag his statistical tables Mr. Porter distinctly stated to the resusittee that he was instructed by Mr. Pithier Gibson how to make them out so u to offer an answer to Mr. G. F. Tom', whe was opposed to the present measure, as Mr. Ginaa was in favour of it. The object of the satin ties laws was to preserve as much of the carrying trade to England as was passible, end is order to prove that the eszeyieg trade with Ruda was liabte to be injured by the mantesance of those laws, a device bad been practised which was of the greesset, he had almost said of the most scandalous. description. The number of ships and serrespeeding number of tens representing the envying trade eateries and clearing out between the ports of the two coun tries was 47 shim and 700 tons ; and yet then were made in the government tables to figure as 216,000 tons of shipig employed in the carrying trade, be cause t he ships made their 32 voyages in a year. But that was not all. One ship, the Magician, of 98 tons, was actually put does as representing 142,1.00 tons, because, i forsooth, it had made 146 voyages—(bmar, hear), whereas in truth and in fan, the real tonnage of thi s magical Megidsa was not 96 multiplied by 145, but 96, without any multi piked= applied to it at all. (Hear.) His &ode hind had dropped sonsething about the Russia* trade, poising out how well we succeeded there, what large advantages we enjoyed in that quarter. Why, to be sure we did, and for • MT good and simple rums ; the Radians had no ships et their own, and cossemently . while our ships hat sag protection, our trade with Russia, import as well as expel", mast necessarily be conducted on very advantageous terms. It was said that these navigation laws were but the fragments of a erten Possibly so. Bat they were large fragments—freptinats of 1• gigantic size, splead-d frag ments, deserving of a very different treatment from that which this measure and its supporters sought to deal it. (Hear, ken.) Under that system was fostered our colonial trade, employing a million and a half of tonnage, 20,000 and odd mama, end a capital producing returns of nearer Ave than four millions per annum. This system was to be knocked on the head. Why ? No good reason was assign able. Something had been said about Canadian dissentent. Why, the St. Leweesee was at this moment so perfectly free, that the Canadians could conduct any ermniercisl enterprises they pleased with the Americans, exporting to the United States what- OM they had to export, and receiving from the United States whatever the Americans had to ex port to Canada in their own shipping, where they chow, the Asterisms having precisely the some freedom. (Hear, hear.) Upon referring to the returns of our shipping foe the six years Ware 1822, end the six years alter 1822, returns not liable to dupl.:inn se they WINISMede without any reference to a prop:et—he fraud that our Manage bad Mimi off, in the latter period, LISS vends of 160 , 000 and urewards tosser, a falling off whisk we did not mom from till fully sixteen years after- wee& (Hear, hear.) Now to come to the nal grist of the =which his noble friend had not seen looked at, it to be the weakest portion of his weak ease. The *et of the navigation laws, the policy of these laws, front which noes of the changes and adaptations of Pitt or Hushisece harresperted„ had been the hematite and maiatenseee of a Remade navy. the greet point, so Alm Smith Illifati, to which every insular doodads shield apply itself by ell reasonable means. (Hear, beer.) TM merchant navy was the foundation of the military sang without the one, the other could not pnibly exist. 1.4 HOF, hear.) The ships, niceties, and eommene of Bng whisk led wind the fines animosity of Napoleon, mid eddy to thet system whisk had created thdrandthe growll either memdfiessit merematile marine, wilasenwhishhermandent=daiserierbanesisted— a man whisk fir . without deviation ee be astgi sr Is sr kr.., Vidi l dm grow* of ow osommoso, kolors4 the o ar mai a brood of bssay sumo. This had Men Week one amigo ties law. he bag No as 1814, is a work upon colonial ploy. he bad asinvoustod to dhow that, whams his great setter, Aden SW* preponnied that the asiseisl trade, a = ludo, was leas beeekial than the hem trade, the trade was, in mist of fa* mat a foreign trade at all. but a home trade in every moistial res pect. (Hear, beer.) We were to sive op to the Masri es% to the Fr= Oman, to the Swede, to the Doti mem tow ens, att our conmosild aivestiussoll war am Walla bode, and all we were to nada wee the aspens if way, navy, oedemas, &a, fee the support sad bilanse and retention of seissia,the earryieg Weis with Whilk, at all ends, would est probes, es see isle !dialing. (Hear, hear.) Hosed& mia Mit lilmiewin tag is unworthy mares which had hese paesie trea t a dankly to foreign emeds to canna for the minis and Wien of Beglisk ships. of eau semideratiems, they were by no means the bon Zs SW Suss to Me medics of expense, whisk me Mg NiSROW sad Baited view of the question. Osedd a boolsolo, sect this sweeping anneetre had booms law, ulailwill are the two great item ef ian Mil , fiag ships aid 1 of madman den ? Upon that gent he joined with li made Mewls oppreite, markt would prove his e a se. Mast whams wee a very resposielit shipowner mad ship builder of the pod of Leith, white evidence wee in con lbsselV with all the private infornmegliss which halted /Genesi hem Liverpool and Sundarked. The madmen said UM Were the navigation laws wen dimmed he bed Mimi to bon as sessandeolly es postai. • ship of in tens bade., mid it met him 201. per toe. Iff y U. wort &dueled far the Ilmksr &eft, whisk was aow sdes& the est ..set sawee la W. pw Ws. The owl et building t la Media pm% iletimp os entnita would, sassidiag so ass Nt Ilan bees 121. per tea. was the kiss adti on whisk ship-Imilders Ilsoli hate to Even • and of ken 14 " to 161. is sib , as 121. abroad, meld be fatal to our gam,, ism.) I a of lid shipbutldhag of Imbed, they wen en Imesese seem. Phear.) &year was timid in the bed& li =densa,-rnan hil esse the pld " rWllfeß at the a = of dt pat ay, sisastisas lb. at Ili., the lag bass • year ; a set or man as hadtistrion as sober. :IS AN M, as any body of which any country geoid I THE EXPRESS, TUESDAY EVENING, MAY 8, 1849. boost (Chemal_ hums own* intersetr raft sad magni- Mont latelfeellenfiltmMilit elm resift se a b e warned their WIMP ad 1/14 to lay bowie Mad upon it. (Hear, hear, sad cheers.) Ae regsrfted Me espouse el shipindiding, the oak of this onatry was atiftsodall ons pined, ear was there any better material fir this die atlas Atlanta ; bat twenty prised am !inherent 111374“ of same from America sad the Mak whoa owl to 1061. Maori of 151. sad 101. ; sad while we had to kin so mush tither hen abroad, the Americans bed wig to Met their boa sad copper aercas the AthaMb to week ft up with their timber. But then ler Minton, an Animism witness—sad it wee reemele.l able that a gam slumber of the witness* were finelftft ere, Bata men, Prussians, Dance, Belgians, and se OF Mr. Mimeos rid that 10a. M. a day was the wages of ebb► weights I. America ; and whoa silted whether hr would net pater having ships repaired is this country on ateremit dire yeses being so mesh lower, be replied that he sever of employing say man in Ragland demi his 'hips or in repairing them. Why f Disonse the work was so much mire expensive. Mark her.) He now came to seamen's wages, nod m that pat of the subject be begged their lordships' enmities; be wown he the very midst of the argument upon which Mee go Nista. (Owen.) The wages paid to maters in Belgium amd Holland was dl. a month, in the Baltic 31. The wagim tti England were 81. 