Star. — London, England, 1801-05-14 00:00:00

I PALIAMINTART P.ROCzsDhvGS. HOUSE OF LORDS, WEDNESDAY, MAY 13. SCOTCH APPEALeCOIIafeI were heard in a <Auk, wherein Stewart Menzies, of Culdares, in the county of Perth, an infant, by the Honour able Henry Etikine, his guardian, is appellant, and Mrs. Elizabeth Mackenzie Beresford, wife of John Claudius Beresford, of the city of Dublin, is refpondent.—Ordercd to proceed on Friday next. DIVORCES. The Order of the Day refpeeting Cope's Di vorce Bill being read, the Counfel for the petition. er appeared at the bar, and Raied to their Lord ihips the with of the party that leave might be given to withdraw the Bill. On this application, The LORD CHANCELLOR exprt fled his difappru. batioa of the conduit of the parties concerned, with repel to the Bill in queftion, and which he felt it his duty, with a reference to the honour of the Houfe and the purity of its proceedings, as well as to the general intereft of the morals of the country, not to let it pars without animadverflon. Itillead of complying with the requeft of the party to have the Bill withdrawn, he would move, that the Bill be rejected. The Earl of RADNOR conceived, that on the oc- cation of Divorce Bills, the attendance of fome Law Officer, properly qualified, was neceffary.— ' He inftanced the cafes of Claims for Peerage, where the Attorney or Solicitor General conflant ly attended on the part of the Crown, in order to fee that the interefts of that branch of the Legit lature were not trenched upon, as well as to affiff, if neceffary, the Houfe in its deliberations. He thought that the affiftance of fomc profeffional per foe, on fuch creations as that in queftion, would be attended with goon effects ; and who, by invef tigating the circumfiances of the cafe, and report ing his opinion of the fame, would be an addition. al fecprity to the Houfe, that nothing improper for their Lordthips to entertain, or objeftionable in the points of view alluded to by the Noble and Learned Lord, thould path unnoticed. The Logo CoasicELLoa alfo fuggelled the pro priety on fuch cecalions, where applications were made to the Sheriff's Court, of appointing fome perfon of competent legal knowledge to affift that officer on the trial of fuch cafes. Lord Tit IILOW tbortly delivered his fentirnents upon the proceedings in quettion. He feemed tb agree in what had fallen from the Noble Lords who had juft fpoken.—The queftion was then put for the rejedion of the Bill, which was inftantly carried in the affirmative. The Order of the Day refpeCting Campbell's Di vorce Bill, was then read : when Lord Ayr AAAAA obferved, that a decided inter pofition on the part of the Legiflature was necef fary to check thefe radices conneled with Di vorces, which, he was lorry to perceive, were, at the rate they were going on here, likely to bring the country in thofe refpeets into as wretched a ti tuation as were the inhabitants of Paris at the worn periods of the Revolution. His Lordflup then touched upon the leading circumflances of Mrs. Campbell's cafe, which he reprobated, as one of very flagrant aggravation. The tendency of what he had to propote in the prefent in fiance, agreeably to the notice he had given, was, that the thould re ceive no advantage from her criminal condul, but be obliged to remain in a fimilar Rate as far as the reftriftion would apply, to that the would have been in were her conduit unimpeachable.— It was to prohibit her from contracting any fccond marriage during the life-time of her prefent huf band, Dr. James Campbell. With yelped to the point of prohibiting her, particularly with refped to the adulterer, he would not then touch upon it, conceiving it to be unneceffiry, as well as his under 'landing that the parties were within the forbidden degrees—what he now propofed did not involve the general principle upon which, though that Houfe had decidedly declared in its favour, the other Houfe of Parliament thought proper to reject, nor did it affimilate to that fpecial claufe which their Lerdfhips were lately pleafed to difapprove of.