Star. — London, England, 1823-06-19 00:00:00

--- PARLIAMENTARY PROCEEDINGS. -. HOUSE OF LORDS, JUNE 18. Counsel was called in, this morning, on the appeal of " Sir William Rae v. Gibson," from the Scotch Jury Court; when the Attorney. General was heard for the appellant, and Mr. Brougham for the respondent. It appears that doubts were en tertained, in the Committee for Appeals, as to how far the con stitution of the Scotsh Jury Court entitled its suitors to appeal from its decisions to this House, and, therefore, it was resolved to transfer the question for argument at their Lordships bar.— Judgment is expected to be given on Friday. The Earlof LI MERICK presented a Peution Irons the Linen Weavers of the County of Forfar, preying their Lordships not to take away the right of stamping, and praying, in general, that the Scottish Linen Manufacture 13111 might not pass into a law. The Duke of ATHOL presented a similar Petition (being the third of a series) from the same County, the signatures to which amounted to upwards of 12,000 names. 11Ir. 131.acestraa, Mr. Manse:am and others, brought up the 3lanchester Waterworks Bill, the Registry of Vessels Bill, the London Sub-pavement Bill, and some private Bill, which were afterwards read a first time. The City of Limerick Regulation Bill was read a second time, and committed for Friday next. Upon the motion of the Earl of SHAFTZSIURY, the Prison Laws Consolidation Bill was read a thiril time; passed, and messaged to the Commons. The Offices (Ireland) Compensation Bill passed through a Com mittee, and was reported without any amendment to the House. THE SPITALFIELDS BILL. Lord ELLEN BO ROU GII said, that he had a very brief re port to make. Ile then added, that their Lordships Silk Trade Committee, to whom the pending Bill, together with the Peti tions, were .referred, had met this day to consider the same. Counsel bad been heard fur the Petitioners. But as the Counsel was not prepared to call witnesses, the evidence was, at the re quest of the Petitioners, postponed ; and, therefore, the Com mittee had recommended that the Bill should be read a second time, pro/unties, in order to its being, in the spirit of a Standing Order of the House, referred back to the Committee in its pro per stage. He accordingly gave notice, that he should move the second reading of the Bill on Friday ; so that, if requisite, their Lordships might reassemble in the Committee neat Wednesday. [The explanation is simply this—Having met under the impres sion that the Standing Order for not referring Trade Bills to a Select Committee till after the second reading had undergone no change, whereas it was altered on last Monday, the Committee thought it necessary to remit the Bill fur a second reading, in the first instance. But it was agreed, on Monday, that all Bills relating to Trade should hereafter be referred to a Com mittee on being read only a first time.) —Adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS. • Mr. JA ALES gave notice, that he should to-morrow present a Petition from several thousand Inhabitants of Newcastle, com plaining of the existence of slavery, when he was called to order by the SPUME/, who reminded him that this course was irre gular at this hour of the evening, when only private business was usually transacted. Mr. JAMES sat down stating that the subject alluded to was not black but white slaves—(A laugh). Mr. CURWEN presented a redden from certain Ship- owners of Whitehaven, complaining, that in consequence of the crews of different merchant vessels introducing goods on board clandestinely, ship-owners had frequently been tined very hea vily by the Excise for having goods or articles on board their vessels, which were not contained in the manifest. The Peti- , tioners prayed that some regulation should be introduced in the Customs Consolidations Bill, which would render sailors so act ing to the prejudice of their employers liable for the penal coney- quences of their conduct, by the forfeiture of the wages due, as a penalty to the Excise, instead of proceeding against the filo cent ship-owners whose property had been thus endangered. The C H A NCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said he should, , provided the alteration could be effected without prejudicing the I Excise, give his best attention to the prayer of the Petitioners. , —Read and ordered to be printed. Mr. S. W ORTLEY said, he hoped the House would the subject of the Petition he held in his hand to be investigated,enti when he felt that he should be able to prove all the allegations respecting the state of the Wool Trade. The Hon. Member then presented the Petition of the Merchants and Wool Dealers of Bradford, in Yorkshire, expressive of their:alarm at finding that the duty on the import of foreign wool was about to be taken off. This was only one of a series of Petitions be should have to present to the House on the same subject. A conversation ensued between Mr. Cosmos, Mr. Bantam N-. Rsca.ano, Mr. Roaearson, Dlr. Alderman Taoxesow Hon. H. G. BICIFICZT, and Sir Eow,san Kusacuatuz, after which the Petition was read and laid on the table. Mr. S. WORTLEY then presented several similar Petitions from different places in Yorkshire, road and laid on the table. Lord A. HAMILTON said, the