Star. — London, England, 1824-06-15 00:00:00

. - 'V.- - ~ ~.~.-.~ - imm- - With hollow eyes, and almost extinct voices, they crave from the passers by, a morsel of bread to appease their hunger. Instead of mending, things seem to be getting worse and worse every day, in this ill-guided country. Whether it be owing, as one party says, to the three years licentiousness which the people enjoyed under the Con•titution, or as the other party insist, to the ex cesses which they have been permitted to indulge within the last few months, I know not, but the fact is, that the people seem to have, lost all respect of persons, and all wholesome fear of the representatives of Govern ment. Such a state of this must be speedily put an end to (but how to do it?) or the most fatal results may be expected. It is for this reason that no prudent man will vccept a public employment. The police, instead of iiiminishing, has increased the number of malcontents, h•: meddling with affairs not within their province. The Spanish Gardes du Corps, who had received orders to repair to Aranjuez, to do the service of the Royal person on St. Ferdinand's day, were countermanded just as they were about to set out. his Majesty, on speak ing to Viscottrit Digeon about their coming, was told that for the moment the measure was not advisable. The rage and disappointment of the Spanish Gardes du Corps, as you may well suppose, is unbounded; they curse all that is French, and even d—n St. Louis, be cause he was a Frenchman. PARLIA MEN l'A II Y PROCEEDINGS. HOUSE OF LORDS, JUNE 14. This morning the LIM!, CHANCELLOR sat for Appeals at ten. " Sutton v. Darlington," " Dickson r. Graham, ' and " Cathcart Elliott,"v. were disposed of for Wednesday. Soon after eleven o'cicrck the Lona CHANCELLOR retired, but re turned at twelie. " Connelly v. DP Derntot" was then adverted to, and a minute of Judgment was delivered. " Banks v. Ilolme," from the Court of Session, in Scotland, was affirmed by the Douse. Minute of judgment was delivered in upon " Short v. Firnan," and the further considerattrin was named for Thursday. At four o'clock the Douse adjourned during pleasure, and at half after four the Lona CHANCELLOR returned to his scat. Upon the motion of the Earl Of SHAFTESSURY, the Canterbury Waterworks Ihll, the Dublin Gas Light Bill, the Cocoa Nuts Bill, the East India Goods Bill, the Scut i:.nd Local Stipends B:11, the Irish Tithes Composition Bill, the Vagrant Act Amendment 13111, and some other Bills, wort read a third time, passed, and sent to the Commons. _ _ . .... Mr. BaoGnsas and others, from the other House, brought up the East Imlia Trade Bill and several other which were after wards read a first time. The Das of ATIIOL presented a Petition from the lieritors,' Commissioners of Supply, Landholders, and others, of the CoUtity of Perth, against the new Scotland Judicature Bill. The Duke of GRAFTON' presented a Petition front the Bo rough of Thetford, in Norfolk, against the removal of the Assizes from that place to Norwich ; it bring six centuries :ince the Assizes bad been first hoiden at the former place. The Earl of DERBY presented a Petition from the Justices of the Peace assembled in the town of Liverpool, against the passing %)f the Masters and Workmen BM. The Mike of RUTLAND presented a Petition from the Pawn. Lrokers of Leicester, against the Equitable Loan Bank Bill. Viscount MELVILLE presented a Petition from the Society of tha Writers to the Signet at Edinburgh, against the Scotland Judicature 13111. Viscount TORRINGTON presented a Petition from the Weavers of Spitalfields and Bethnal green, signed by upwards of fogl., in favour of the Equitable Loan Bank Bill. The Duke of LEI NSTER presented a Petition from Ireland, in favour of the extension Of the Lanark System, which he moved should be tatrred to the Committee on the Affairs of Ireland. Viscount TOURIN G . rox seconded the motion. The Earl of LAUDERDALE said, that 31,1:r what had already been urged on this subject, and .after the Newspapers had been Vied with it, their Lordships ouAte. in his opinion t.. treat it with contempt. It the rnottat w 6; iirshisted in by the Noble :Mover he should certaiely glee his negative to it. The five Re soiled Peerages Bills (Stafford, Perth, Mar, Nairne, and Kenmore), were read a third time, passed, and sent to the other I louse. Viscuuht MELVILLE took this occasion to advert to the eliffi cuitlos which were opposed to Naturalisation, as exemplified in the present case of the restored Earl of 3lar, respectieg Scctland, and gave