— All that his propolition would require was, that Mrs. Campbell thould not be permitted to enter into that facred Wale which the had fo feandaloully difgraced, heft,' e the period in which the thould be able to do fo, had her condu& remained aridly proper and virtuous. His Lordtbip then moved, that a claufe be added to the Bill, to the effeft of prohibiting Mrs. Jelle Campbell from contracting any fecond marriage during the life-time of her Paid huthand, James Campbell. The Earl of Rossiya feconded the Motion. Lord MULORAVI obferved, that no pef fon, on that an occatlon, ever came with leis pretenfions to the indulgence of that Houfe than did die wo man in quettion ; or. this, he conceived, there could not exitt two opinions in the Houfe, neither could ' there be entertained the kali idea, that any man thould be fo depraved in mind, fo poor in fpirit, or fo weak in underftanding, as to be found capable of marrying fuch a woman ; but it was not with a reference to either of there confederations that the propoßtion of the Noble Lord thould be con. fidered ; it way, as to the effeft it would produce, which, he contended, would be to introduce a , principle in Legiflation with refped to Divorces, which both Houfes of Parliament bad on different occafions decided in the negative. He did not think an argument in favour of the Claufe could be urged, under the impreflion of the bafenefs of Mss. Campbell's conduit ; that carried a kind of prevention within itfelf ; and, with refpeft to any apprehenfion of her marrying her companion in criminality, the Houle would recoiled, there at prefent esifted a bar to that. He obferved, ano ther objection to agreeing to the Noble Lord's Classic was. that it would in a great degree go to Ore -judge the other Bill. If the view was to pre ferve human nature in general from the corrup ;ions of Mrs. Campbell, why not reftrain her from marrying through life ? In fad, his Lordtbip obferved. it was introducing the lately rejeeted rinciOe by a tide wind, and rather going farther, as this was a general prohibition, and the liefat tempt was only at a pardid reftridinn. With refpc to the point of the parties being within the degrees of affinity, be confidered it as an argument again(' adopting the Mare ; and, he added, it snuft be obanouffiamore improper tokeep a woman entirely from opportunities of reformation, who, perhaps, more than any other, wanted them. With re gard to what had been faid of fuch a Claufe af felting the fate of the Bill, he faid he was of opi nion, that the addition of fuch a Claufe to it, and fo-brought in, mutt, in another place, enfure its rejettion. The Loan COUNCILLOR quitted the Woolfack, not to trouble their Lordfhips at length, he faid, but to offer one or two obfervations, which tome of what bad fallenfrom the noble Lord, he thought rendered it proper in him to do. The principles upon which he fhould vote that night he had more than once (lated to their Lordfhips, and the more he thought of them the more he was fatisfied of their rectitude. With refpeCt to what was faid of the prohibition of intermarrying with the Adul terer being rejeded, he pledged himfelf that a claufe to that effed fhould be propofed. With refpeet to the queries put by a noble Marquis on a former evening, whether a marriage between parties fo circumlianced as Mr. Addifon and Mrs. Campbell was good or bad ? his Lordthip teemed decided upon the point, and obferved, that de lab, fuch a marriage was good in Law until avoided, which was conformable to the principles upon which the Marriage Laws, with a reference to religious con.' fiderations, were founded. It was good, if not avoided, during the life-tame of the parties. His Lordship obferved, that his Motion fhould be made upon the fpecialties of the cafe ) and proceeded t. obferve, that a Clergym'an who fhould knowingly celebrate fuch a marriage as that alluded to, would be punifhable. The Noble and Learned Lord, after dwelling Tome time upon the Law, as applying to thole cafes, teemed to fay, that no confiderations as to the influence fuels Claufe might have upon her fate fhould reftrain him from propofing what be fhould deem juh and falutary, and concluded by repeating, that his Motion fhould be on the fpecialities of the cafe, and not upon ge neral principles. Lord Mu Ix Rave