The Press. — London, England, 1856-05-24 00:00:00

480 relating to the convention appended to the treaty of peace, by which the maritime law of the country is modified. That convention was now part of the maritime law of England. It contained some ex: pressions that were very vague, and he thought it important these resolutions should be before the house previous to the day on which Lord Col. chester would draw attention to the subject. THE BANDS IN THE PARKS. Lord PALMERSTON, on Monday, in reply to Mr. Otway, explained that he had received last week a letter from the Archbishop of Canterbury, stating upon his own part, and upon the part of his epis copal brethren, reasons why he conceived that, in deference to the religions feelings of a large part of the community, it would be desirable that the bands playing on a Sunday evening should cease : To that letter (said the noble lord) I replied that I had originally concurred in the arrangement that bands should play in Kensington•gardens and Hyde-park on a Sunday ; that my opinion had been and still was—for I had heard nothing to alter my views—that such an arrangement would afford an innocent recreation, combined with fresh air and healthy exercise, to the inhabitants of the metropo lis ; bat I said that, considering the feeling which had been expressed by himself as the head of the Church, and having also had representations made to me that that feel ing was shared by various other persons, I had to ask myself whether the advantage which would arise from the continuance of those bands on a Sunday woull compen sate for the evil which might arise from running counter to the religious feelings of a large portion of the comma• nity, and to that question I was compelled to reply that it would not. I therefore took immediate steps to discon tinue the playing of those bands in the parks on a Sunday, but that prohibition does not apply to other towns. Mr. OrwAY then gave notice that on going into Committee of Supply he would move for the corre spondence which had taken place between the noble lord and the Archbishop of Canterbury on the subject. JUDGES OF Mr. J. PHILLIIIORE, on Tuesday, moved for leave to bring iu a bill to take away from all archbishops, bishops, and ecclesiastical persons in England and Wales, all power of appointing judges and chancel lors, and vesting such powers in the Lord Chancellor. He should not have brought forward this bill had a more comprehensive measure been proposed, hut as he foresaw that no steps in that direction would be taken, he felt it his duty to go on with this matter. Mr. HADFIELD seconded the motion. He called upon the Government to explain wby the present state of the ecclesiastical courts was allowed to exist. There were already three bills before the house, not one of which had received a second reading. The SOLICITOR-GENERAL did not purpose to offer any opposition to this bill. With respect to the question of Mr. Hadfield, if that hon. member looked to the proceedings of the house, he would see that the measures which the Government had introduced on the subject of the ecclesiastical courts had been delayed, not by the Government, but by the house itself, who had (if he might venture to say so) ,thtered into so much profitless talk that measures of public benefit perforce stood over. Mr. GLADSTONE regretted that his hon. and learned friend (the S )licitor-General) should have charged the house with wasting its time in fruitless and un profitable talk ; the gravamen of that charge being that the house had not read the bills of the hon. and learned gentleman a second time : If that house were given to waste its time in fruitless and unprofitable talk, he (Mr. Gladstone) was at a loss to know why one hon. member should take upon himself to become its censor ; to his mind, it rather became hon. gentlemen to consider themselves as partakers in common in the fault, and not for any one member to assume to himself an exemption from the common failings of man kind, and, from the height on which such assumption placed him, to lecture the house in a speech like that which his hon. and learned friend had just delivered. (Cheers.) I Lord PALMERSTON defended the Solicitor-General from Mr. Gladstone's severe animadversions. He agreed with the Solicitor-General in believing that too much time had been passed in " unprofitable talk." He did not object to the introduction of Mr. Phillimore's bill, but would reserve a right of taking objections at any future stage. Leave was then given. PUBLIC HEALTH ACT. Mr. COWPER, on Tuesday, in moving for leave to introduce a bill to amend the Public Health Act, said he proposed to allow local boards to secure an outfall for their sewage beyond their own boundaries, and to alter the