Star. — London, England, 1826-02-17 00:00:00

• ,; -,1 • ,v neat o.iediffila attention and that of the Lord Lieu tenantrilld a remedial measure would be accordingly submitted to the Rouse this Session oa the subject.— shottld also have a Bill to propose for thf correction of abuses a more effectual service of civil process in .Ire land—(Hear.)—and another on the suhj- ct of corporate rights. Of the necessity of.a Bill for re gulating the right to sit as Grand Jurors, he was equally convinced, but there wete difficulties sehlch stood in the way which rendered it lea likely he should be so easily or early able to accomplish this as other objects be had alluded to. As to the Irish law of landlord and tenant, it was. intended to in troduce a Bill to amend that of List Session on this head, taking care not•to injure the rights of part'es.— He lastly should advert to the subject of Church Nate, which he kntiv was a popular topic. It had not escaped the head of the lii.h Government, and it was deemed desirable that a Bill should be introlluced for the conso lidation of all the laws as to the Church Rates, and,,the format:on of vestries in that country. It was his inten tion io introduce this Bill to the House as soon as it had been sufficiently shaped and examined. If, theiefore, there were any difference between him and the Right Hon. Baronet, he trusted he would set it as merely o .e of form, rather than of substance. Last Session too, he had as far as possible lent the Right Hon. Baronet all his assistance to aeniedy the real evil of the system in • fashion in Ireland, and this, he trusteJ, was a ptoof of his sincere dispot•itinu to cooperate in the suppression of abuse , . which he believed in Ireland grew principally out of the unbuiinesslike and negligent way in which all bodes of men in that country treated their own . affairs who met at vestries and parish meetings. There was indeed often no intention of doing an act o( injus tice, or displaying partiality in those instances which had bean alluded to by the Right Hun. Baronet, who, if he had examined the Returns with as - much care as lie had been obliged to do, would have found in the Items to which parish rates were applied a considerable sum appro priated to the building or repairing of a Catholic Chapel, or to the assistance of a parish priest; There was then no ground to charge them generally with such a feeling as might be deduced to be their motive, front having heard the Speech of the Right Hon. Baronet. Jt was now particlarly.desirable that a remedy should be devised by the introduction of a valid and substantive measure; and if the Bight Hon. Baronet would consent to withdraw his motion, he 'would take the liberty of substituting what would equally answer ail purposes—a notice of motion for leave to bring in a Bill which • would reach, he hoped, the whole extent of the evil. It would be far more agreeable to himself to act in perfect accordance with the Right Hon. Baronet, if be would permit him to do SO by with drawing his resolution. Sir JOHN NEWPORT asked what was the Right lion. Gen tleman's intention to do with reference to the law as it stood in Ireland respecting the dace of Sheriff. GOULBURN replied, that it was his intention, as soon as he was possessed of the information which was pronused him, he would have it in his power to submit something satisfactory to their consideration. Sir J. NEWPORT replied, that he considered it his duty to press the resolution, which he thought might be entered on the Journals of the House, in perfect consonance with the notice the Right Hen. Gentleman was about to give. He would not there fore consent to withdraw his resolution to make room for the notice of the Eight Hon. Gentleman. • Sir Houma INGLIS observed, that in a great many instances soine parts of the rates were appro priated to the benefit of the Catholic part of the parish. In the case of the parish of Moate, with which he was acquainted, the whole rate only amounted to 431. and the first item was 10/. appropriated to the ma'n tenaoce of the Roman Catholic Chapel: the second, 10/. for the I'resbytetian Meeting House. The first item continued to form a part of the parish rates for above five years, so that in this instance it was clear the Protestant part of the Parish,were contributing gratui tously to the comfort and convenience of Catholics and Disecaers, and the maintenance of a rival Church. Tne Hon. Baronet continued to enumerate various parishes in which a cousiderable proportion of the sums, levied as Church -rates, had been approptiated to the purposes of Roman Catholic education or worship, and it it wool not have bees. too severe a tax upon the patience of the House, he could have gone on much lon2,er to produce instances in proof of the liberality and true Catholic feeling which governed the application of these funds. Oat a tortoer occasion, the Bight Honourable Baronet opposite, had alluded to a speeisl act of liberality, as formin g exception to the general temper of the Pro testant Gentry of Ircland, with regard to Roman Ca tholic win ship. This act of munificence be could assure the Right Hair.. Baronet was not solitary ; he would mention the liberality manifested by Lord Cieriiorne and h , .s family, as even surpassing that of the instance al luded to