fpoke &only in explanation. The Duke of CLARENCIL obferved, upon what he felt to be the impropriety of his entering into a dircuilion of the points in queftion, after what had been fo ably advanced by Noble and Learned Lords upon the tubjed. His Royal Highnefs teemed to exprefs his furprife at the doubts flatted by a Noble Marquis on a former evening, and his opinion that the difference between void and voi dable, was fo very (mall, as to be fcarcely worth arguing. With refpeEt to the particular Claufe in queftion, his Royal Highnefs expreffed his dif approbation of it. The Houle then divided, when there appeared for Lord AuCklances • Claufe ao--againft it 9 Majority t r. On our re-entering the Houle, Lord MOLGRAVII was addrefling their Lord (hips, and teemed to argue (or the propriety of poftponing the Order refpeding Mrs. Addifon's Divorce Ball, or at leaft deferring the Debate upon it until the Third Reading. The DUKE of CLARENCE fhortly eXpreired his boßility to the Bill in queftion, which he raid was founded upon principles of Morality and Religion, and concluded with moving, that the Order for the fecond reading of the Bill be difcharged, in order (as we underflood His Royal Highnefs) to accommodate certain Noble and Learned Lords, who withed to deliver their fentiments. The Earl of Rossmot fpoke with great ability upon the cafe of Mrs. Addifon, whom he deemed woi thy of the attention ofthe Legillature, and con. fidered it proper that their Lordlhips, though they fhould not go to the full length of granting a Par liamentary Divorce, fhould endeavour to admini ller every degree of practicable redrefs, The LORD CHANCELLOR teemed to ezprefs nearly fimilar fentiments with refpeEt to what fhould be the conduct of the Legiflature on the oc. cafiop, and was in favour of the Bill going to a Committee. The Duke of CULLUM' (poke ably in explan ation. Lord AUCKLAND adverted principally to the great difficulty and embarralfment of the queftion, and with great candour alluded to thole confider ations which preffed o,n either fide. He argued, however, againff the affumption which teemed to be determined, that in going to a Committee up on the Bill, all idea of Parliamentary Divorce was given up ; on that point he was yet undecided, but was perfeCtly open to conviEtion when the day of ditcuffiou fhould arrive. After Come farther converfation, the Order for the feconci reading. of the Bill was deferred till Monday, at three o'clock ; and after difcuffing the remaining Orders of the'Day, their Lordthips ad journed till to-morrow. ~ • ,' • HOUSE OF COMMONS. Coked Er IVID prefented a Bill, founded en the petition of Mr. Coop, to prevent the invention , of making Paper from ftnw, he. from being tranfmitted to foreign countries, by do ing away the neceffity of regiftering that invention in the Pa tent Mice. Sir Wi LLIAN You no prefented a Bill to afcertain tlik amount et the Affctiment of the feveral Parietal throughout Great Bri tain under the Poor Law's. There Bills were read p Brit time, and ordered to be read a fecond time oe Tuefday next. The Militia Adjutants' and Selman? Allowance , Bei Was read a third time aad•paffed. The &coed reading of the Country Bank Note Forgery Bill was deferred till to-morrow. Mr. DICKINSON ga•e notice, that he &mid tomorrow move for the appointment of a Committee to confider the Standing Ord as relative to inclofure bilis. Lord HAWZIIISURY prefented, purfuant to the Order of the Houle, Copies of the Proclamations iffued by his Idajcfty tome time back relative to the Chubb's Mande. Tiede papers were, on the :notion of My. Ladhlngess, after fawn marks from Mr. jones, referred to the Coornistos oopsiwool to maks the Peticlee of the Plasters of the laud Elk Vistait. Mr. Re *oda repotted from dill 01111111111•161111 the Irubjea of allowing Portugal Wines to be holed nod weenhaufsd without payment of Duties. The Re MO= of do Coossittee was read and agreed to, and a Bill adored accialibily. 