notice that he should endeavour to call the attention of Noble Loads to this subject iti the next Session of Parliament. The Ireland Miniug Company's Bills were read a third time, rased, and 5:01 to the other House. The Earl of EN N 1 SKI LLEN presented a Petition from certain Members of the ancient and honourable Lodges of Freemasons, in Ireland, pr :ling to be exempted from the operation of the Sectet Societies Seppiession Act. A Petition was presented from the Pawnbrokers of Hereford, against the Eq liable Lout Bat& Bill. The Earl i.t LA U DELI DALE (on looking to the Order Bonk) said that he fotiod the third reading of the Dublin Steam Packets Bill stood fur Vi•III3MAY. Ile had objections to the measure, and, when the proper time came, he it,tended to move its postponement for astir her six months. Upon the motion of Lord Csevitortre, the commitment of the Stave Trade Laws Coinufidation Bill was deferred till Thursday,. and their Lordships were ordered to be summoned. The Earl of SHAFTESBURY now proceeded to take the Chair, when their Lordships went into succession of Committees on the Exchequer Bills Piddle Works Bill, the Fisheries Encourage ment and Improvement Bill, the Highland Churches Building Bill, and the Australian Company's Bill, which were reported without any amendments to the House. The Report on the Weights and Measures Bill, notwithstanding some objections from the Earl of LAUDERDALE. was agreed too. Both the Savings' Banks Act Amendment Billand the Warehous ing Bill were respectively read a second time. COUNTY COURTS. Lord REDESDALE now moved the Order of the Day for the second reading of the County Courts Bill, which he advocated at considerable length. The mea sure went to diminish the expenses and facilitate the recovery of small debts; and it originated in the sug t estion of Sir Matthew Hale, who hinted at its propriety a century and a half ago. Lord ELLENBOROUGH, at some length, exposed the anomalies, contradictions, and absurdities of the 13,11, which he described as clogged vial more absur dities than any Bill which he remembered to have been brought up to their Lordships. With respect to him self, so far as he was personally concerned, he must remark that the Bill contained not a single provision, not a clause, for compensating the officers of dime Courts which its enactments went to abolish. When such was the character of the pr esent Bill, and he could instance the situation of the officers of even the Court of King's Bench, he felt quite certain that enough could be adduced by him to influence their Lordships so far as to discard the Bill. Houbjected to the measure on other grounds; it was likely, in his judgment, to increase the mischiefs now complained of, while it was not likely, on the other hand, to effect the slightest good. It was questionable how far the too easy recovery of the p e t t y debts or rather the supposed chance of recovering them, was advantageous on the whole ; and he doubted if the present Bill did not go to diminish, instead of en larging, the jurisdiction of the County Courts. With regard to the Assessors to be appointed under the Bill, he objected to their powers, which were undue, and most unduly to b'exercised. He wished an inquiry to be instituted, and conjured their Lordships not to de stroy at once tribunals as ancient as the common law of their native land. With regard to what had devolved to him, a., Chief Clerk of the Court of King's Bench, he could only now asser t th a t he was determined to maintain what he had beneficially held by virtue and m remuneration of his father's tried services. But, and ~.--~-- he was free to admit it, his property was rather of disagreeable kind ; and although he had nothing to sa crifice. he was ready to accept of any fair arrangement on equitable terms, which might •be offered to him. The LORD CHANCELLOR did not think, and so far be differed from his Noble and Learned Frietld (Re desdale), that the present Bill was likely sb advance the administration of justice; but, at all events, it could not with propriety be passed this Session. With respect to compensation, claims had, he knew, been preferred most improperly in some cases; but then again, there weie other cases in which compensation was certainly due. Not to descend to minor cases, he might instance the situations of Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench and Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, which, unless the appointments attached to those high situa tions were compensated to the holders, the