10*.: 81. 10s. for a man who, wording; to Kr. Mitchell, could not read and write, and 51. for a relleliell who could do both. (Laughter.) A most rapest elis of Liverpool had informed him that he never pis his tartan less than 101. a month. Bo WWI for the mesten. Now for the men. The men employed in the vessels of the Balfe and of Holland had wages varying from li. 10e. to 11. 15r. per month: in England the average amount was 31. • and while food in this country cost le. 3d. per day, in thi other countries to whir* he alluded it cod Bd. a day. In the United States the wises wife plebs* it livle higher than here ; but there was tats differentia lieftineft, the two eases—the Americas put more into seamen than we de, cad get less out of them. (Laughter) Now, such wool tho rash of a eemparisen between the ship-building and the lehMunolgation this mute, and those of hesign carettim. Any egg who eensidered the relative nunsheee and the Nat bathe of the two parties concerned, ma whet Molt /ea Na along with facts and figures, weld ammely fail to Come so the conclusion that it was impossible kw this without having protectioa, to enter into ensoundel dim with the United States and the Balt* eldest in chips or in sailing them. (Chien.) He had support, osinket, and aid in his argument term Ms ucble Mead himself. This very bill mood the monopoly of the meeting trade by Oft all British ships should be navigated by a Britisseel;r u , and that theewburthe of the mews should also be British. (ahem) If they could obtain such /heap masters and auk psi sellers ahread ; if they could there have a master Who. unlike Mr. Mftehsil's masters, could read and writs sad emit aim" and psebeps work a problem in navigstioa, and ifj holier they mkt have annum who were not given te grog, why had net the operation of the bill beta extended to the fteatine trade ? He salted, why ware they to retain the properties of three-fourths of British sailors in coasting womb ? For this reason : they dare not give up that con dition. (Chem.) They knew very well how muds depended en having those cameo, and what would be the consequence of not bath,' them ; and they knew very well that, not withstanding all that they 'might preach to them about free. trade and the navigation laws, ail that they could tall them, from Pepys' Diary down to this day, would not pre serve to them that invaluable body of men. (Hear, hear.) He begged their lordships to pante be fore they jeopardised the shipping interest. There were four millioas of tons of shipping navigated by 230,000 mm, and forming a nursery for the navy. What had bars th e' emmegnence of having such a body edema ? A navy which rode triumphant ow the seas. It war should busk out, through that vile, ineonsiment, desperate, bed, false, meddling policy, which touched everything, but grasped at nothing, in ignorance of the proverb, that if you'd touch a ne ttle you must - at the whole if you - mast grasp would not be stung—they might, if they punned their Pre miere:se, lad themselves involved in war, with the navy is the mme eitedities as it had been ones before. Pre vim to that eerie* at immortal victories which held top lo undying fame the names of oar St. Vincente, end Noises, our Daman" and Howse, which were yet =by the victories of them in w hose primes he then elteers)—Shore were at one moment only 18,000 men la the navy. In about six weeks thirty.five thousand were added to the amber. Whence came that supply ? °stably not from amongst letdowns.. A few yeas after ihey wen driven by hard fate to adopt the ruinous policy of wig what were celled quota men from the different meidles, gad the sue that rose on the only disgrace which the Meek navy had ever sustained. At the period of widdi be epolv, there were 160,000 names belonging to the mercantile marine ; they had now nearly double that number. but as there were 33,000 men in the royal navy the relative propertion remained the same. In these times he was a bold man who would tikes upon himself to meat that the peace of Europe would not be disturbed. (Hai, bear.) Heaven forbid that his (Lord Bramble's) meet fears should ever be realised ; but when he Weed meet the channel he saw peace suspended, as it were, on popular hol ing, compressed by the military force et one great eaptele. He knew very well why troops had been sent to Civita Vowed& It was not on account of the Peps; it was not for any reason of state policy —as, for era ample, because Austria our marshier mitbaroard k wm biases. the French minister and the French Vitt dung not refuse to the French people upon i which they were bent—a military proceeding. No man would look upon Italy without some feel ing ei affielliniol4 Then, when he looked to Ger- Emmy. hes Ihe Baltic to the Adriatic, evi to to a disposition to shake exist in rrire t te there seamed siltation', and to admit the roman's g thrones The as tiara had marched in force to save Hungary from its mob rulers and its Polish agitators. But who would secure this country against the consequences of all thee movements? (Hear, hear.) Who could predict that three months hence Europe would be in profound peace ? Was it in 1849, the year succeeding the year of revolutions, and when the waves of agitation had not subsided, that they were to sweep away that by which their navy had been created and maintained ? He called on his noble friends, the advocates of this measure, to show any one reason which made it necessary for them to take this step this year rather than the next, or why they should take this plunge Into • gulf from which return was absolutely impossible. (Hear, hear.) It was said this measure is neesmary to crown the pillar of free trade. It had nothing to do with free trade. (Hear, hear.) Talk of its being the last crowning measure of free trade. Why any person who looked into the bill would see that it lilt the coasting trade untouched, which constituted two-Weds of the whole measure. (Hear, boar.) More than that, it also left the restraints on their seem n =trachea , which was found to be the most onerous and burdensome portkn of the navigation laws to their madam. He desired no success to any party whatsoever except to this who in honesty, with manfolness, and without any regied to pressure from without, did their duty to the Queen end the country. (Hear, hear.) But when he found that these for whose beuefit it was alleged that this seesse wee pro pounded declared that they would receive on bout et ail from it; when he knew—es he warned the hew Mt be the ease—that this measure must immediately owl increase slavery and the slave trade—(hers, C—. 