by the Right Hon. Baronet. If agitators did not put it iii their beads, that they oaglit to quar , ei, he firmly b. lieved that the Protestants a. - ad Catholics of Ire- land would tweet together in vestry in pet sect harmony. • He bad seen one return from a most tespecteble Nli mater it a pari h, vthich stated that the number of pa-1 risoioners usually assembled in vestry WAS front sixty to a hundred, that he had regularly attended these vestries fur a great iiihniber of years, but no account of the re srective nuntler of Catholics and Protestants ba s i ever been taken, because a difference of opinion between them had cover existed. Ihe Right lion. Baronet had spoken of the Church Rates as a heavy burden upon the land owners at Ireland ; rosy the fact was that he had in vet ?wen a rate above tight; came per acre; he did not think it therefore imuu red to' arch a grievance as to call for the interposition of the Legislature.— ' lie knew, on the other hand, an itistat,ce it: which 6d. per acre had bleu kvi,d for the purpose sat building a Catholic Chapel, in a pa. rich where the regular church rate WAS no more than 1 id. The details el the report were no doubt ccrieet, but the inference at tempted to be drawn from them was most erroneous ) The tendency of the resolutions was to degrade the Church Establishment. Sit 11. PARNELL theught that-in the case of Cor potation Nlagistrates great abuses existed, and that they should tie rectified. He had heard that it was intended to erect a new office fur issuing writs; he did not see what good was likely to be effected by the no velty. He thought that the office of Sheriff, which it was then contemplated to abridge, was perfectly adequate for the purposes of the new one, if it were executed according to the original intent. With re spect to the law of landlord and tenant, he understood that the only alteration which was designed to be made was to affect the sub-letting of lands; but he hoped that some rea.edy would be introduced with respect t• 1 ti,e mode of effecting distresses. It would be also necessary to cure the evils which accompanied the pro. eess of ejectment. By some defects which prevail in the law on that subject, landlords were obliged to east inconvenience. He would ask his Right Honourable Fliend opposite (Mr Goolburo), whether it was , .proposed to extend the Bankrupt Laws which prevailed in this country to Ireland, now that the amalgamation of the currencies of the two countries had been proceeded with. He also wished to know whether it was intended to apply the Banking Laws of this country to Ireland? Mr. PLUNKETT was disposed to give every infor rnatsoa in hisepower. With respect to tha bankrupt laws, he bad consulted with the Courts in Ireland, with' the Lord Chancellor, and the Itla.tel- of the Rolls there, and the result was, a conviction that it would be ittex- - , 'pedient to apply the bankrupt lows, es they now existed in this country, to Ireland. As to the Bill for regulating juries in this country, which had been introduced in the last Session, and the introduction of which had done so much credit to his Right Hon. Friend (Mr. Secretary Peel), he though it would not be expedient to make it applicable to Ireland. It would be sufficient to say, that the hasis of that bill consisted of returns of jurors made by Orers-ers of the poor and Churchwardens; Now, in Ireland they had no Overseers of the poor, and he hoped they would long continue without them (hear, hear); and as to the returns made by Churchwardens, he thought that the Honourable Baronet himself would nit 1 Ice to see returns of jurors made by men holding an office from which Roman Catholics were ezcludid. On the subject of the reforms made in the M rgistracy, the Honourable Baronet . had not suggested anything, nor was lie (Nlr. Plunkett) prepared to say that any new measure was in the contemplation of the Irish Government. Since'that reformation had been made he had not heard any complaints on the subject, which on inquiry proved to be well-founded. There was one co nplaint made of the conduct of a Learned Lord in whose department the appointment of Iklagi,traies tested, but the facts of the case we:e, that an Inquiry had been instituted into the conduct of the MAgisti a•e, and that the whole charge from beginning to end was altogether without foundation. He also would take this opportunity of informing the Honourable Baronet, ilia. be had at present under his consider won a Bill for ex- I tending to Ireland some of the most materiel provisiJns contained in the very valuable Act for amending the Bankrupt Laws of England, which was passed last Session. It would, of course, require some considerable alterations to render it applicable to I: e.and ; but after it had been modified, he had no doubt but that it would be found very serviceable for that country. He was also preparing a Bill relating to the law of landlord and tenant in Ireland, which would, he conceived, remedy several abuses, and especially the one of double distress. In his opinion the returns which had been read by the Hon. Member for Duodalk clearly proved, that there was no want of liberality on the part of the Pro:estants of Ireland towards the Catholics of that country ; he conceived, therefore, that the only purpose which the Hon. Baronet