latter were left ia a state of spoliation by the present Bill. At the same time, however, he was aware that many persons were applying for compensation, who in reality were not entitled to any. He trusted that further time would therefore be granted for considering such a Bill as the present, and that ultimately some measure for cornPen sating those entitled to remuneration would go along with it. With respect to the barristers to be appointed to act under the present Bill, he himself could not se riously take upon him, if asked the question, to advise a man of talents and knowleige, and of five years' stand ing at the Bar, to progress four Circuits a year ; and also go where the Secretary of State should require him, for the salary to be allowed him under the Bill, fore going the practice of Westminster Hall, and giving up the brightest hope of his professional life. He had therefore to propose that the Bill should lie over till next Session. Lord REDESDALE, io consequence of what hnd fallen from his Noble and Learned Friend, said that he certainly would refrain flow pressing , the Bill. Lord ELLENI3OROUGII now in:wed that the Bill should be read a second time this day six months.— , The motion was agreed to. Lord la NYON now moved their Lord.hips to go into a Com mittee of the whole House up .n the Wel , ll Great Sessions Amendments were afterwards made by Lord Camino, Lord Re DMALE, and the Loma CitaNcta.toit, after which the lli:1 was reported es amended, and the Ucport was ordered to he re ceived to-morrow. At nearly Fight u'Clock the House adjourned till to-morrow snmiing at ten. HOUSE OF COMMONS. The SPEAKER took the Chair a few minutes befnre. four o'clock. The Southwark Bridge Bill went through a Comattirtee of the whole llouse,and the Report was ordered to be received to- morrow (this day). • The Hibernian Joint Stock Company's Bill was read a third time and passrd. Lord A. HILL presented a Petition from the Roman ettholics reining in the county of Down, prAying for emancipation.—Ordered . _ to be Lid on the table. Mr. C. PELHAM moved for certain returns connected with the Colony of Sierra Leone.—Ordered. Mr. 11U NI E, in rising to present the Petition which he held in his hand, observed that he had had it in WI possession some time, and had taken an opportunity of exantiaiag rune documents re ferred to by the petitioners; but it was impossible for him to an swer fur the correctness of all its details, they were si numerous. The Petition was signed by 14,000 persons, and complained of the abuse of public property which was belonging to the Corporation. The Petition, he consider d, was a very import int one, and de served the scrions attentiotrof the House. It prayed that the Com missioners whom his Majesty had been graciouily pleased to ap point to inquire into the funds relating to Schools in Ireland might be instructed to inquire into the funds of the Corporation of Drog heda. The petitioners complained that the Corporation consisted entirely of Protestants, although Catholics were eligible by law to become members of it. The property in the hands of this body only let for £11,..100 a year, although it was capable of producing from -0143,000 to £20,000 per annum, and it was so let to the mem bers of the Corporation. The petitioners complained, that of the money rice:red by the corporate body, a considerable portion of it was expended in paying the pensions of widows and others who were connected with its members. The petitioners stated that by the :ascii and 29th of Henry VIII. the lands belonging to the Cor poration were to be appropriated to several purposes, which were not now attended to.—The Petition was then ordered to be laid on the table, and to be printed. Mr. HUM E presented a Vetition front an individual, named Edward king, residing in the West Riding of Yorkshire, which stated, that he had invented a method for effectually preventing forgery : —The Pertain' was ordered to be laid on the table, and to be printed. Mr. lIUME presented a Petition from a place in Scotland, praying the repeai of the Combination Laws.