explanation he I should *ow giste was rather to be attributed to the promise he had given to a Noble Lord in that House, than to any •disinclination on his pait to preserve inviolate the privileges of the house. It was rather singular, however, that he was now called on to make this explanation under such circumstances. He should however do it principally with a view to convince the Noble Lord that what he had said on that occa sion he was warranted in saying, because it must na turally be the conviction on his mind, arising out of the facts which took place. Without making any imputation, he had inferred, from certain facts that . occurred, a disposition in the Sheriff to favour his opponent on the occasion of that election. The She riff, it should be remembered, was not an Officer like an English Sheriff; for after having appointed when the election should take place, he had no more to do with it. The Sheriff had, however, acted very irregularly during the election ; for though he had nothing to do with the election, he had risen, in consequence of a vote being given at his (Lord Hamilton's) suggestion, contrary to the in terest of the candidate the Sheriff wished to support, and exclaimed before the Presses, " there's, an honest vote;" obviously wishing by that expression to infer something else. Indeed so very irregular did he con sider that officer's conduct on that occasion, that he thought himself entitled to no small share of praise for his moderation, in not having requested the at tendants of the Sheriff to remove the Sheriff altoge ther out of the Court, as he was entitled to do under the circumstances. Cases might occur in which Sheriffs would be rendered arbitrary at elections. A case of this kind did occur at the timealluded to.— Mr. Sheriff Hamilton, at .the Michaelmas Meeting previous to the election, stated that when the next election was to take place ' he would take care that , every person who possessed the right should bare an opportunity of voting. On the 13th of June, an ac count of the dissolution of Parliament reached Edin burgh, and the Sheriffs of the other counties deter mined to appoint such days as would prevent the, elections of the different counties from interfering.— Sheriff Hamilton appointed the Ist of July for that of Lanarkshire. The day was not so unfavourable to him (Lord A. Hamilton) as others might be, but still even that day would have the effect of rendering some of his supporters useless to him. This, how ever was not adhered to, and Thursday, the 2d of July was fixed. Why, he would ask, was this trans fer made ? Friday, the 3d, was fixed for the election of Renfrewshire, which rendered it impossible for the Sheriff of Renfrew to attend both elections. Had the Lanark election been delayed so long as it might have been by Sheriff Hamilton, it was probable there would have been no contest, as his (Lord A. Hamil-, ton's) success was nearly certain. He would men- t tion one other fact, which the Noble Lord . ( Binning) ! himself might certify. The candidate for Stirlingl was so impressed with the injustice that was done him (Lord A. Hamilton), that he offered to abandon' the contest akogether, to enable his (Lord A.Hamil. ton's) supporters to vote. He had not said all he might in confirmation of his former statement. He would repeat again, that he imputed no motives but what the facts justified. Both Sheriffs not only did not act impartially, but in the way most calculated to injure his interests. BURNING WIDOWS IN INDIA. Mr. PYM presented a Petition from the Clergy and Gentry of Bedfordshire, praying that the House would interfere to put a stop to the practice of bare ing widows in India. Mr. F. BUXTON said the Petition was signed by 2,500 persons of the greatest respectability. Not less than 840 unfortunate women were annually commit ted to the flames in India. This was a fact which called for the attention of the House. The practice was accompanied with circumstances of the utmost horror. On the very same day that the child was left without a father, he became the executioner of his mother, as it ften happened that he took a lighted torch and set fire to the pile on which she was to be consumed. The quantity-of ;fuel was fre-' quently so small that the unfortunate victim was obliged to remain in agony till more could be pro.' cured. He would state one instance out of the many that could be produced. A female, about fourteen, was induced to anent to place herself upon the pile. It was prepared by her uncle. She made her eseape, but was brought back by her relation. She made her escape a second time, and got into a watercourse to avoid the death that was prepared for her. She was brought back; and having been again brought back, was put to death by one of the spectators. No danger could arise from suppressing the practice. It was not tolerated by any other European nation that had settlements in India—the Dutch, .the the Danes, or Portuguese. They were the only Power that permitted it. He hoped the Right 'Hon. Gentler man oppositelMr.W.Wynn) would take it into hii serious consideration. If not, he should himself pro pose some measure on the subject next Session. Mr. W. WYNN said he would not enter late the discussion now, as another opportunity would.occur.' He need not inform the