could answer by pressing his present re solu•ion would be, that of evincing anger for the past, and not of effecting a remedy for the future. The Hon. Baronet's complaint was not as to the amount of the rate. which were levied, but as to the manner in which they were levied; but it should be recollected, that if any rates were illegally-levied, there was a proper tri bunal in that country to which an appeal might be addressed for a remedy, if the application were nude in due time. Mr. ABERCROM BY wished to make a few obser vations on that part of — the Right Hon. and Learned Gentleman's speech, wherein he informed the House that he purposed conferring a great boon on Leland by extending the statute recently rased for amending the . bankrupt laws here to that country. He (Mr. A.) did not mean to say that chit statute might not contain some useful provisions, but he believed those who praised it most were the members of the profession to $A hich he had the honour to belong, and who had pro fited by it. It had also been muclr lauded, and for a similar reason, by the Commissioners of Bankrupts; but he felt' it his dirty to say, that he considered this enactment much more calculated to cause us:less expense than to promote the inteirsts of those who might have the misfortune to come under its operaiiiin ; indeed, he was somewhat surprised that no notice had as yet 4seen given of bringing in a Bill 1.1 remedy the defects which had been fcsiand to exist in that statute.. He did not consider the objection which had been raised by the Right Hon. and Learned Gentleman to intro :lacing the Jury Bill into Ireland—vis. that there were no ov - crseent of the poor in that country—at all tenable, for there was no necessity that this measure shook be carried into effect in Ireland In precisely the same way that it was carried into effect in England. Mi. Secretary PEEL saw no objection to wending the Jury Bill (which he had had the honour to bring forward for this country) to Ireland. It was not neces sary that it should in every particular follow closely and agree with the Bill for England. Indeed, he did not mean to says that that bill was absolutely perfect, for probably the working of the assizes would suggest such alterations in that enactment as to cau e a con-i -del able improvement in it. In his opinion it would be extremely benefi ial for I•eland, if some officers were apppointed there to correspond with our Lord Lieute nants. The Irish had at present an idea that the Go vet nment there was some mysterious thing quite beyond their comprehension ; where is were there some subor dinate anthotizies there, the people would become more familiarised with the Government, which would have a very beneficial effect. It might nor, indeed, be quite so easy to meet with these officers in Ireland as in England oa account of the latter being the seat - of the Legislature, and the come.' quent absence from Ireland of tsose who were best hued for such sittritions ; but still be trusted that by degrees this object might be effected. lie purposed proposing that the bill for the consolidation of the laws relating to theft should alto be extended to Jieland. The Right Hon. Gentteman concluded by observing, that the lion. Ilaronet might by insisting on putting his resolution to the vote, record his own individual sentiments on this subject, I ;Jut in other reap ects he thought it would be a much more advisable proce.•ding to to:low the course recommended by the amendment. Mr. GRATTAN advised the Hon. Birenet to with draw his resolution, although he admitted that there had been some levies of a most extraordinary nature. In his opinion, what would be most advantageous for Ireland would be to devise some plan for the edu cation of the peasantry of that country. He thought that Gentlemen here ought to be friendly to any plan which would render the lower classes of Ireland more intelligent, and thereby prevent their emigrating in such numbers to this country as to create a serious addition to the poor-rates. Mr. PLUNKETT explained. He thought parts of the Jury Bill, if successful here, might be extended to Inland. Mr. C. HUTCHINSON was glad that the Hon. Member for the county of Wicklow had directed the attention of the House to the devi,ing of some plan for educating the poorer classes of Ireland.; for it was truly deplorable to behold the wretched condition of the peasantry in the south and western parts of that country. He did not indeed, wish the poor laws of England to be extended to Ireland. Mr. MONCK wa► of opinion . that this subject de served the serious consideration of Parliament, and that a coin mittew ought to be appointed to examine into the details of ft. Mr. H. MAR I'IN thought that the Hon. Baronet's re.olutioti would serve well for the preamble of the Bill hid) the Right Hon. Gentleman bad proposed to in trosluce. He conceived that it would be impossible to introduce into Ireland a system of poor laws similar to that 'now existing in 'England. Something however must be done for the poor of Ireland; and the task of providing some legislative measure for their relief could be undertaken by nobody better than the son of the late Henry Grattan. After a few observations from Mr. SIMMS thee, Sir JOHN NEWPORT made a very brief reply. He would not withdraw