—Ordered to be laid oa the table. Mr. HUME withdrew his motion (for the present Session) which stood for to-morrow (this day) relating to Compensation to Slave Holders, in case of the Emancipation of their Slaves. Lord OX M A NTO WN presented a Petition from the Freemasons of King's Couuty, praying that they might enjoy the same privi leges as the Freemasons of England. Mr. M ABER LY gave notice that be should move, next Session, for leave to bring in a Bill for the Repeal of the Assessed Taxes. Mr. HUME put a question to the Honourable Gentleman op. posite (Mr. Ilerries) relating to Portuguese Prize Money. Mr. HERMES said, that the prize money was agreed to he Issued to Lord Beresford and the Portuguese Minister conjointly. The money had not yet been paid, hut it was depnsited in Exche quer Bills, and whenever his Lordship and the Portuguese Minister were prepared to fulfil their pint of the agreement, the money would be transmitted. After a few words from Colonel DAVIES and Mr. Ilmsztes, the conversation dropped. Mr. I.A MIITON said he had to present a Petition from an in dividual well known to the public by his meritr as an artist, he meant Mr. Ilaydon, the historical painter, who was at present la bouring under pecuniary difficulties, not brought on hint by any imprudence of his own, except a too enthusiastic study of his pro fession might he called so. Mr. Ilaydon, in his petition, stated th at historical painting was that part of the art of painting least encou raged, although one of the most useful. He (Mr. Larnbton) agreed is this part of the Petition, be also did in a subsequent part of it, In which Mr. llaydon strin.gif urged the House to set apart a suns of money to encourage and enable individuals to study this branch of the art.—The Petition was brought up, read, and on the motion for printing it, Mr. LA MBTON adverted to the grant of a suns of money, during the present Session, tor the purchase of Mr. Angerstein's pictures. Ile trusted Parliament would not :top here, but that a farther sum would be granted for purchasing the best historical paintings, to be disposed of in the same way as those already pur chased had been. Mr. DENMAN presented a Petition from an individual named Hay, a merchant of Edinburgh, who was at present confined in the jail of that city, complaining of the conduct of the Scotch Courts. —The Petition was brought up and read. A Message from the Lords announced that their Lordships had agreed to Bills to reverse certain Attainder, &c. to which the con currence of the Commons was desired. Sir M. W. RIDLEY withdrew his notice of a motion for a Re vision and Consolidation of the Statutes, which stood for to-morrow, with the understanding that he would bring it on eatly next Session. MR. PAYNE KNIGHTS DONATION BILL. On the motion of Mr. Benzes, Mr. Payne Knight's Donation Bill was read a second time. Mr. HUME expressed a hope that an increased facility would be given, and a proper place provided fur receiving these coins. Mr. ANKES said, that every facility, consistent with the pre servation of the collection, should be given to the PuLlic.—The Bill was ordered to be conimitted to-morrow. MR. ROBERT GOURLAY. The SPEAKER said, he bad now to state to the House that he had this day received a letter, signed by Drs. Munro and Tuthill, respecting Mr. Robert Gourlay, the individual now in custody fur a Breach of the Privileges of the House. With the leave of the House he would now read the letter. The Right Honourable Gentleman accordingly read the letter; in which the Medical Gentlemen stated, that in obedience to the orders of the House On the m ot i on o f M r. B atumi, M r . P ayne K n i g ht' s D o n a ti on Ball was read a second time. Mr. HU MB said, he was confident the example of the respect able dunor would be followed by others, and that the ritlsh Mu- --rr scum Weald 1000.COntain a collection equal to any on the Conti nent, and he hoped every facility would be' given to the public to visit it—(Hear). The Bill was ordered to be committed to-morner. they had visited Mr. R. Gourley several times, and conversed with hint on the subject of various transactions of his life ; and they were decidedly of opinion that hb mind had at different times bees in an unsound state. They were also of opinion that such was the state of his mind in which he on Friday last committed an milk upon an Honourable Member of the House, andlhat he still CS timed in the same state. Mr. Secretary CANNING said, having heard this letter, he was persuaded the House would agree with him, that, as there was no motion at present before the House with respect to this unfortunate Gentleman, none should be made; but that the 13106 t humane course which could be adopted towards him, would be . to let him remain where he is at present, and that his friends should have access to bim.