House what difficulties the subject presented. As to his feelings respecting so horrible a practice, or the principle of it, be need not say anything ' there could be only oneopinion on it. But it would be very difficolt to carry their feelings into operation. The circumstances of other Euro pean nations were quite different to thoevin which this country stood with respect to India. Their ter 'titories extended but a few miles round their various settlements, while England had to govern a vast em pire with a population of 60 , 000 , 000 . It appeared 'to him that the matter must be left to the local au thorities. It would be impossible for Parliament to make regulations for every district. The custom, it should be remembered, was not a sew one. There was reason to beiieve that it originated in the re motest antiquity. It might be traced to the time of Alexander the Great. Mr. HUME said, the attention of the Government of India had been slireeted to the eobject. In 17956 under Governor Duncan, strong regulations were av• tered into against the practice, and - it Was prohibitef by the Magistrates, except at e desire of thefamuale herself. These regulations, he thought, mmulek sufficient, but, from local knowledge, he "hula; precate any legislative interference. Mr. WILBERFORCE said, he wags:4.l*a doll strong recommendations from th' be sufficient to put an end to the priefiees. Wellesley found no difficulty in putting an end to lIHKRIIM OF LANARK. Lord BINNING rose to regret that the Noble Lord opposite should have attended several nights suc cessively to hear the explanation be had promised to make relative to the Sheriff of Lanark, who, he before stated, considered himself aggrieved by some obser vations made by the Noble Lord (Hamilton) in the course of a former debate, relative to the election for the county of Lanark in the year 1818. On that-oc casion the Noble Lord asserted, that he had nearly lost his election in consequence of the improper in terference of the Sheriff, Mr. Hamilton. This he stated to have arisen out of the circumstance of the electors, who had but lately obtained the elective franchise, not being permitted to exercise it until they had been enrolled a year and a day. Now it was said that the Sheriff had so managed it as to, give a pre ference to the voters of the person opposed to the Noble Lord, by enrolling those first, so as to give them the right of voting, whilst the Noble Lord's voters were pronounced incompetent. This had af fected about twenty voters of the Noble Lord, whose antagonist had created about twenty more. He had met with other interruptions on that occasion, of which he had an equal right to complain, in the manner of appointing the day of election, by which some of his voters had been prevented from becoming ripe, as it was termed. Now Mr. Sheriff Hamilton had commissioned him on his behalf to state, that without attempting to deny that many of these facts bad been correctly stated, and did occur, there was no ground whatever for charging him (the Sheriff) with acting in a partial or even unusual manner. There was at that precise time a contest for the elec tion of Members held in different other counties, of which ltenfrewshire was one, in which a similar course of pit ceeding had been pursued, and Sheriff Hamilton himself had filled the situation of Sheriff of Lanarkshire for '25 years past, during which pe riod he had unvaryingly pursued the same mode of fixing the coming on of the election. In answer to another alleged ground of grievance, as to alleged partiality, he had only to say, that up to the time of the election he bad remained in total ignorance of the, claims of the competitors, and did not even permit the agents of the Candidates to speak to him on the subject. This was the statement which he had been requested to make to the House, for the purpose of justifying himself from the aspersions thrown out against him, which the Sheriff, as a man of honour, now assured the House peremptorily were totally destitute of foundation. The calumny or misrepre. serration had gone forth, through the medium of the press, to the public and the world, and it therefore demanded as publicly to be met and repelled by his highly respectable friend the Sheriff of Lanark. Upon these grounds, he trusted the House would not think he had improperly intruded on the attention of the House the few observations he bad made. " You shall n , In viding for the Royal Family belonycgeferticloamtion illpha:rperslijamono.: another practice that prevailed in India. The most i other member of'the Royal F am il y learned Pundits were consulted. They said • there ' have any provision made for you." The ca re o f or : was no law for it, and tbs . :king uis Put a stop to it. plate of being diminished, the practice of burning wi- tle,woul4 now come to what he thought ought toy dows had unfortunately increased in some provinces. dose in the case before the House. If she wer e . It could no: be voluntary on the part of those unfor- impostor, he claimed that Ministers should m e: tunate females, for they were, in fact, tied down to t tl i s o e n. dig s n h i e ty w of as th in e p ß o o ss y es al sio P n am o i f l prevent their running away. Mr. FORBES said, he viewed the practice with rejected by the