his Resolutions. He had frequently found that Resolutions that were proposed by him and negatived by the House, had, after a considerable inter- ,'al perhaps of years, "served as the foundation of Mea sures, of which the person proposing theM, took all the omit. He repelled the. imputation of wishing to assail the Established Church. To correct abuses was to strengthen the Church. It was clear from the state ments of the Hon.Xember for Dundalk, the the law required amendment. He would not support ai.y Bill which left the power of correcting abuses exclusively in the hands of the hierarchy. If they had the power now it was plain that they did not eserciss it. After a few words, by way of explanation, from Sir R. bolus and Mr. M. FITSOKNALD, the resolution wa. negatived. The amend ment was then put and carried, and leave was given to bring in a Bill for consolidating church-rates in Ireland. IRISH MARKET TOLLS. Mr. S. RICE r ose. and pip snant to noti:e, called the wtention of the fl.:use to the subject of the Tolls and Customs collected at Marker Towns and Fairs in lie land. The Honourable Membei described the system as being injurious to the freedom of commerce, opotes sive to the poor, and in many cases contrary to law. He moved " that an humble Address he presented to his Majesty, praying that he would he graciously pleased to direct a Commission to issue for the purpose of inquiring into the Tolls and Customs collected in the Fairs, Markets, and Sea-ports of Ireland. Mr. GOULI3UUN alert, ined no disp,sition to pro- tect abuses, and in re i,tiilg this iilotitsii he wishei to guard himself againo that course be:ng considered as giving authlrity to such abuses, if they did exist, wh ch the Hon. Member had described. \Vile') the subject was first mentioned to him by -his Hon. Friend at the be ginning of the Sessi in, he informed him that it had been one of inquiry, and that although the Government were not prepared with any measure at present, they were nor unwilling to apply a remedy, if a competent one could be devised. It was true that tolls were levied in markets in Ireland, and that they pressed upon the poor, and caused much vexation and inconvenience. But this was tint particular to Ireland. Did his Hon. Friend forger, that within a half mile of this House, in. Covent Garden-m srket, one Nobleman possessed the mkt 'lye right of levying t fills upon all produce brought into the market for sale. This was a constant source of dispute, and the tolls in this case pressed equally hard upon the poor, and against that freedom of trade, for which his Hon. Friend was so strenuous an advocate. From the experience he bad of the collec.ion of these tolls, he did not know that they !messed mote heavily than many other charges levied in similar cases. He de prec iced the administering of oaths between the parties, as illegal and highly injurious to the morals of the people. If, ti-refine, he resisied this motion, it was not because he wished to protect abuses, or to countenance illegal exactions. Bur, if the Gentlemen resident in Ireland would do their duty, in advising the parties to resort to legal remedies, the law had provided them ; and the punishment for administering an i'legal nob, or for exacting an illegal toll, would put as e id to such prac tices,at once. The object of the mot on was to have a Committee appointed, to inquire in.o the tolls taken in the different fairs and markets in bel'ind. Now the House had already before them tables of the tees re ceived in all market towns, as returned by the Clerks of the Peace; and if these Commis'ioirers were to inquire into the nature of all the various claims, in the shape of Tolls and Customs, with their history and origin, they might live to the age of Nestor, and yet never be able to accomplish one half of their object. ails Hon. Friend had thrown out that he intended to propose compensation to the parties whose cl iims to these tolls would be abolished; but he thought the House would pause before it threw the burden of so large a sum as would be required for such a purpose upon the general pockets of the people, to relieve one • portion of them from charges which would still remain. Upon these grounds he should vote against the motion. Mr. DENNIS BROWN said that in all cases where an accusation was prererred against the owner of a toll, ht,was compelled to produce his patent. It he appealed to the Assiz s the Judge specially examined the patent, and if it did not authorise the collection, a penalty was inflicted upon the party offending. If an inquiry was to he instituted into two thousand patents, he was sure the remedy would prove worse than the disease. Sir HENRY PA RNELL said, that it was absurd to talk of a remedy by an action at law, to a poor peasant wholly unable to maintain the expense. Mr. PEEL said, that if it could be shown that the existing law was not sufficient to if rd redress to per sons who had been improperly assessed for toll, he would admit it N ould be a fair ground for calling upon Parliament to consider the question. But to appoint Commissioners to examine whether such a case could be made out, was perfectly absurd. If the principle of purchasing the franchises of individuals were pond, why' not extend the application of it to England? The toll which the