The Press. — London, England, 1858-04-17 00:00:00

Henley) we e ready, on the part of the Government, to consent to the appointment of a committee. Lord PALMERSTON thought it was rather a ques tion for the responsible Government to investigate, with the assistance of its law officers, and that they should propose the course which they deemed it proper to be pursued,—either to put an end to the treaty, or to refuse payment of the tax, or to recom mend the same course as had been adopted in the case of the Sound dues. Mr. S. FITZGERALD said if the question were simply a legal one, he should concur with Lord Palmerston that the Government ought to deal with it in the first instance ; but the speech of Mr . Ricardo must have satisfied the house that it was not a mere legal question—that it involved matters for which a committee was the best tribunal • and he hoped Mr. Ricardo would accept the proposal of Mr. Henley. Lord HOTHAM recommended the same course, which Mr. RICARDO consented to adopt, and the motion was withdrawn. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQtrER read the con tents of an important telegram from India, which bad been received by the Secretary of State, an nouncing the fall of Lucknow, and its results. Sir J. TRELAWNY moved the following resolu tion : That the receipt of any species of reward by a member in consideration of the exercise of his influence in that capacity is calculated to lower the dignity and authority of this house, and is a high breach of the privilege of Par liament., He adverted to a recent inquiry before a committee of that house, and urged the importance of protect ing the British Parliament from even a suspicion that justice was sold there to the highest bidder. Lord HOTHLIIL seconded the motion. Sir J. GRAHAM said be did not think any new resolution upon the subject was necessary. Dis tinguished members of the house as agents for the colonies had received a pecuniary reward for their influence in that house without being held to have violated the rule. A new resolution was not required to meet any gross case, while it might give rise to misconstruction. Mr. WALPOLI was of opinion that no new rule was necessary ; that the old rule was better left as it was, since new words, tying up that rule, might hamper the house. The duties of members who were or the legal profession were well defined and well understood, and he asserted with confidence that no new rule was required in their case ; if it was, the resolution should be confined to them. Lord PALMRRSTON entirely agreed with those who considered that the present law of Parliament, which was known and understood, was sufficient for its purpose, and thought the resolution objectionable on account of its vagueness. Sir J. TRELAWNY withdrew his motion. Mr. J. D. FITZGERALD obtained leave to bring in a bill to consolidate and amend the laws relating to juries in Ireland . Mr. Lows, in moving an address for copy of all instructions for the engagement of natives of Africa in the Indian service, and a return of the altera tions in the annual Mutiny Act which such engage ment would render necessary, referred to certain statements in the House of Lords relative to the enlistment of negroes (Kroomen) for service in India. Mr. BLILLtE assented to the motbn, and added other papers. The orders of the day having teen gore thrmigh, the house adjourned a few minutes before ten o'clock. HOUSE OF COMMONS—WIDNXIDAL TENANT-RIGHT. Mr. Msoinne moved the second reading of the Tenants' Compensation (Ireland) Bill. Remarking that the Irish population were to a larger extent dependent upon agriculture than the dwellers in other parts of the United Kingdom, the hon. member described some of the evils and disasters by which the agriculturists of the stater isle had been over taken since 1848, and insisted upon the necessity of preventing the repetition of such calamities. He cited a return showing the condition of the country as regarded the division of farms, the cultivation of various crops, and the system of land tenure. It was, he maintained, most essential to protect the cultivators, most of whom were merely tenants at will, from the tyranny and avarice of their landlords. The O'Doxotiox seconded the motion. Sir J. W.u.su deprecated the continuance of an agitation which, he observed, inconvenienced land lords and unsettled tenants. He reviewed the pre vious attempts to legislate on the tenant right ques tion, and with regard to the present bill contended that it amounted to an entire confiscation of the rights of property. He moved an amendment de ferring the second reading for six months. Mr• J. D. FITZGERALD supported the measure, believing that the oppressive conduct of the land lords had proved a constant cause of misery and pro• vocation to crime 1141014 the rural population in Ire• land, THE PRESS, APRIL 17, 1858. Lord PALMERSTON admitted that the relationships between landlord and tenant in Ireland required improvement, and that the principle of compensa tion to the latter might be beneficially adopted under certain regulations. He objected, however, to the bill before the house, considering it to be much too sweeping in the changes it was calculated to effect. Mr. HASSARD also supported the amendment. Mr. CAraD approved of the bill, which he thought would tend rather to protect than invade the rights of property. Lord NAAS contended that the measure would re duce the value of land in Ireland by one-half, and occasion a gross breach of faith to all the now pro prietors who had purchased property hi the Encum bered Estates Court. On the motion of Mr. DEASY the debate was then adjourned to the 9th of June. The house rose at half•past five o'clock. HOUSE OF LORDS-THURSDAY. THE PASSPORT SYSTEM. The Earl of MALMESBURY, in presenting the cor respondence between the English and French Governments on the subject of passports, described the circumstances that had occasioned it. After the attempt on the life of the Emperor Napoleon, the French Government withdrew the permission given to French Consuls and agents to sign passports for English subjects travelling in France. This, how ever, had been, he thought, unjustly complained of, as it was only fair that strangers should travel with a passport of the country to which they belonged. The plan adopted by the English Government of granting Foreign-office passports on the certificate of a banker or magistrate was found insufficient, and it had been proposed that they should issue passports independently of the Foreign.office. But there was no statute by which they were bound to perform such a duty. To meet the difficulty the Government proposed to increase the number of persons from whom certificates of identity could be obtained, on which application to the Foreign.office could be made. In addition to magistrates and hankers, as at present, all clergymen of different Christian denominations, physicians, surgeons, solicitors, and notaries would be authorized to certify the identity of persons wishing to obtain passports. He thought it impossible that in any part of England a person could be so obscure of condition as not to be able to apply to some