The Press. — London, England, 1858-07-17 00:00:00

THE MEMBER'S DIARY. HOUSE OF LORDS. MONDAY. Tana Lordships were edified by a specimen of (tine, in which, however, other " depart ts" besides those of the public service were iplicated. There was an idea suggested in liament last session that the Irish corre_ idence might be sent via the Chester and ,gvhead Railway with more frequent and rapid toPatch than had hitherto been accomplished. Duke of ARGYLL made some explana tons, and gave some promises on the subject at time. As nothing has really been done, REDESD kI.E to-night asked "the reason ." It appeared that a scheme or contract he purpose in view had actually been drawn in September last, but had slumbered peace - in the late Postmaster-General's bureau February. Then, either just before or the entrance of a new tenant into the office, papers had been transferred to the railway ipany, with whom the contract has remained toticed ever since. If the question had ed between the company and Messrs. PlCK the new arrangement would have been tpleted and at work in the course of twelve , In a Government matter twelve months tot sufficient to get anything ddne. As a in which the Chester and Ilolyhead Directors interested stood for third reading, the Duke SOMERSET suggested that the House could ly an effectual screw upon the company. I was adopted, and further progress with the suspended until something is heard about mail-service contract. The Oaths Bill and the Jew Bill left the rouse together. The former went back to the nmons with the Peers' amendments uncan- All, and a sort of " covering letter," as it ould be called in the Foreign-office, containing Lordships reasons for believing that non tristian Members should not legislate for a Tistian community. By the companion Bill was given to the Commons to admit as iy non-Christian Members as they pleased. compromise settles a long-standing feud, in terms something like those of the Peace of !ns, of which it was said that everybody was but nobody proud. It was, however, a Jlation to find from the ill-tempered out weak of Lord GRANVILLE that the clique who '' claim by courtesy the title of a Party are very wage at seeing this bone of contention snatched their jaws. Before their final dismissal both were subjected to the ordeal of division and .red by rather narrow majorities of 8 and 12 respectively in a House which, for the dog-days, • remarkably full. TUESDAY. Lord PORTMAN, who had promised a Church-rate `l this session, mentioned that as Mr. DISRAELI undertaken to deal with the question next he should not take the trouble to frame a ocular measure himself. Whatever hints and suggestions he might have gathered during the wse of some rather extensive inquiries on the ject were, however, quite at the command of ;body who wanted them. Lord DERRY con fessed that the Ministerial plan for settling the atroversy was only among the good intentions :1109e ultimate destiny it was impossible to pre licate, and meanwhile begged for all the assist : which independent members or amateur legislators could furnish. Much business was afterwards got through. • only measure which took up any time was Scotch Universities Bill, which required an :xplanation from the Duke of MowntosE, and -ived some lengthy comments from Lord .DEEM, Lord STA-NHOPE, and the Bishop of "DON. But all the criticisms related to points detail, and the Bill passed its second reading general approval, and many compliments to late Advocate-General, whose handiwork it been. THURSDAY. .ie India Government Bill, which had taken Commons five months to dub into shape, was a second time, after a discussion of less than hours. Lord DERBY'S speech in intro . _mg the me asure , was c hi e fl y hi stor i ca l an d descriptive. Parliamentary etequitte required the Premier should recapitulate a variety of THE PRESS, JULY 17, 1858. circumstances which the House knew perfectly I well before—and, quite aware of this foreknow ledge, he touched very lightly on these familiar facts and well-worn arguments. Subsequent speakers followed this excellent example. Lord GRANVU.LE tried to fulfil the mission he has lately undertaken, which consists in picking holes in every Ministerial proposition. But the holes had all been picked and mended before, and he knew it. His efforts were, therefore, made in the loose and flabby manner in which a man fights when he is only beating the air. Lord ELLENBOROUGH, allowing bygones to pass into oblivion, frankly accepted the measure, and was energetically anxious that as soon as the Act passed, proclamation should be made far and wide throughout India, announcing to our 180,000,000 fellow-subjects there that John Company was no longer their Sovereign, but the great Ranee of whom they had heard, and whose in vincible soldiers they had seen, and sometimes felt. Two little speeches from two little Peers exhausted everything which their Lordships thought it necessary to say on the Bill before passing it through the pending stage. FRIDAY. In committee on the India Government Bill many clauses were passed, amidst copious criti cism, with many amendments suggested, espe cially in the Council clauses, but no alteration of any importance. HOUSE OF COMMONS. MONDAY. The old joust between the two knights con cerning the gold-and-silver-sided shield was re-enacted apropos of the Slave Trade. Both parties concurred in a common object—both held the same opinion concerning the general question—but viewing that question from oppo site sides, the resulting encounter was long and obstinately contested. In the end, though one side was thoroughly worsted—the numbers on the division being 223 to only 24—the defeated party remained unconvinced, fully persuaded as they were, on the testimony as they thought of their own eyes, that the shield about which they had fought was not composed of gold, but of the inferior metal. The special question was raised by Mr. llurr, on the motion for going into Committee of Supply, by a resolution declaring that the African slave squadron should be with drawn. Aided by a party select in number but strong in conviction, the Hon. Member main tained that this squadron was worse than a failure. Its presence did not prevent, as we had