Duke of Bedford collected in Covent-garden market was, no doubt, - considered very oppressive by those who paid it ; but nobody could dispute the right of the Noble Duke to impose it. Unless it could he shown that the present law was defective, Pediment could not be called upon to legislate on the subject. The appointment of a commission he would decidedly object to. Sir JOHN -NEWPORT said, that whatever might be the Honourable Secretary's opinion as to the defec tive state of the law relating to the collection of tolls, he could assure him that the Courts of Law were inac cessible to the poorer class; and in that case they might as well be without them entirely. The proceedings in these Courts were too expensive to be entered into by any person but by the rich man, and it was not upon him so immediately that this grievance in the toll col ' lec , ion fell. One of the most objectionable parts of tilt pre,ent system was the admitfrering of illegal oaths by the toll collectors. Ti.ose collectors took cieir station at the " custom-gap" of a fair, with, a stick in one hand, and a prayer-book in the other. They swore the carters who broaght goodg to market, as to the amount of their loads, and if they were not satisfied with accounts rendered, they took summary vengeance with the stick—(A laugh.) Mr. PLUNKETT remarked that the statements which had been made of the abuses of the present sys tem of levying tolls in Ireland must be gteatly exag gerated, for if the tolls were so extravagantly high as WAS represented the country Gentlemen, out of whose pockets they must principally be paid, would not fail to make the grievance known, so as to reach the ear of 'Government. The labours of a commission on the subject• in Ireland amounted to 2016, and each of them involved a right to about twenty different kinds of t• 11. The Commissioners, therefore, would have upwards of 40,000 cases to investigate. It would be the work of ge nerations—filii tiatorunt, et fui nawentur ab illis. He must again express his bel;et that the charges of abuses under the existing system were too general, and made on too light grounds. The people would not submit to them Gray's description of " Some village Hampden, that with dauntless breast " The little tyrant of his field withstood." would not perhaps apply to Ireland. But if that country was without village Hampdens. she was in no want of legal Hampden:. The latter were a de,cription of persons who were ■nt likely to acquiesce under the implication of ail grievance, and to whom the eipel •.c of procuring redress would not form a very imptnta:ii objection. If the Hon. mover could suggest any plait for rendering the mode of granting redress more sum' mart', he would pledge himself to endeavour to catty it into effect. It W 2! suggested that the patents for tolls in-Ireland should be purchased by the publid.wev At the lowest estimate the tolls in Ireland were *worth 500,0001. a yeer. Parliemont could not, surely; think of offering the Gentlemen who held the patents lee. than 20 years' purchase, which would amount to thei ono lent te sum of 10,000,0001. He thought that hid Right Bon. Friends the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Pre-: siderit oldie Board of Trade would turn the matter in their mit* a lung time before they resolved to part with such a sum for such a purpose. With respect to illegal oaths, he pledged hi r self, that if any case of that nature should be brought under his notice officially he would direct the Crown st.licitor to institute a prosecution. Mr. MAURICE FITZ ;ERALD felt the more in. clin•d to urge the subject to an inquiry, becattse t w Honour able Gentlemen had stated that these grievance's were qa to new to them. When he refiectel on t!ie active chit acter of these Gentlemen, and their igtoi ante on the subject, it gave him an idea to tow great an extent the evils would go .s ithont the poor people com [staining. In reference t! e te'n.i:k, made by the lion. Act ones General for lrel itt,i, idaitt e zo t:.e w .nt of village Hampdens, be beggei leave to &tier, lot to his ()pinion there were plmty (lie would add, too in iiiy) them in the shape of lawyers, Win we e always reaJy to come forward as patriots, and defend the c iuse of the poor man. But, tor his part, he would rather leave . , them in the hands of the toll gatherers than the lawyers. He should prnpise one remedy, in the shape of permit ting paupers to carry on any subject of complaint through the means of a Grand Jury It was mere nonsense to propose means of redress to paupers which were far toe expensive even for rich men. Sir J. BRYDGES regretted to have heard from the Honourable Memb?r for Waterford., that there was one law in Ireland for the rich and another for the poor. He would not wish that such an insinuation should go forth to the world, as he was satisfied there was but one law for both parties. Sir JOHN NEWPORT did not 'say that tin 1 taus actually existed ; but he 'aid, and he now repeated his asserti n, that an expensive law has effecatally debarred the poor man from prosecuting his claim, as if there were no law at all. In effect, therefore, and in practice, t:,ough net statutably, there did not exist in Ireland one law fur the rich and another for the poor. Mr. It. MARTIN (of Galway) knew that is the