17 ) because whatever would enable Swedes, whatever Weald enable Danes, whatever would enable Belem, whitlow maid enable Americans, to bring Brazilian and Cuban sugar into England must inereme the slave trade— (hear) — must Inatome the African slave trade ; and when that consi deration was poured into the bitter cup in order to sweeten this messure, again he said this was not a question on which he could make any compromise—ea which he mild yield his opinion or negotiate; and whatever its result — ice whatever quarter it might fail to give comfort—(laughter)—and with whatever arrangements of any kind it might Interfere—us an honest man—as an Englishman, and as a peer of parlia ment, he felt bound to say that he opposed the further progress of this bill. (Loud cheers.) Earl GRANVILLE felt muted that when it was known that one so well acquainted with the sub ject as the late Lnd Auckland, entertained • deep ems of the absolute necessity of this ma sers for the future mercantile prosperity of the country Is must have great weight with their lordships. Whoa it wm said that the mercantile psospenty of this *entry was owing to the navigation km, he begged of Mom not to coding their view exclusively to England, but she to eider what took place in other countries. Let deem wake the ems or Prance. In the retire of Louis XIV. very heavy differential duties were imposed on Dutch ships by _the French governiaent. That was the bestrides of res tricti on in France, which eentinited down to the time of the Convention. Now, when he mndiered the Wigs& Scant amount of the mercantile wades et that telie compered with its extent, wealth,tand he mild net help thinking that En owed &lino parity of her =Vera* to the crease of her colonial In trade, to her , and also to the aptitude of their habitants of this for mercantile pursuits, rather thee* restrictions, which Windy failed in • neighbouring country. (Hear, hear.) With regard to the petitions which had been presented against this measure, it was to be observed that those who wen to be subjected to competition very rarely incited it in the first instance, however useful it might prove to the country, and even to the r class who were to be subj ected to it. (Hear ' hear.) He had too high a respect for the shipowner of this country to believe them capable of wields. to deceive the public by the statements which they made, but he could not maim that they felt all the alarm which they had heard so much se, sad ems particularly when he knew that although this mesas pawed the House of Commons with a great majority, aid as he hallowed with every prospect of posing thdr liembhipe bens, large same wore being expended en ships in Seakeekten. (Hear, Yeas.) the had she been premeted against the mows e femme of the country. Now, with every rugs*r that body, he doubted whether my kw potion Or OM engaged is yegrrff etaltanl pursuits knew whet the email= at the laws were, or had reikend_ igen the elersquestes=hdr— repeal. Neither send he beim that the mareheals et the country were always betessisigee of a ammo stage kind than the goveramest. There were triteness &he egaleary. He &duct Amato say eaythlog disrespected ottheaseeheate of this country who were preemismt tor dish ggaaegd& mese, their skill, their *Mersin. gad ter that Wia" Sty—which more than eoliths makibeted hake prosperity et this country—of being able to sememetrate their attendee on the badness which they bat on hand. (Hear, hear.) Bet it was natural that they should not like to has those Masten of bushiest thrown ems to ~Min k whisk made coesidenble profit. Bist semWlbegendamen w ihey ho worse:mined beloveds& kedelpeee ei millembelered that they did not fed any imemenimee hem dm assigation laws, and said that they eke& hel no amerif they IMO rw. pealed. One of the great fameremiestem et the navigation laws was that they gave an inducement to perms to carry goods to foreign coantriee rather than to England. An. em.a. wa s both to the reat ehants and was that they mused a g duchatiou ht rate of fre ig hts. When the (nights were unreason ably low it was a Madvaatage to the shipowner, when they were aareasoaably high it was • dieadvanteie to the rat r eheat. Thee they found by the evidence of one gentleman Set he 1821, when frehhts were low, that the per masa* of =ship to English was 20 to 80 ; is 1825, when a te were high, they found the proportion of foreign ships increased to about 30 to 70; in 1628, when freights agates went down, the foreign fell to 23 against 77 Elliott ; 001 he 1840, when freights rose again, the foreign again in itialled in the ratio of 32 to 68. Other inconveniences whisk mess from the navigation laws ha would al mite to—such es the inconvesionce of being Lunn to bring to this country and after. to eke tin at back to Calcutta; and also that et helecebliged to have 10,000 boys more than was required. It would also be necessary for them to make a change in these laws for the benefit of their colon ea. One of the prin cipal despatches of Lord Harris lettered to the hard ship upon the colonists of Trinidad in being . obliged te pay doable freight fcr British to smile to bring tree lehearen to cultivate that island. (Hear, hear.) Aim:mist foreigners the people of the United States were thou from whom it was said they bad most to apprehend. The noble and learned lord stated that he bed some doubts whether the United Sates would reciprocate with them. He could say that when this country had made concestions, the United States made eon mookoce when they imposed nitrations the United States imposed restrictions also. (Hear, bear) He ap prehended that no possible injury could mutt from this bill, either in respect to this country or to foreign countries; for the bill would in effect be a self-acting law. (Hear, hear) Already they had the assurance of the Ameri can government of the construction which they would put upon it, and that they were perfectly reedy to give every thing which it was proposed to ask by this bill. Moreover, if it were supposed that there was any danger of a reaction ary policy in America in favour of protection, it would be wise to strike while the iron was hot, and at once to put our relations with that conatio on a sound and intelligible foot ing. I Hear, hear.) Allusion had bora made to the dif ferential dales imposed