114111111111. The Houk having rcfolved itfelf into a Com mittee on the Aas of stft and 34th of his pre fent Majeay, relative to Seamen, Mr. SulDoll called the attention of the Commit tee to thcfe Ail& which he conceived to melte very material emendations. He prorated Meat, unwilling to impofe any hardfhips on a clafs of men that deferved fo well of the country as the Seamen, but was of opinion, that the motion he had to propofe would, by making the agreements between Mailers and Seamen more hid and re pdar, tend to the common benefit of both parties, and cOnfiderably to the intereft and convenience of the malting trade of the country, which was fre quently much impeded by the conduct of Seamen negleding to fign the agreement prefcribed by the Ad of the 3ift of the King, who, when engaged, took occafion, on the chip's being about to fail, to refute, on the fpur of the moment, to do their duty, and demanding higher wages than they originally engaged for. The Matter was, under the exilling law, liable to a penalty if he put to fea without having this agreement (ivied ; the Seamen were liable to none. To put both on fomething like an equal footing was his with. He allured the Houfe, that this defed in the laws was much complained of in the Northern parts of this country. It was alto his detign to enlarge the power of Magiftrates on this fubjed, as, if at prefent a Mailer fhould take any Seamen he had employed before a Magif trate, for refuting to put to fea, the feamen might, by denying that refufal, and expreffing his readi nets to obey his commander, evade the penalty, and defeat the end of the law. It was therefore a part of the propofition he meant to offer, fo to ex tend the power of the Magiftrate, that he Mould apply to the original ref - nal of the Sailor to ad, and thus provide againft the fhufiling pradifed fo much to the delay of Ship-mafters,and to the injury of commercial intercourfe. He concluded with moving 3 Refolution according with the fubftance of his fpeech. Mr. WM. Dv tins s difapproved of the manner in which this propofition was offered to the Houk. It concerned very materially the intereft of a body of men peculiarly entitled to the refpeet and regard of this country. The better way would have been, in his opinion, to appoint a Committee to inquire into the circumitances of the cafe mentioned,by the Hon. Member, and to examine how far the new management called for was neceffary. He thought it a meafure of too much importance to be adopted by the Houfe on the mere ftatement of any Mem ber, however refpeetable. Mr. BURDON thought the mode he purfued heft calculated to anfwer the purpofe in view. Should the Refolution before the Committee be agreed to,. a Bill would of courfe be brought in, and printed; and as it was not his intention to carry it complete. ly through this Seffion it might be circulated through the country, and fully examined before the next Seffion by all that were interefted. Mr. Ww. DUNDAS explained. General GAScoIGNE knew the meafure propofed to be highly neceffary, and thought the condo& of the Hon. Gentleman with whom it originated, was entitled to the approbation of the Houfe and the country. Mr. N. Primly approved the principle of the meafure, but confidered it as likely to bear more feverely on the Seamen than on the Matters to that inequality he fhould object. Sir WM. E,JORD fuggefted, as the more eligible way, in order to give time for confideration, to move the Chairman to report progrefs, and ails leave to fit again. Mr. M. A. TAYLOa fupported the propofition before the Committee as effentially reqnifite to put the coafting trade on the fame footing with the fo reign trade. This regulation, if adopted, he was affiired, would operate much to reduce the price of Coils, by facilitating the intercourfe between the different parts of the country. The Sr EAR se was not of opinion that any ftate ment of fad was neceffary in this cafe. The de feets in the Ads under the confideration of the Committee, were obvious to the reafon of every man. To remove them was the object of his Hen. Friend ; he fhould therefore fupport his propofition. He, however, recommended him to adopt the idea of the Hon. Baronet, to move the Chairman to re port progrefs, and afk leave to fit again. After Come further obfervations from Mr. Dent, Mr. W. Dundas, Mr. Jones, and Mr. M. A. Tay lor, the motion for the Chairman to report progrefs, and atk