county he represented, gross abuses existed in levying tolls; and the greatest abases of all in the town of Galway itself. Nothing could equal the atrocity of the abuses. They existed to such a degree, that the land holders round Galway found the value of their lend reduced two, thtee, and four shidings an acre, through the exorbitant tolls. lie appealed for the truth of his assertiln to his lion. colleague, who had been a de fendant in a suit, where the corporation had been clrarged v. ith exaction of illegal tolls, which suit had been some years in the Court of Chancery. He (Mr. M ,r tin) was ctsposed to agree with the Attorney• General :or Ireland, that reTted es did now exist, the greatest abuses being in cases where the toll was ex icted against the law. Though the law might be eqtyilly adminis tered in Ireland, it was not accessible, any more than the City of London Tavern, to those who had no money. As the Attorney-General for Ireland had declared he would direct the Crown• Solicitor to prosecute where abuses were discovered, he recommended that the motion should not be pressed. The Hon. Member reverted to the subject of the abuses in Galwaj, and observed that tke Court of Chancery had decided, in the case he referred to, that the tolls bad been exacted illegally, and illeg ally applied. Mr. DALY (the other member for Galway) defended himself with considerable warmth against the statements of the Hon. Mem ber (Mr. Martin), to which lie gave the most decided contradiction. Mr. M A RTIN.—(Who had come from an upper bench and placed himself near Mr. Daly)—Do you ? Mr. DA LY.—I do; I give it the most decided contradiction. Mr. M A RTI N.— Yes, you give it here. Don't give it here. (Order, from the Chair.) • Mr. D A I.Y.—The tolls are collected in Galway according to the strict letter of the law. The Honourable Gentleman said, tlia: I was defendant in a Chancery suit. Mr. MARTI N.—l do say so. The SPEAKER.—I trust the lion. Member will not Owe me a second time in the disagreeable situation of calling him to order. Mr. MA RTI N.—l humbly and most penitently ask pardon of you, Sir, if lam out of order. To the House lam ready to otr:r the most humbly apology. Mr. DALY continued.—As the Representative of the Corpora don, he had been made a party to a suit in Chancery, but upon his making oath that he was not a party to the expenditure of a single penny of the funds, he was immediately discharged from all con cern in the suit—(Hear, hear). He defied any one to say that he had ever taken one farthing of the public money—(Hear, hear, hear). He did nut believe any illegal tolls were taken by the cor poration. He had the opinion of a respectable Solicitor, that the tells were ant illegal; and the House of Lords was yet to be appealed to, to protect the rights of the Corporation, and as the illegality of the tolls had not yet been finally decided upon, he thought the Honourable Member ought to apologise for what he had stated. Mr. MARTIN explained. He had not charged the Hon. Menthes with any offence, and therefore he could make no apology. He had not charged him with receiving illegal tolls, nor had he charged him or any tier individual with a misapplication of the money. lie believed the toUs to be illegally exacted, and he did not feel c filled upon to apologise for statin4 his ()pinion. Mr. C. WILSON thought it would be errone tus to comet') the conclusi to that the evils complaiaed of did not exist, merely because they had not come under the cognisance of the Right Hon. And Learned Gentleman, the Attorney General for Ireland. Air. 8. RICE then withdrew his motion. BANK Of IRELAND. Sir 11. PARNELL moved for a copy of the memorial which had been presented to the Lords of the Treasury by vveral merchants and other repectable individuals of the city of Dublin, praying their Lordships to take into consideration the charter of the Bank of Ireland, and consider the expediency of placing this bank on the system of the provincial banks. The whole of Leland, excepting Dublin, had derived advantage horn the sys tem of provincial banks which find been adpoted. The City of Dublin alone had its chartered bank, and was deprived of those advantages prisessed by the country generally. lie trusted Ministers would not be deterred from looking into the subject by any consi deration of the exclusive privileges with which this bank had been invested. It it were deemed expedient to remove the mon-poly ex'stiag, and any loss , A e e consequence of such interference, this might .be 'net by making a f t ir remuneration. It ought to be recollected that the principle on which monopoly was allowed was that of public convenience. If therefore it was now found to be the in terest of the public that the monopoly should cease, there was na just reasons why it should not. Tne CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said, the manorial in question he had not seen. He thought thrie could be no real objection to its production, and !re did not mean to make Any. The Right Hon• Gen deman could not, however;Ahink the subject of a nature quite so trifling as it appeared to be in the estimation of the Hon. Member. 'l'm f a mnunt of his suggestion «•a' ibs•'lntely to quash the chAi tered company of the DAC,: rt Irela , ie, without its appeating that they had do c