upon sue goods sad vessels by the Dermas customs until ; and though he fully admitted that the matins imposing those duties JO ured thenrel ves more than they Herod es, stilt it did not become t e greatest comeneseled country in the world to engage in a war of tariffs, prehre hely when that contest was founded on an unjust prinelPe.l At present our commerce with Russia did not suffer, bums we had the advantage of tho treaty of 1843; wheat that treaty expired, it was not probable that Russia would longer put up with the manifest injustice imposed upon her. The noble and learned lord bad twitted the government with throwing open foreign trade and not doing the some with the oustimg trade. With ri gird to the latter, all the wit nesses examined before the committees 'greed that, whether open or not, no ten eigner could interfere with it. The government had no objection to opening the coasting trade; but as it would be productive of no change whatever, they thought it better not to add to the alarm somewhat as necessarily entertained on the subject. (Hear, hear.) As to the comparative east of building ships here end abroad, he believed the truth to be that no country in the world eoald build ships for a smaller amount of money than our North American colonies. Russia appeared to be able to build as cheaply the inferior class of vessels ; but of the best quality, no ships were cheaper than those built in this country. (Hear, hear.) The fairest way of instituting a comparison was, not to compare the ships of one country with those of another, overlooking the condition and circum stances in which they were produced, but to look at the ele ments for ship building possessed by the different countries. As retracted this country and the United State, he found that all the elements of ship-building, including 400, "PP!' sheathing, sheathing, copper belts, and sails, were cheaper in this country. Some persons thought the cost of timber made ea enormous difference; bat he found by the evidence of Mr. G. F. Young, that toe whole cost of the foreign timber es. ',toyed in a ship was only 3801. As to the British sailor, he disagreed from the noble and learned lord, and believed that our milers had a natural instinct and aptitude for maritime penults, which rendered them the best aailon is the world ; and the proof of this was that three.fourtte of the mamas employed in the Austrian marine were Ear lieb. (Hear, hear,) Nor was it to be supposed that oar seamen would seek employment in American ships, if the noble and 1. arced lord were correct in stating that the Americans worked them harder end fed them 110,80. As to the captains, the underwriters of Lloyd's considered these of the second-dam ships (whatever they might be is such a vessel as the noble awl learned lord would be likely to sail in) as decidedly inferior to -he foreign captains. Our eeceul at the Dardanelles stated that more accidents hop peed under the British flag than under the flag of any ether country,aad that if more loss did not accrue to proptruy sad life from these tumid- nte, it was owing to the superior catairuetion and the superior strength of the British vends, and not to the skill of the captains. (Hear, hear.) The real question was, could other nations drive es eat of the direct trade which we now enjoyed ? It would throw light on this question to consider whether they could beat the Americans without any restriction what ever. He found by a return that, in 1843, of the ships entering American ports, 63 per cent. were American, and 37 foreign ship, 31 of the latter, being British ship, and the remaining 6 representing those of every other nation of the world, whose competition we were now told so mach to fear. (Hear, hear.) This showed that the Americans could oomph with every other nation successfully ; we did not compete with them, for their tonnage had increased in a greater tempera= than OM since 1815. A very fair com parison might be drawn between the shipping of our North American colonies and that of the United States, there being more analogy between them than between the United States and an old nation like this. Between 1790 and 1847, the colonial shipping showed an increase of 667 per cent. ; that of the United States was 565, showing a great advantage on the aide of the former. Though the whole of the United States tonnage had increased 108 per cent. eines 1815, the greater portion of that increase was on their wasting trade. the increase on their foreign trade being only 45 per cent. But that was a greater increase than our shipping showed in the same period, for it was only 33 per cent. But was there no difference in the increase of popula tion in the two countries is the same period ? While our population had harmed 51 per cent., that of the United States bad increased 143 or 144 per cent., or almost three to one, while the increase in the tonnage was only three to two. (Hear, hear.) Our present navigation laws actually sub looted us to a disadvantage as regarded the Americans. Their great skipping trade consisted in bringing over bulky articles, the produce of their own country; while the most desirable cargo that we could send out (*nested in sorted articles, not only English, but foreign goods. Thus, while we could take oat only pest of a cargo of our own goods, a United States ship could take a freight either composed entirely of American goods, or partly American and partly European The Portu guese, by ao ingenious fl cal arrangement, stools d dL contrived to impose • heavy differential duty on the export of port wine to this country, as compared with its export to others. In order to avoid this tax, the English importer sent the wine to the United States, but the naviga tion laws of that country prevented a British ship taking it there, even to be warehoused; it was therefore seat in an American vessel to America, paid the expenses there, and came back here in a British vessel. Hence, the effect of fiscal regulations on the one side, and of our navigation laws on the other, was to place a physical obstruction of twice the width of the Atlantic Ouse between the country . producing and the country needing this article, and to give rise to a vast amount of unproductive labour. (Hear, hear.) He much regretted that Portugal should have thought it nem airy to impose this heavy differential duty, bemuse this country happened to be her best customer ; he still more regretted that this country, standing pre-eminent amongst commercial nations, should have thought it worth while to set the example of a pitiful restriction of this kind. (Hear, hear.) Though he be- Hued that this country, so long as it maintained its great wealth and insular position, would n be found without a military marine adequate to protect it from all hostile a sion, yet, could he stretch his imagina'ion so as to bffi T Z that this