leave to fit again, was put and agreed to. The Houfe having returned, the Report of the P Chairman was received, and the Committee ap pointed to fit again on Tuefday next. The CnaNcseeoaof the Excii any Knave notice that he fhould to-morrow move for the appointment of a Seled Committee to examine the laws relating to the Duties on Salt, and to report their opinion thereon. He alto Rated that he fhould, on Mon day next, in the Committee of Ways and Means, move for certain Taxes in lieu of thole on Printed Linen, and on Pepper exported. WAYS AND 111.1111$ OF IRELAND. Mr. CORRY moved the order of the day for the Houfe to refolve itfelf into a Committee of Ways and Means. Mr. O'Haaa role, not fo mnch on his own ac count as on that of the Members for Great Britain, to re4uca the Right Hon. Gentleman to explain the nature of the motions he meant to fubmit to the Committee ; and be trufted thofe Gentlemen would, when fully informed, be difpofed to paufe, before they confented to make that fupply, which had been annually voted to the Crown_ by the high Parliament, a perpetual grant. The on. Mem ber was proceeding, when The &RA to role to order, fuggefling that the explanation demanded by the Hon. Membcrwould more properly arife in the Committee. The IT oufe refolved itfelf into a Committee. Mr. Coaav (aid,the obje& of the motions he had to (übmit to the Committee was to cover the Supply already voted ; and to provide for the in tacit of the Loan which had been obtained for Ireland. He hoped, after they fhould be fully underfkood, they would prove completely fAtisfac tory. The Refolutions he had to offer were few. The amount of the Taxes he meant to move for was (mall ; and it was not by any means intended to apply for perpetual grants. • The principal ad ditioa,he propofed to the calling Taxes was on the articles' Stamps, and this duty was to be con fined to . ** fame period at which the Stamp-Tax yin Irelaajwas fund. smash; lb° anth bf Zuch. . iSot. He flattered hirnftlf this exilanation would he fufficient. He therefore moved, " That towards railing the Supplies granted to his Majefty, there be laid oa every Bond, Deed, or other obligatory C on : tract, where the principal Sum mill be L J , d. Under tool. an additional Tax of - 0 1 6 Above tool and under 2001. - . 0 2 - 200 1. 5001. - - -0 3 0 soot. wool. - ro 0 100 CI. 15001. • - -015 o - 15001. •••-•• 210001. • - r 0 0 - 10001. •••••. 50001. - 2 0 0 This Refolutiv was agreed to. Alfo on every Inland or Foreign Bill of Exchange, or other Note, exceeding to! and under sol. an additional Duty of os. 3d. Exceeding sob and under tool - - - is. oil. " To be paid In Icilh Currency.—. Agreed to, Alfo a Tax on all Goods, Ships, and Mercbandize 'refuted in Ireland, where the principal Sum Mall not exceed tool.—:.„ 6d. and fo progreffively on every mob in addition. And :so on any fraetional part of toot the Sum of 35.6 d." Sir Joni* PARNELL objefted to this motion, as in no wife calculated to render the Revenue pro duftive, while it would tend to damp the fpirit of fpeculation among commercial men in Ireland, by precluding them from the advantages of that fyi:. tem of under-writing which was fo necefrary to commerce, and the growth of which it would be unfair to prevent among them. If the prattice of infurance could induce the emigration of Englifh capital to Ireland, which be by no means expec ted, it would be Rill more unfair to prevent it on that account. It was, however, abfurd to tax the praftice before it prevailed, with a view'to Revc. nue ; and to tax it at all, with a view to the corr. 