—Here the matter rests fur the present. REVERSAL OF ATTAINDERS. Mr. Secretary PEEL moved the first reading of the Bill to reverse the attainder of Lord Stafford, which he deemed the reparation of an act of injustice ; the Bills for restoring the Lords Marr, Kenmuir, Perth, and Nairn, were different; they were acts of grace and favour—( Hear, hear). —They were severally read a first and second time, and ordered to be committed in the Speaker's chamber. Mr. ABERCROMBY expressed his gratification at the course and selection which his Majesty had been advised to pursue and make on this subject—a feeling which' he possessed, he believed, in common with the rest of the House—(hear, hear). It could not be said that political considerations had guided the selection, and the selection would tend to make his Majesty still more popular in Scotland. Sir JAMES MACKINTOSH said be possessed simi• lar sentiments to tho s e which had been expressed. .There was something exceedingly affecting in behold ing this reversal of the attainder of Lord Stafford, who was murdered by the sword of justice 144 years age. As to the other cases, he trusted that all the attainder arising not of the civil contests of 1715 and 1745 would lie reversed, and thus terminate the remembrance of those discords. Captain BRUCE said he could not fully approve of the selections that had been made. Why should any have been omitted ? (llea r). —Why was the taint to he continued on sonic, and tentoved from others? Why was he. for instance, who was the collateral descendant of Bruce, Lit d Ihirleitill, to be excluded ? He trusted that this matter +sou:Ll be further considered by his Ma jesty and his Ministers, as in justice it ought to be. Mr. Secretary PEEL observed, that, as the restoration of blood was purely an act of grace and favour, and, of course, originating with the Crown, be trusted he should not be called on to give reasons why some had been omitted, for nothing could be more painful than for hint to have to make such explanations—(Hear). The [Lime It Id ample proof that political considerations had net guided the selections —(Hear ). Lord BINNING, being connected with the Peerage of Scotland, could not but express approbation of these measures. As to the case of the Honourable Mover (Captain Bruce), it merited peculiar consideration; as the collateral branches were not affected by the old law of Scotland; he, however, would not say more at the pre sent moment.—Report ordered to ke received to-morrow. LA ND TAX REDEMPTION. _ _ _ Mr. MABEILLY moved that the Report of the Land Tax Redemption Bill be received. He strongly con demned the Tax, and the provisions by which it was to be collected. It was time they were repealed. He proposed that the land-tax should qualify for seats in I i'arliAment and to kid' o: ; and that the Crown should have only such exercise here as it had in other instances. Any savings or advantages from the operation of his amendment he pi oposed should he applied in discharge of the debt ; and it it had fair trial he doubted not that in two years there would be for this purpose, at the disposal of Government, thirty-four millions. Mr. HERMES disapproved of this measure, and of the disadvantages of the accelerations that were re quired, and moved as an amendment, that the Report be received that day six months. The sacrifice requited for one part f the plan was enormous, upwards of 4.00,0001. a year. He could not approve of s enormous a sacrifice, nor did lie think the House would. The pur chase had been calculated at 24 years; in fact, it was worth 40 years. The gain would not warrant the sacrifice. Mr. GRENFELL said, he must oppose the motion, as, under the present state of public credit, it could not be productive of any public benefit. He understood the Chancellor of the Exchequer was willing to ex change land-tax for funded debt of the same annual value, by which the expensive machinery would be done away with, and that was all that was necessary for the public benefit. Mr. HUME said, he could not agree to sell the land tax for twenty-eight years purchase, which would he a great lo , s to the public; besides it was probable that we should be able to reduce the interest of the Funded Debt below three per cent. in which case the reduction of the land-tax at present would increase the loss. He was, however, perfectly satisfied that the land-tax could be collected by the Excise Department, and 1:50,000 a year, the present expense of collection, saved. He would wish to have the measure postponed till next Session, when it might be better considered. Mr. MONCK opposed the motion. Mr. Al ABERLY replied, and said, though confident of the goodness of the measure, he should