bill would have the effect of extinguishing the fires in our numerous steam-boats, shutting up the yards of the shipbuilder', sad starving the British seamen, he should admit it would be a most dangerous blow to our mercantile marine, and fatal to the naval supremacy we had heretofore held. (Hear.) The real question we., were we able or unable to compete with foreigners? (Hear, hear.) Every argument which the noble and learned lord had used to spew that we could not, might have been used with equal effect some 70 or 00 years ago, to show that it was perfectly impossible for us le moupte with foreigners in the manufac tare of sotto& gob. (Hear.) In that case the raw material had to be but& from a drupe of thousands of miles ; a great ports oaths asnufactured goods was exported to as great • distance ; the coat of the machinery was consider able; and yet, whit ell the competition that had arisen, our expels of ottilem gods were more than those of all other na. tins pat together. What was the cause of this ? Probably this Mum wee net attributable to any one cause alone, but to • sembinethen of several—the accumulation of capi tal la hie errantry, the willingness of the capitalist to so sepe • meaner rate of interest than in other countries, the energy and skill of the pimple, and their ingenuity in the dissever, of mechanical inventions. Every one of these etimaideratiste equally applied to the building and Davi e! Ms. (lieu hear.) There was no doubt what everg, thh hill ware ;mod, that the success of the Alp beadle, trade would he greater even than that of other sall. else of our mantistare. On one ground, he lad pose satisfaction in tweeting this bill. It usually Wiped that when any great change was proposed, or whim • mo nopoly wee destroyed by the introduction of or other means, peat distress was experienced for a time • certain clue. It 03 happened that, at this moment, there was no country peassmsd of either capital, ships, or milers, to compete with us. It was evident that the struggle, if it came at all, must be a gradual one; the shipowners would have time to prepare for it; and of the result he did not entertain the slightest doebt. (Hear, hear.) Lard COLCHESTER then addressed their lordships (h o t,' from the low tome Owen in which the noble lord spoke, and the position he occupied on the back benches, the grater portion of his speech was very inaudible in the gal lery. He spoke from a mass of returns and statistical docu ments, to the besting of which it would be impossible, from the masse we have mentioned, to do justice). Their lordships would give him leave to say that in rehemee to the degree of authority to be attributed to the eaminsedal returns which had been so largely quoted floes, is was asoastially needful that they should distinguith between their bearing on the " navigation," and their bear =the " commerce of the country. (Hear.) These se wamas fllesteative of t ‘ h r : s inase lson ell eertai of th y e th o a n t e a as was ef ? ry e ot raig her hi • had been brought forward, however, s if they were cam on a my largo commerce without possessing any Levi gad= at all of its own—in the proper acceptation of that term. (Hsu.) This distinction, which was really of ea- trims importance in a debate of this nature, had been clearly laid down by the late Mr. Wallace, Mr. liaskissea, and Mr. Poelett Thomson in the coarse of the debates re the policy of relaxing the navigation laws is 1826. The noble lord then proeuded to remark on the great danger which the repeal of these laws might occasion to the state, with regard to the supply of seamen, when there was a great urgency for their services. For it was not only neesmary that a great commercial sad maritime empire like this should be provided with naval armaments saMdut to prevent her mercantile marine from being swept by foreign cruisers off the tees, on any sudden outbreak of a war, but to have the machinery in existence which would supply these armaments with sailors qualified for such a service- It had been said, indeed, that however math &lath seamen might be voted under each an emergency, they could not be had— that the men would not come forward for such a servfee. Now he believed that it was a libel on the general character and the feeling of British seamen to hold any such unworthy opinion of thus. (Beer, hear.) lie was fully persuaded that, under any fair degree of encouragement and protection, they would at all times promptly enter into the Queen's service. In the next place, with regard to the operation of these laws on our shipbuilding trade, he must again notice that many of the returns, such as those from the Hansestio Towns, for example, were very deceptive. But the general result of the eviderce taken be. fore the lords' committee of the state of the shipping int.. teat tended to show that our builders should we altogether repeal these laws of !redound navigation, could not compete with the foreign builders. To the latter, material, wages, labour, were all cheaper than to the former. Mr. G. F. Young, one of the +hump examined, had proved that the Baltic built shipping warby no means of so short-lived a character as some had effected to consider it. The average wages paid by the foreign shipowner were 335. per month ; by our own, 46e. ; and, of clause, the freights charged by the foreign were proportionally cheaper than those required by the British owner. Our colonists complained, that the facilities affords under recut treaties and arrangements for the entry of foreign shipping into the port of London, and the greatly enhanced facilities for the transport of their cargoes when landed to every other part of the kingdom, deprived them, not only of a very large share of the foreign trade of the country, but of our home trade also. On all these grounds ; the noble lord argued egaiastthe expediency of the motion be , fore their lordships,which he felt called on decidedly to oppcse. Toe noble lord concluded by moving an an amendment that the bill be read that day six months. The original motion and amendment having been pat from the woolsack, --- The Duke of ARGYLL said it appeared to him that there were three great points to be held in view in discussing this measure. The first was the abstract principle* of free trade —the next, was the intrinsic merits of the question—the third, was the political situation of the country. Now, with respect to the abstract principles of free trade, he believed that his own views would be found not to disagree with those manifested by the majority of their lordships' house. But he must express his dissent from the opiuions of the noble and learned it rd opposite as to the grounds upon which Adam Smith had maintained the navigation laws. What were Adam Smith's reuses for refusing to assent to the repeal of the navigator lama ? Became he took it for granted that Eng