ex►sting law, which prescribed the same machinery to towns possessing municipal cor porations as to towns not enjoying that privilege. Leave was then given to bring in the bill. CHURCH-RATES BILL. Mr. PACEE, on Wednesday, moved the second reading of his Church-rates Bill, which recognised the expediency of abolishing Church rates made for the support of the " services" of the Church, and re stricted them to the following purposes :—the main- THE PRESS. tenance and repairs of the fabric of the church, or the supply and renewal of its necessary fittings ; but, on the recommendation of Sir George Grey and Sir J. Pakington, withdrew his motion pending the con sideration of Sir W. Clay's Church-rates Bill. ADVOWSONS BILL. Mr. CHILD, on Wednesday, in moving the second reading of this bill, stated that it was not a compul sory measure, the object being simply to enable patrons to dispose of advowsons held in trust, for certain purposes, and to borrow money from the governors of Queen Anne's Bounty and other bodies. The motion was seconded by Mr. Ii.ENDLLL, and the bill was read a second time. FIRE INSURANCES BILL. On Monday, on the order for going into committee upon this bill, a discussion of some length arose, and the house divided upon the question that the committee be deferred for six months, which was negatived by 172 to 31. The house went into committee upon the bill, the clauses of which under went much discussion before the preamble of the bill was agreed to. FACTORIES BILL. The house went into committee on Colonel Wilson Patten's Factories Bill on Thursday, after a division of 207 to 50 on an amendment by Mr. Cobbett, that the house go into committee that day six months. The clauses, which relat.d chiefly to the fencing off of machinery, were agreed to with slight amend ments. ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS IN IRELAND. The LORD CHANCELLOR, on Monday, in answer to a question from Lord Donoughmore, said it was his intention to leave the ecclesiastical courts in Ireland untouched, but to establish a court of divorce there similar to the one proposed by the new bill for this country. THE BALLOT. Mr. H BERKELEY, on Tuesday, repeated his annual motion for leave to introduce a bill to take votes by way of ballot. The motion was seconded by Sir DE LACY EVANS and briefly opposed by Mr. PEACOCKE, when the house divided, and negatived the motion by 151 to 111. TREATY OF PEACE. Lord PALMERSTON, on Tuesday, in reply to the Marquis of Granby, said that the only treaty con cluded between England, France, and Austria was that which had been laid upon the table. THE CAMP AT THE CHERAW!. Mr. PEEL, on Monday, in reply to Mr. Hume, stated that the camp on the Curragh would be re tained as a camp of instruction, but it would not be always occupied. THE DEFENCE OF BARS. Lord PALMERSTON, on Monday, in reply to Mr. Oliveira as to whether it was the intention of the Government to extend to Colonel Lake, Major Tees dale, Captain Thompson, and Dr. Sandwith the liberality which prompted the award of a pension to General Sir W. Williams, said that arrangements of that nature should be kept within very narrow limits, and there was no precedent for going beyond the officer in chief command. OFFICERS' HORSES IN THE CRIMEA. Mr. PEEL, on Monday, in reply to Mr. Noel as to whether the Government intended to give compensa tion to officers compelled by the "General Order, April 28," to sell their horses on leaving the Crimea, said that the general order alluded to had not yet been brought officially under his notice. Staff officers were, he thought, entitled to receive some thing from Government, either as compensation for the loss of his horses or for the purpose of trans porting them home. He would take care that the subject should be taken into consideration. A corn • munication had already been sent upon the subject to the camp. Mr. PEEL, on Tuesday, in further reply to Sir John Pskington, said that orders had b een sent to Sir William Cdrington, instructing him that officers entitled to horses desirous of having their chargers sent home to this country, should be allowed that privilege free of expense. THE SARDINIAN LOAN. Mr. DISRAELI, on Thursday, said some misanpre hension appeared to exist upon what bad fallen from the right hon. gentleman on a former evening with respect to the intention of the Government con corning the Sardinian loan. It was supposed that the right hon. gentleman had stated that a bill would be introduced in order to remove any doubts respecting the payment of the balance of the loan. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER replied, that the apprehension described by the right hon. gentle• man was correct. As soon as the matter could be reduced to a convention, or some formal shape, a bill would be founded upon it, and introduced into that house as speedily as possible. THE SARDINIAN NOTES. Lord PALMERSTON, on Tuesday, in reply to Viscount Goderich, said he would have no objection to lay SAtURDAY, ------___-- . before the house the two Sardinian notes of 27th March and 16th April so soo n as an answer had been returned to the latter. COSTA RICA. The Earl of Etaiw, on Monday, read the letter signed by Mr. Hammond, and recently published, purporting to be a promise of a supply of an us being made by the Government of this country to the Government of Costa Rica, and asked the Earl of Clarendon if that letter were genuine. The Earl of CLARENDON said the letter of Mr. Hammond was a genuine letter, and its statement of a supply of arms having been as k e d for by Costa Rica and promised by the English Govern ment correct. He had since communicated with the United States Government on the subject, and Mr. Crampton reported a conversation with Mr. Marcy, on the 15th of March, to the effect that the United States Government entirely disap. proved of General Walker's proceedings. In answer to that, he had suggf sted that there could be no better plan than for the English and United States Governments to unite for the protection of their re spective subjects. The Earl of CLA.RENDuN, on Monday, in answer lo the Earl of Malrnesbury, said it was true that a depu tation from the Circassians had come to the Porte, headed by Sefer Pacha, not a Circassian himself. and who was anything but friendly to the allies. re did not think that they had any particular claim on the allied Governments, and no answer had been sent to the representation addressed to this Govern ment. There was no objection to lay before the house the notes presented to the Paris Conference by the Sardinian Government. The Earl of ALBEMARLE, on Monday, moved the reappointment of the select committee on the govern ment of our Indian territories. The Earl of El LENROROUOH, in the course of the conversation which arose, strongly expressed his opinion of the necessity of investigating the internal administration of India, particularly with reference to the management of the Indian finances. The appointment of an independent board of audit was imperatively called for. Lord GRANVILLE hoped the motion would not be pressed, and it was negatived without a division. THE INDIAN BUDGET. Mr. V. SMITH, in an answer to Mr. J. G. Philli more, on Thursday, said he would bring forward the Indian Budget as soon as he could get a day. THE CASE OF SOBINER. Sir GEORGE GREY, in reply to Mr. Warren, on Tuesday, declined to lay the confidential opinion of the judge in this case before Parliament. lortign 6orrrsponbtutt. BRUSSELS, May 21. THE capital of Belgium has not wholly recovered from its political excitement. But the sentiments omitted in the Chambers by a wise precaution have found vent in the journals without let or hindrance. One, more prepotent than the rest, throws down the gauntlet of defiance—" La preponderance occupee par le Bonapartisme est une menace," which would lead to the supposition that a Belgian column of troops might be ready to march on Givet. The Indipendance hazards, with something like a modest doubt of its academic truth, and as an original axiom, " Rien n'est parfait ici bas." Whether the avowed imperfection refers to the French Minister, the Belgian Constitution, or the immoral article of Belgian press, is not made clear. Setting aside the somewhat burlesqued exaltation of the public in its declaration of constitutional perfection, the demon stration in the Belgian Chambers was highly credit able. There was nothing wilfully exaggerated in its proc"edings, neither were they got up for the occasion. M. Orts put his questions to the Minister of Foreign Affairs concisely, and with proper observations, and they were answered by M. Vilain XIV. in the same spirit. When the Minister, in reply to the demand whether a change in the Constitution was contem plated, replied, " Jarnais," the outburst of applause, or rather the spontaneous ovation to M. Vilain XIV., prevented the conclusion of his speech, and rendered it necessary to adjourn the Chamber. But throughout this political pruriency there has been a mistake as to facts. The attack on the liberty of the press is i one thing, and the licence of that same press s another. It must be remembered that the evil com plained of by the French Minister has not been denied, and more, it has been admitted. Had M. Vilain XIV. concluded his speech he might possibly have suggested that a reform in a land avowedly itu• perfect is not contrary to constitutional princi; The change of the Belgian law in 1852, to a certain degree, has protected foreign Governments from ■