'tierce of Ireland, would be illiberal and impolitic. Mr. Coxxy raid no man could be more uawi'. ling than he to propofe any thing in that Houfe which could in the fligh . teft degree prevent Britifh capital from finding its way to Ireland ; but it muff be obvious to every man, that the capital em ployed in infurances was not likely to emigrate to Ireland, or to remove from this city, the centre of our infurance and our foreign exchange. With regard to Revenue, however (mall the produce of the tax might be, it was not definable that any part of the fmall capital of Ireland, which was ne ver fufficient for the legitimate pnrfuits of com merce and manufafture, fhould be applied to the purpofes of gambling. But the principal objeft of the tax, which could be confidered no hurthen to Irifh commerce, was to proteft the Englifh Re venue from fraud ; and it would be ungracious to complain of it when the liberal conduti of Great- Britain towards Ireland was confidered—when it was tecollated that in this Seffion, the firft in which the Reprefentation of England bad legifla ted for Ireland, two molt important advantages had been obtained for the Irifh trade, namely, the liberty of bonding wine and fugar imported for payment of duty, thereby putting them on the fame footing with the Englifh , Merchant, Whx then objeft to the payment of a tax on Inftuances in Ireland which they pay in Great-Britain ? The tax would'be mutually inftrumental to the collec tion of the Englifh Revenue, for a party of Englifh Underwriters might, to evade the tax in this coun try, fend an Agent to Ireland, who could fign the policies there, and have the lofres paid here; thus defrauding !te &kills Revenue without at all be nefiting the frith commerce. In fad, a confider able deal of the foreign infurance might be carried on in that way ; at leaft fuch as the Britifh Un derwriter would have time to tranfmit to his Irifh Agent. Under all the circumftances, he declared he law or heard nothing to induce him to abandon the propofition before the Committee, Much as he refpetled the opinions of the Hon. Baronet an every fubjeft. it JOHN PARNELL oppofed the arguments of • the Right Hon. Gentleman, that it would not be definable to encourage that fyftern of infurance, or gambling, as he termed it, in Ireland, which was I conceived to be efrential in Great- Britain. What, he allied, would become of the tiade of England, if the Merchants were forced to infure in another country or what would be thought Of the wif -1 dom of the Right Hon. Gentleman, (the Chance,- lon of the Exchequer) if he fhould propofe a tax on Englifh Underwriters., merely to preferve the Revenue of Ireland, injuribufly to the commerce of England ? If the Houfe was kat to Ireland, in the cafes cited by the Right Hon; Gentleman, ne fpefting wine and fugar, that wend 'no reafon that • injullice fhould be done to that country on the fub jeft of infurance. _ _ Mr. Ross defended the refolution propofed ; ar guing that it would be unfair to levy a tax in one part of the United Kingdom which was not in another. The queftion before the Committee he conceived to be, whether it would be righrto grant a premium to-the Irak Underwriters to the prep ' dice of England ? Sir J. Patinae'. faid, the quellion rather was, whether it would be•fair or politic to impofe as high taxes on the poor country as on the rich? Be fides it was to be obierved. that the idea mentioned by the Hon. Gentleman, as to the propriety of equalizing the taxes of the. whole Empire, was diametrically oppofite to the.fkualamental lions of the Union.—The Motitin was then *geed • to, and the Report of the Cosonsittsa.was ordefea to be received to-morrow. +.•• • • CLIILGT IICI.OIIIOIII ALL. The CHANCALLOR of thORICHICWAR =WO the Order of the Day for the Houfe going into, a-Chin mittee on the Bill for removing refpaling Perfons in Holy Orders fitting in that Houfe. Mr. VANSITTAILT faid, he had a Petition to pre fent againft the Bill by Mr. Rufhworth, fo 611. as it• affected his individual rights. The CHANCILLOIL of the EXCHIQytt raid, he was not difpofed to oppofe the bringing up of this Petition, although he believed that a fimilir one was not to be found on the Journals of the Houle. The P:titioner flared his right of fitting in Parlia ment was eflabliftled by the decilion ofa Commit- tee, but he could only affert his right to fit in that Parliament in which the Committee eflablifited his right. He apprehended Mr. Rutliworth's intereft was not fuch as to give him any clains'opon this Parliament to receive his Petitioo; at the fame time, as he waited there might be a facility in the Houle of receiviag Petitions, and as this Petition was couched in rdpeEtful language, he would not object to its being brought up. lir. Hoene Toots thought that Mr. Rantworth