land was then unable to compete with - foreign nations in maritime pursuits. If Adam Smith had believed that the same thing was true with respect to corn he would have ob. jetted on the same grounds to the repeal of the duties on corn. The queedoe, therefore, in both cases turned upon the point whether England could maintain her maritime supremacy when open to the competition of foreign nations. It he did not think so he would not give his vote for the present measure. There less a prison facie case against England ever being outstripped by foreigners in the struggle for maritime supremacy; and that cue was based on her insular position, on the magnitude of her capital, and on the maritime geoius of the people which hal made England what she now was. But above all he founded his belief of the pr3priety of the present measure on the experience of tl e past, a review of which corroborated him in the determination to which he bad come. lie should say that the histoiy . of the pest presented one con tinuous picture of progressive relaxation and of progressive increase to the amount of tonnage and In the extent of 4:om s:tines. 'The noble lord (Broam) had thrown ors rboard all considerations relating to the reciprocity treaties, for he stated he did not care how many of them there were. But Mr. Retries on the one hand, and Mr. Walpole on the other. (Order, order.) Lord BROUGHAM—Sty hoe. gentlemen in another place. (A laugh.) The Duke of ARGYLL begged pardon if he was out of order. Hon. gentlemen in another place, who advo cared the same views as the noble lord with regard to the importance of maintaining the navigation lams took very different views of the reciprocity treaties. It certainlye was true that the question of reciprocity treaties was not then before the house, but be could not help stating it to be his opinion that the protectionists would proceed to the ex tremity of repealing every one of the reciprocity treaties if they had the power to do so. And why did they not repeal those treaties ? It was not because they believed that by so doing they should be going back to ussound and untenable principle. of commerce, and in point of fact to commercial feudalism, but simply because they cannot get what they want. Now, if it could be clearly proved that the conse quence of the relaxation of commercial restrictions bad bad the affect of increasing in • perceptible ratio the commerce of the country, would not that be a very well-founded and sufficient reason for I goisg on to the end of the course and for opening all the avenues to trade and commerce, se the present measure proposed to dot The noble and l earned lord had objected to the statistics which had been cited with reference to the present bill, and he had expressed his utter want of confi dence in them. He (the Duke of Argyll) would refer him, not to Mr. Porter's tables, but to the statistics furnished by a protectionist writer in the pamphlet styled " Mr. Ricardo's Anatomy of the Navigation Laws Dimmed," wherein it was shown that under the restrictive policy of the United States, British shipping in the ports of that country had sunk in 18 years to less t han one-twentieth of what it had been before restrictive duties were imposed, whilst the moment the reciprocity treaty of 1816 came into operation England began rapidly to recover her position, and she very speedily I regained the point item which she had receded in conse quence of the restrictive policy, commenced in 1792. The same general reasoning applied to the carrying trade. He would now touch upon the political situation of Great Britain, and he could only repeat what he had already stated, that if he were convinced England was not in a condition to compete in maritime affairs with foreign powers he would not vote for the measure—not even if he knew that the re sult of his vote was to induce the noble marquis to resign. Did he so believe he should be less proud of England, and far less hopeful of her future destiny than he now was. The de. name of England werejustly proud of her past pre-eminence on the ocean, but they would be prouder still when she should be proved to be able to enter the lists and to bear off the prise in the pursuits of peaceful industry. (Hear.) The Earl of ELLENBOROUGH said he should be quite content to rest the defence of the navigatkm laws on the speeches of the noble and learned lord and the noble earl who spoke from the bench below him. He entirely agreed with the former noble lord, that there was no connexion between the question of free trade and the present measure. For himself, he had always, when in England, voted for relaxations in the ooea merttial policy of the empire. He had done so because he considered that those relaxations tended to increase the wealth of the country without exposing her to danger. Bat he would vote against the present bill, because be thought that, whilst it might increase the wealth of the country, it would undermine that bulwark which was most closely con nected with her greatness and her present supremacy at sea. At the conclusion of the last war we required for our de. fence 160,000 men, and nearly 1,000 ships. Did we require fewer men now ? Gaits the reverse. Since that period, large settlements had grown up in Australia, needing pro- Motion ; we had now trade with China, at three ports, need Mg protection ; we had most unfortunately carried our colo nization to New Zealand ; we had, in a spirit apparently of sheer romance, added to our establishments Lebuan. At all points we had new settlements requiring protection. Let • war break out, and a force must be seat out to some point of the Pacific, or it would be impossible to keep up a fleet there at all. And let it be borne well in mind that in other impor tant respects we were in a far different condition now than we were is the eve of the battle of Trafalgar. We had not now the supremacy of the am, and if we wanted to claim it we should have to go through a stout battle for it. Suppose Fiasco an antagonist, we should have in France a most formidable competitor. France had at this moment more means than we of blatantly sending out an effi cient fleet to sea, and, for European purpnea, alto gether • greater force, considering how large a proportion of our forte was occupied in distant parts of the world. America presented much the same program with Franca, as compared with our relative condition at the close of the bite war. Then look at the military marine of Russia, a mili tary marine altogether; why, Raria had at this moment Mm 25 to 30 sail of the line, fit for summer service, though not fur winter service. Even the smaller maritime powers, sash as Austria, had availed themselves of the invention of steam to prepare naval forces of greater or less extent (Hear.) No doubt, so far as steamers were concerned, we mould, from our superior advantage. in