not divide he House. The question was then put and negatived. IRISH INSURRECTION BILL. Mr. GOULBURN moved the Order of the Day for the second reading of the above Bill. Mr. ROBERTSON said, it was his intention to prove to the House the mischievous tendency of passing this Bill, in the present state of the people of Ireland. It would have the effect of aggravating their feelings, by making England appear to be leagued with one of the parties in Ireland, where it was notorious one party en deavoured to bear down and oppress another. He had recently received a letter from a person connected with one of those parties in Ireland, which was written for the purpose of shewing him the determined hostility of the Roman Catholics against the Protestants there. The writer asserted that the Catholics had taken an oath to exterminate the Protestants, man, woman, and child, on account of their religion. Now there were 2,000,000 of Protestants in Ireland, and not one, he believed, had been put to death, except where some private feel ing of wrong rankled in the mind of the patty commit ting the outrage, and impelled him to transgress the I law. The Honourable Member then proceeded to tead a paper, which was said to be sent forth by certain Magistrates, to whom the execution of the Insurrection Act had been, and would again be entrusted. It was, he observed, one of the most inflammatory Ad dresses that was ever published by any set of men.— After adverting to the frequent assemblage of the Ca tholics, and the disgraceful Acts committed by them, it went on to say, Will you remain in this state of apathy till you see your child reckinz on the rebel pike, 7 7' 77 . IT ':' -..-. W 7r " ..r- 2na the wsfe of yogr bosom satiating the libidinous pls. , sions of a lawless mob? The Insurrection Act is stron,., ,Government will give us every support, and shall K e , under such circumstances, neglect ourselves ? Shall we not use, to its utmost extent, the power intrusted to us?" This was an address of those very Nl.igiiitrates whose duty it would be to put the Insurrection Act in force.—(Here an Honourable Member observed, th at the names affixed to it were fictitious). The paper h a d been printed, and was, he believed, pretty widely di, seminated. The Insurrection Act had put down mai. nation, but it had left those people who conceived themselves to have been injured, as anxious as e, er f or revenge. Such was the fact. " Under the Insurrec tion Act, (he farther observed) men, for little or un cause, were sometimes thrown into prison for itiontll3. 4 It appeared, then, that the Insurrection Act was o il , of many causes; and when it was knos n that po hive evil had been inflicted under ii, why should it be conti. nued ? The chief offences cognizable under th. rection Act were likewise punishable by the ci,:imina law, and therefore the former WAS not nece-ears, Blackburn also stated, that the lowest labottrii in Ireland were not so active in distori,:thccs 4., o.y. small landholders. Now he could not conceive ti.Al House would, in the present state of Ireland, the situation of that people, by forcing this taw n pit •n- He contended that the experience which the Eit,t.:; Government now possessed with respect to the cot system of policy which had prevailed from the Henry 11. down to the present petiOd, WA, . convince the warmest supporters of this measuie was not calculated to answer the ends of peace ail,' tranquillity, much less to allow any favourable tlev;.- lopement of the powers and resources, the industry and virtues of that nation. One party repre,ented the Irish people as noble and generow, grateful and hearted—another party described them as perfidious, untractable, worse than savages. Such a heterogeneous character could not be the real character of ally veople on earth. The fact was, that the Irish character was only conditionally altered. Brave and noblc•spirued as ti,ey had once certainly been, they had shown thentelve, occa sionally perfidious and cruel, because the ticatruent hich they had received under the brutaliLing policy of suc . ces,ive Governments led to that inevitable conwcinence. The report of the Committee WAS really of no use, and had been nullified for all practical purposes by the man ner of collecting the evidence. The Act itself was worse than useless. Under this Act there had been taken o;► since they last met no less than between two and 3,00 persons, not one of whom had been convicted : so 'het here were 3,000 persons let loose upon the pea; :y of the community, who, to all their