too good reason to know, the importation of slaves into Cuba, while it aggravated to a terrible extent the sufferings they endured in the middle passage, besides costing England the lives or health of several hundred seamen, and a round million in money into the bargain. On the other side it was argued negatively that if thousands of negroes were now annually sold into slavery, there would be tens of thousands if our squadron were withdrawn ; and, positively, that a large and expanding commerce in cotton, palm oil, ivory, and other commodities had grown up lately at various points on the west coast of Africa, where the chiefs, if allowed, would revert exclusively to that older and more easily procurable article of merchandize—human beings. Much would be lost, it was said, on the score of humanity, by re calling the squadron ; and much had been gained in the way of commerce by its establishment. Lord PALMERSTON, in the course of the debate, rested the case in defence of the squadron upon " facts." But this was a very imperfect enun ciation of the real question. Facts are valuable only as they are marshalled and compared. For example : take on one side the " fact " that our cruisers prevent so many thousand Africans from being sold to the slave-traders, and on the other the " fact " that their presence aggravates the misery and increases the mortality among so many hundred Africans who, notwithstanding all our efforts, are still ferried across the Atlantic to Cuba who is to strike the balance between these opposite results, and decide whether the preponderance is in the scale of success or of failure ? Or where can the point of equilibrium be fixed between the hypothetical preservation of black men and the actual sacrifice of life among the whites ? These are the two sides of the shield ; and so long as " facts " are regarded from opposite points, every one will see in them nothing but corroboration of his own opinion touching its colour and quality. 677 TUESDAY. Lord JORN RUSSELL, somewhat in a hurry, seeing that neither had " come down " from the Peers, told the House what he should recommend them to do with the Jew Bill as passed and the Oaths Bill as amended. After a good many sen tentious' commonplaces, and a liberal display of rigmarole, the Noble Member explained his proposition, which simply was to accept both the Lords' offers—thankfiffly in one case, and silently in the other. Of course. Monday had been given up by Mr. DISRAELI to debate. To-night was appropriated to busi ness, and a good many Supply votes got through. The discussion was without incident, except that Lord Eumo managed to knock off 3001. charged on account of salary for M. Orro MUNDLER, travelling agent for the National Gallery. WF.DNEBDAY. Supply again, and a few bills pushed forward a stage. THURSDAY. Mr. DISRAELI, according to promise, explained the Government scheme for getting the Thames purified. His plan is simple and compendious. He gives the Metropolitan Board money and power, but expects them to "do the deed" in return. In detail, his proposition involves these provisions :—I. The Metropolitan Board are made a real corporation, with all the permanence which naturally follows from possessing power under Parliamentary sanction to levy a rate of 3d. in the pound on the householders of the metro polis for a period of forty years. This gives them a regular income say, 140,0001. per annum. 2. Government guarantees a loan of 3,000,0001., to be raised by instalments as the drainage works proceed—the above-mentioned income being com puted as enough to pay interest and extinguish the principal of the debt in the forty years. 3. All limitations as to point of outfall, all veto powers heretofore assigned the Chief Commis missioner of Works, arc withdrawn. The Board are left unfettered and uncontrolled, at perfect liberty to select their own scheme, appoint their own engineers, and set about the work in their own way, upon the understanding that London is to be drained and the Thames purified within the next five years and a half. Many Members objected to this reliance on the Metropolitan Board, who had hitherto shown more proclivity to talk than ability in performance. But, as Mr. DISRAELI explained, the Board were young, and had never been fairly tried, having hitherto been trusted only in a " go-cart," with the Chief Commissioner for nurse and attendant. Lord JOIN MANNERS added, that as the Metropolitan Board would levy the money they were entitled to control the works—on the principle " that " those who pay the fiddler may call the tune." 4. Endowed with these powers and furnished with these sinews of war, the Metropolitan Board are enjoined to go and do it—before the end of 1863. Small Irish business, as measured by imperial standard, though great in Irish estimation, lingered the House on until long past one. FRIDAY. The Jew Bill was read a second time by a large majority, and without a single word spoken in its favour. Lord JOHN RUSSELL, who moved the second reading, evidently wished to avoid speaking at all. He made his motion, and sat down. Mr. NEWDEGATE enforced energetically and ably his objections to the Bill. When the Hon. Member ended, in the natural order of pro ceedings, some friends of the measure should have risen to defend it. But defence there was none ; and Messrs. SPOONER, BENTINcx, and ADAMS afterwards followed each other with re newed protests against the measure, which the Member for East - Norfolk observed had not even been properly introduced and explained. Thus forced to say something, Lord JOHN spoke for several minutes, chiefly defending his personal conduct on the question. Lord PALMERSTON called the Bill a piece of patchwork, was sure that the settlement could not be permanent, and reluctantly accepted it, but only as an instalment of the justice which he thinks due to the Jews. Mr. Eln.,Lwv - x disliked the Bill excessively, and denounced it in round terms as long as he could get the House to listen to him; but., neverthe less, voted with Ayes. On the division the num bers stood-156 against 65. So the Bill passed the second reading. The rest of the evening was spent in miscellaneous business. 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