machinery, compete ' with the foreigner : but, destroy the present system, and we l assaredly should not be able to compete with the foreigner la sailing ships, and it was to sailing ships we bad to look for I the formation of seamen to serve in our line-of-battle ships. It was alleged that the distresses of the West Indies afforded a sufficient reason for the abolition of the existing system, and no doubt there were many appeals from the West India colonies calling for that change ; but the languor, of the petition from Antigua showed that the requisition was wrung from the West Indians, not from any abstract opinion of the expediency of the change, but from • despe rate hope that, all other things failing, this change, though revolting in all other respect. to their feelings, might, per haps, chance to do them some good. Their poverty, and not their will, consented in the matter. (Hear, hear. Thermos of Canada was also put forward ; and no doubt Canada had a strong claim for relaxation, if that relaxation could be given without more than counterbalancing damage to the interests of the empire; but where these ftlssasb preponderated, Canadians and West Indians. must hear in mind that for all great national purposes they ware Englishmen ; Englishmen for whom we, their country men at home, made, whenever necessary, large expenses; gee whose purposes we maintained a large navy and a large twiny; and they must, on their parts, be prepared to taker their pert in any tensporaryi nconvenlence arising from those navigation laws, without which, after all, they themselves would long since have ceased t r f;rni branches of the empire. The people of the various provinces of this great empire,binded together, and consenting . . submit to mutual sacrifices, for mutual object., might securely defy the whole world, and maintain themselves impregnable in the enjoy ment of their real, true, beneficial liberties ; but 'once allow national avarice to absorb every nationol virtue, and the profit of the moment to be the sole ob ect of legillation„and we should fall as others had fallen, wbo had in like rami e abandoned the sole principles which lead to true las k t. neas, and, falling, we should tall unwept, neihononted, graced. (Cheers ) Oa the motion of the Berl of CAameti, the debits was then adjourned till this day. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—MONDAY, MAT 7. The Sezexis took the chair at 4 o'clock. PRIVATE BUSINESS. --- - - - REPORTS CONSIDESED.—Ashton-under-Ly ag p s .. Roe, Markets, and Impfovement Acts Extension and Alamg,,: meat, and Transference of Gas and Waterworks and Obi t Property to the Corporation ; River Dun Navigation Goo; puny (Purchase of Stainforth and Keadby Cabal); BI SECOND READINGS.- Pupils' Protection (Btog es 4 Lunatics' Asylum (Scotland); Bills. 1. THIRD READlNGS.—Caledonian Railway (L use et ! Purchase of the Glasgow, Doubtful, and Neilston way) ; Division of the Living of Richmond and g upon Thames ; Glasgow, Kilmarnock, and Ardoos ag ia lM way, and Ardrowan Harbour Acts Amendment; Balla PUBLIC BUSINESS. PETITIONS PRESENTED. COMITY FINANCIAL BOARIIB.-137 Mr. COBDEN, frig' the guardians of the union of HsWiz. Inc in totem.," ai m township of fitansileld in Halifax, Yorkshire : Mr. any. WOOD (9), from the guardians of Wyck W . * Union, Bud a ,. Westbury-upon•Bersrn Union, Olouoestrrahire ; rateps of Newton, near Manchester ; ratepayers of Colue.ool46i Booth, Greet Hitter, Marsden, Headley Hollows, pm. Close, New Laund Booth, Higham with West Close, Lane.. shire: Mr. BROWN, from Antry, Crosby, Lunt, Kirby Allertos, Orell and Ford, Ince Blundell, Bootle Natters*: Great Crosby : Mr. LUBBINGTON, from churchwarisas of St. James's, Westminster :—in favour of coumy fists boards. Cass or Rev. Ms. Sloss, &c.—By Mr. COBDEN from Wesleyan congregation at lltckmondwikc, 'county el York for a measure for the relief of Mr. Shore, ax ed .! needing clergymen of the church of Enalmul. ILEDCCPION OP PUBLIC SALARIP-9.—By Mr. COMM (for Mr. Hume), from Society for Diffusion of PoWig Knowledge of Taunton, Somerset, for reduc ion of ailsriss. INTEINATIONAL ABBITKATION INBTRAD OP WAR.-14 Mr. COBDEN (for Mr. Hums), fr m Frenohay, Gloucester ; Presbyterians,' congregstion of, It Arbroath; Mr. G. THOMPSON, from a place, name ask hoard ;—in favour of arbitration treaties. MALT TAX Iterzer., &c —By Mr. COBDEN (for Mr. Hume), from clergy, landowners, and farmers, for repeal of the malt tax and retrenchment. EXTZNISION OP SRI SUFFRAGE, &e.—By Mr. COBDIN (for Mr. Hume), from the Exeter Reform Association; from 75 electors and oth r inhabitants of London ; from 17 bred makers of London ; from Castle Acre, Norfolk ;—in term of universal suffrage or manhood suffrage, triennial parkins*, and the ballot. PAROCHIAL SCHOOL 111PROVZHEN? BILL, —By Mr. COBDEN (for Mr. Hume), from a Presbyter/1u magnet. lion at Arbroath, in favour of this bill. REGISTRATION or BIRTHS, MARRIAGES, &e. (ScortAan) Btum.—By Mr. COBDEN (tor Mr. Hume), fmm a pro. byterian congregation at Arbroath ; Mr. LOCKHART, from the eoramtssionen of supply of the county of Lanark; Lord LINCOLN, from the Falkirk Burghs; Mr. C. BRUCE, from Morayshire; against these bills. LUNATIC ASYLUM (SCOTLAND) BILL.—By Mr. DUN. CAN, from Dundee, against this bill. MATIBIAGNB BILL —By Mr . GODSON, from Dudley mg elsewhere, agsiust this bill. NATIONAL EXPENDITURE —By Mr. ELLIOT, Mal places in Scotland, for a reduction of the national co panditure. WRIER CLERGY.—By Mr. J. WILLIAMS, from Wales, scaled the appointment of dergyme n to livar p in the prise cupidity who were not acquainted with the Welsh language. PARLIAMENTARY OATHS BILL.—By Mr. LAtIY, firm Weston-super-Mare ; Mr. FELLOWES, fr. m Huntingdon; Mr. PLUM PTRE, from Twickenham, Hounslow, and other places ; Captain HARRIS, from Christchurch ; Mr. SPOONER, from Marylebone and other places; Mr. NEW DEGATR, from various plates in Warwickshire ; and Mr. STAFFORD, from Northampton ;—against th is bill. LIMERICK AND WATERFORD RAILWAY.—By Sir H. W. BARRON, from the south of Ireland, for public aid in order to complete this line of railway. NEW MEMBER. Mr. Romitmx took the oaths and his seat for Sheffield at the room of Mr. Ward, appointed Chief Commissioner of the lonian Islands. The hon. and learned gentleman was at. campanied to the table by Col. Thompson and Mr. Hum end subsequently took his old seat on the ministetiol side of the home, immediately below the gangaay next to Sir L Inglis. MUNICIPAL OATHS. The Sheriffs of London appeared at the bar, and pre. tented a petition from the lord mayor, aldermen, and com mon council of the city of London, against taking the oath of supremacy in certain municipal wee upon taking office. LEAVE OF ABSENCE. Oa the motion of Colonel TIitSVOB, love of absence was granted to Mr. Saunders Davies for three weeks, on account of urgent private Intense's. EASTERN COUNTIES RAILWAY—THE CHARAC TER OF THE HOUSE. CHARTERIS said—ln rising to ask the question of which I have (given notice, I may state that considerable misunderstanding appear to have arisen as to its object, it being supposed that it is directed against some individual member of this house, than which nothing is further from my intention. (Hear, hear.) In addition to this, as very probably many hon. gentlemen here have not directed their attention to the report to which my question raters, I shall read a short extract from it as published is the daily paws. It is this : In the investigation of the disbursements under the bead of per liamentary expenses, there are several Items the precise character of which your committee could not arrive at. The Items retested to us the following : 1646.