pi evious reasons for e::,- affection, would naturally add the odium of having suf fered unjustly. And this was the only effect which the Insurrection Act could be expected in reason to produce. Parliament was generally unwilling to travel oil' of the sphere of its own information —(Loughter). Yet he could not help mentioning one circumstance which had occurred in his experience, bearing very much upon' this subject. The Dutch Government was to Java what the English Government had been to Ireland, with an ex cess, if pos,ible, of the pernicious consequences resulting from that mode of rule. The character of the natives, had obtained that atrocious complexion and character, that they were dreaded like the pestilence. No one could venture upon ever so short an excursion into the country, without the defence of an armed escort. Their theft, cruelty, and rapacity, caused them to he shunned as the very worst of evils ; they were not allowed to cone ce board any of the ships which approached the coast, and their presence filled every one with consternation. Yet such was the effect of the mild and just measures ef Government introduced by Sir T. Raffles, that within four years afterwards, he (Mr. Robertson) was in the habit of travelling hundred of miles in the ieterior, with no more than a single attendant in his carriage. The House would do well, therefore, to suspend the Bill, t least till they were better informed. He moved that the Bill be read this day six mouths. Mr. J. SMITH concurred in a great part of what had fallen from the last speaker. He could not sanction such a measure, unless much more satisfactory evidence was produced. He had sat many years in Parliament, but had never witnessed any inquiry into the cause of the distress and disaffection of Ireland. He could not consent to the present measure, because it was partial, and therefore unjust. He had formerly complained of the conduct of the Provost of Enniskillen, and he had been told by the Attorney-Geeral for Ireland, that the facts could not be true. He believed now there was no doubt on the subject. In some of the most agitated parts of the country, the Insurrection Act, had never been applied. By a change from oppression to cnnei. liation, a real union might be effected between the two countries—( Hear) Colonel DAVIES said, that if on the present occa sion he should not oppose the Bill, it was because.be be lieved a change of system had taken place on the part of Ministers. He was therefore disposed to place con fidence in the Executive Government. Lord JOHN RUSSELL said, that he opposed the Bill as a bungling measure of a despotic Government. It was the peculiar nature of the present Bill, that three-fourths of those punished by it must be innocent men, neither enemies of the Government nor deserving of any punishment. Many who had been punished un der the Act, had been ignorant of its previsions, and whose offence bad been stopping too long at a fair. The whole of the Act was founded on the discretion of diffe rent Magistrates, that discretion which had been em phatically termed by Lord Camden, the law of tyrants. In seven out of ten counties, only four persons had been punished. All the witnesses had cautiously abstained from stating that the Act had produced any positive good. He could not consent to pass a most unconstitu tional Act, merely because it was desired by the Magis trates of Ireland, by whom its powers were to be admi nistered. Equal law to all was the only way to conch bate Ireland. He must vote against the motion. Mr. GOULBURN said, he felt as strongly as the Noble Lord, or any other man could feel, when it wes his painful duty to propose this measure, that it was la some degree a departure from the principles of the Con stitution. He was quite aware that the severity el it' enactments exposed it to be argued against as lia'aii: el obuse, yet he was conscious also that a state of thine; existed which called upon Parliament to interfere ee some meads for the protection of property, and l''' putting down, even with extraordinary vigour, 0o:e lawless persons who have confederated to subeett t.e Constituiioe. Upon the same principles, he eras eic• pared to jas;.ify the renewal of the same measure. ‘ l. :'''' could dale to complain of the non-resideuce in lee..ej. if Parliament should refuse to give the only me-u 5 which wouh ,nahle Gentlemen to return to their e tatea in security :' The statement of the Noble Lord (1.07 ,1 John Russell): ncased that the oporatious of this Act nil 1 1 . WIN pea hoc the Le; ETv