one in the seven or eight classes authorized to give a certificate. Agents would be appointed in the chief cities to deliver the passports of the Foreign-office ;_ and the Government proposed to reduce the cost of those documents to two shillings. As to the inconvenience of the regu lations of the late Government, he thought it had been exaggerated, because they had not been under stood. The Earl of CLARENDON explained that the regu lations of the late Government were only provisional. He thought the whole system of passports a great mistake : they afforded no protection against the very persons the authorities wished to guard against ; those persons always had their papers in order, and it was the innocent or ignorant traveller who was exposed to annoyance. This was the opinion of the Emperor of the French, and some years since he attempted to do away with the system, but was de. feared by the difficulties made by his own Go vernment. The Earl of DERBY laid on the table a bill embody ing the recommendations of the select committee of 1856 on the Ecclesiastical Commission. The bill was read a first time. Their lordships then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS-THVIUDAY. LIGHTHOUSES. Lord C. PAGET called attention to the present modes of superintending the lights, buoys, and beacons on the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland, and to the manner in which funds are raised to defray the expenditure thereon, and moved that the house resolve itself into a committee to consider an address praying her Majesty to direct that measures may be taken for giving effect to the recommenda tion of the select committee on lighthouses of 1845, namely, " that all expenses for the erection and maintenance of lighthouses, floating lights, buoys, and beacons on the coast of the United Kingdom be henceforth defrayed out of the public revenue." Lord Clarence drew a comparison between the methods adopted by France and England, giving the preference to the former, and finally suggested means for establishing a more efficient system of lights and a better organization by a central board under the immediate control of Parliament. Mr. HENLEY said, upon the whole he believed that the management of our system of lights was not in so disadvantageous a position as Lord Clarence had represented. At the same time he was not prepared to say that under a central management the whole expenditure might not be reduced ; but a change of system would entail a large outlay for superannutt tions. The Goteruniest, he added, would be ready 377 to issue a royal commission to look into the whole natter, with all its difficulties, which were not few, and by this means he thought a more advantageous solution of the question would he arrived at than by resolution of that house. Mr. LINDSAY insisted upon the injustice of taxing the shipping interest as a body for lights which it was the duty of the nation to maintain. It was not the shipping interest alone that derived benefit from the lights ; the merchant, the shipper of goods, and even the consumer were benefited by them ; the question, moreover, affected other and friendly nations. He objected to handing the matter over to a royal commission. Mr. LOWE agreed with Lord Clarence Paget that the cause of the great expenditure fur lights was the double government of the Trinityhouse and the Board of Trade, and so long as that double govern. mert existed, he believed it would not be in the power of the board materially to reduce the large expenditure. Lord C. Paget proposed to throw these dues upon the Consolidated Fund, but th a first step should be to empower the Minister to deal with the estimates. He should oppose the motion. Mr. CARDWELL observed that a single government meant nothing more nor less than that a large expenditure, and the patronage it involved, should be at once transferred to the Board of Trade. He contended that there was really no double govern ment and no divided responsibility, and that before this charge should be fixed upon the Consolidated Fund, and this increLse of power and patronage given to the Executive Government, the house ought to be informed upon many most important points. He should, therefore, support the proposi tion for inquiry. Mr. Barcriscx recommended Lord C. Paget to adopt the suggestion cf Mr. Henley. Lord PALMERSTON said, although on the main points he agreed with Lord C. Paget, as important changes in the constitution and management of the Trinity-house had been made since the year 1845, he strongly recommended him to accept the pro posal for a royal commission. There was a great plausibility in the argument that these dues ougtt to be borne by the public at large ; on the other hand, the change should not be made until the proper department had the power of controlling the expenditure and providing for the efficient perform. once of the service. Further inquiry on these points, be thought, was requisite. The discussion was continued by Mr. WHITE, Mr. A. SMITH, Mr. PHILIPPS, Mr. Cowart, and Mr. J. E WART. Lord C. PAGET withdrew hig motion, upon the understanding that the Government would issue a royal commission. TRIBUNALS OF Mr. ATETON mov d for a select committee to in quire respecting the expeiiency of establishing tri bunals of commerce, or for otherwise improving the administration of justice in disputes of a commercial nature. The SOLICITOR. GENERAL, not opposing the motion for a committee, examined the nature of the tribunals of commerce in foreign countries, which, though he would not term them remnants of a barbarous age, were very far inferior to our own courts. He was of opinion that Snell tribunals would not be satisfactory to this country, though be did object to the subject being investigated. Lord J. RUSSELL believed that some good might arise from investigating the sutject, though he was very much of the opinion of the Solicitor-General that these tribunals would not be satisfactory in this country, so that lie was not very sanguine as to the result of the inquiry. Alter some further discussion, the motion was agreed to. CHANCERY REFORM. The Sourcrroft•GEnntat moved for leave to bring in a bill to amend the course of procedure in the Court of Chancery. The obj?.cts of the bill were two, both having one end, to enable a suitor to obtain in one court the complete relief he required. One object was to empower the Court of Chancery, in applications for an injunotion, or for specific per formance, to award damages ; the other object was to obviate a difficulty in that court in trying ques tions of fact, by authorizing it to call a jnry to try such questions, instead of sending an issue to a court of law, the witnesses being examined in open court. He proposed that for the present this power should be not compulsory, but discretionary, in the judge. After a short conversation, leave was given to in troduce the bill. Lord J. MANNERS obtained leave to bring in a bill to confirm a contract for the sale, by the Commis sioners of her Ms Hty's Works, of certain lands to the Commissioners et' Chelsea Hospital. The orders having been dispotied of, the house adjourned at eleven o'clock.