—April 17. By parliamentary expenses a £5OO 0 0 April 24. Ditto a 3,000 0 0 April 2& Ditto a 2,406 17 6 Ditto a 1,700 0 0 1347.—June 23. By "Extensions" £9,600 17 6 Ea reference to the amount of the items marked a, namely, 76061., 17a. 6d., the explanation given to your committee by Mr. Wadoington and Mr. Duncan was, that the sum., a.s mated, were dia. buried by th e company through th em, for Pervicer rendered, and in a manner " which did not leave them at liberty to give pat titulars, as , these could not be given without implicating other p.ithes." Now I regret to state that it has come to be reported that those parties are members of the legislature, end there are rumours very prevalent that the sums to which I have re ferred have been expended in what is called facilitatingthe passage of bills through parliament;" is other worth—in plain English—in bribing members of this house. ( Bear.) I cannot believe that any member of this house has bem guilty of conduct so disgraceful and dishonourable ; but, inasmuch as those rumours are very prevalent, it appears to be a matter which must not be passed by without some notice on our part. I therefore think that we are boundto institute a most searching and rigid inquiry into all du circumstances connected with the matter. I confess my belief is, that we shall find little or no foundation for those rumours ; but if it unfortunrcly should turn out other wise, we shall have at least the satisfaction of discovering the guilty persons, and of holding them up to the oppro brium and contempt of all honest and honourable am (Cheers.) I will now ask the noble lord at the head of the government whether his attention has been drawn to the re port which has been recently published by a committee ap pointed to inquire into the management of the affairs of the Eastern Counties Railway Company, in so far as it affects the general character of ibis house ? Lord J. RUSSELL.—The words to which the hon. gentle , man has alluded, and which I will give the house the trouble of again hearing, are these— In reference to the ainouat of the items marked a, namely 7,6061. 17e. ed., the explanstion given is your committee by mr.Was• dineten and Mr. Duncan was, that the ennie, as stated. were disbursed by the company through them, fur services rendered, and in a manner " winch did not leave them at liberty to give particulars, as doe could not be given without implicating other parties." Now I agree with the hon. gentleman that those words do tend to excite suspicions affecting the character end credit of this house. (Cheers.) For my own part, Ido net give the slightest belief to the rumours to which the boa. gentleman has alluded ; but I do arm with him that it would not be right to leave throe words given forth by a committee to the public —a committee of persona known to be men of character—without insti tuting an inquiry. I think it is due to this house. (lieu, heir) Ido not myself think that there would be any ad vantage in the inquiry being instituted on the motion of a member of the government. If it were decidedly the wish of this house, certainly I should not object to ask some mem ber of the government to undertake the inquiry ; but my opinion is that the hon. gentleman, having turned has atten tion. to the subject, and the question being one affecting the character of individual members of the house, it would be better that the inquiry should be in the hands of the hon. gentleman, &misted as he would be, I believe, by a leading person with all parties in this house, than that it should be undertaken by the government. (Hear, hear.) Therefore, agreeing with the bon gentleman in the necessityfor an inquiry. I trust that he, having considered the subject, and taking what means be shell think proper to ascertain the opinions or different member; as to the best mode of instituting and conducting the ir quiry, will himself undertake that import snt subject,.and not let it rest until the whole truth shall be elicited. (Rear, hear.) Hr.-WADDINGTON. — I trust the house will pardon me if Interpose with one or two observations. (Hear, hear.) It isnot my intention ,to offer any remarks with the view of *venting nay inquiry which the houseamay desire. But,l assure the house that I was not aware, until I saw it in print in the daily papers, that the committee had maderthis re mark, " The committee did not further press the question, as it appeared to be one which Mr. Waddington couldtnot 'angers; jest it might be again asked 'in another place.' "e ' made no oNerration before that committee relating to any member of this house, and that being so, I think the house will agree with me that there was no reastn., for Any such remark being • made by the committee. As soon as thaton port oh the-oommittee was made public, the directors ihti , mated that it was their intention to issue observations in re , &relic* to it. That report has sinew been issued, and I will read to the house the remarks which the directorotif the Eastern Counties Railway make with regard to that 7,6061. Thel gaY • In reference to an expenditure, however, of 7,6061., which is re' ferrecleto in the committee's report, the directors think it right to ay that.it wavnade to bring about Important benefits for the comPor. by misting a committee in April, 1646, called the Size-Isno com mittee, formed for the purpcse of carrying oat the reheme of amalga mation with the Eastern Counties and London and York intros'% which had which had shareholde Der. Had amount of been eaves sufficient', bility anti That is ties Rath dem= tl directly a to that 7, to make tleman tradioti , had beta anything received dignatim member. Mr. CI but he vt should t notice th mittee to Mr. E be laid u Lsrd not give friend, tl hours b. been pre Was nut. Mr would b informot papers " cup, lident read, mad in rie fanny high and t chick facts, tion. rdm, that 1 funds that, the 7, tell i ingh natio the c grad' trate OffiCE tion, cil, men qual elect migl prec Com ber tak SW me all ties H • It for . to thi J. • fe bi °*:. 7 4 ti Ps. ti ra fa