Pub'.ic or by any tribunal, b ut 4 ,Z the greatest horror; but the more they interfered the same time producing no benefit to h erse lf . ii; more he feared it would increase. The Marquis of detailed nothing—not because he had norm" I ; Hastings was obliged to allow, that the m issions a p - detail, for he had it in command from thi s Royafg: pointed for the purpose of putting a stop to it had .sonage (and he should call her so till she h a d t i t ; only added to it. No doubt much might be done by proved otherwise) to say nothing that could be i n the persuasion. It did not prevail in that part of the smallest degree offensive ; but he had it also i n mi . country with which he was acquainted. It would mand from himself to observe, that if a good a n ,, o , be hazardous to interfere in any way but by per- were not given, he should say something so stron g suasion. Those unfortunate women wou ld not be as to be important to the safety of the tountti, - 4 saved by putting an end to the practice o f burnin g ; of the Ministers. He should move for the appoint for, as lie had been informed, there were t wo other anent of a Select Committee on the Petiti on h e lad ' modes in which they might be sacrificed, by drown- presented three months ago. He had not ne g fe et 4 ing and burying alive. If one were put a stop to, to take up the matter earlier through fear, f or f eat recourse would be had to the others. formed no part of his composition : he would p at , Colonel MONEY said, that twenty years b ack at- sue this lad y 's claim to the death, u ntil she as tempts had been successfully made to put down the mined her rights. When it was shewn that sh e practice of immolations, and it was effected without had no claim, and not :ill then, he should wield" ; any disturbance. Reports of similar attempts had his support—( Near). If the Petition wee not been made to Sir John Shore, by Officers in different understood, he begged that it might be read a gs i ni part of the country, and it was stated by them, that for no man had %a right to sit, much less to vote: no ill consequences had followed. Early after the upon a case until be knew the merits of it. I l i Peishwa's dominions became subject to this country, pretended to say, for one, that he was a e ern . o the practice of immolation was successfully checked. sentative of the People; and if a Reform to o k p i ne The discussion of the subject here had already le d to in Parliament, if he did not come in again he s h o a 4 the best results, and he anticipated that a total end be very much surprised—(Hear, hear, and Ifirghte), would be put to the practice before long. The in- He was one of the oldest Members of the House;.h e formation on the subject hitherto was not very cor- had gone through the whole of Mt. Pitts administra rect. It was now ascertained that there was no legal tion ; he had come into Parliament with o Pitt aid sanction for it; such was the opinion of the best in. the Constitution" on his cockade—(Hear, and Lui g i. formed natives. The regulations that had been ter). The Constitution had been his watch-woo adopted rather increased than checked the practice. throughout; and if it had been corrupted theist He knew this had been attributed to the cholera steer- neglect, the blame lay somewhere. Where th ere bus, by which greater numbers of husbands were car- was a fault it ought to be retoedied. To return is Tied off; but it increased in those parts where that the case before the House, he was resolved to persevere, disease did not prevail. In the great city of Benares, He begred ere th d at neg th7 PseutPemitionA h ch e er h on a ta d m la n z bo. upon the the number of immolations was one-fifth less than in other parts of the country. In Calcutta and the to. table might be read. whichT he tb e e t i t p i Pon ub w l i c a s a t h r e en a rd, e r e a a d d , i w a i c th q u a the in t su e d b : sta i t nce ca s oi . reign settlements, this practice was prohibited with out any evil consequence. He feared, however, that the interference of Government would only increase to clud rder an inquiry praying, edby into d thatthe te H tr o u u t se h of herwould be it. The practice of burying alive, which prevailedstate p ainie, leased o in one case, was completely put down by the Su. by which an end would be put to that state of der. preme Government. He trusted that, for the honour dation in . which she was placed. of the British name, and of the Christian Religion Sir G. NOEL, in continuation, said, he would not which they professed, this would also be put an end to. press the question if any of his Majesty's Ministers The Petition was read, and ordered to lie on the table. would give a pledge to institute an inquiry thew Mr. F. BUXTON moved for a copy of all comes- selves. He was not inclined to force on the case, if pondence on the subject of infanticide in Hindostan, not compelled to it ; for no man could have a stronger and of all.proceedings of the India Government re- objection than himself to make any statements, or to lasting to the practice. do anything calculated to injure the Royal Family; Mr. W. WYNN said, he did not rise to oppose the indeed there was no man more attached to the Royal motion, but he feared the correspondence would not Family than he himself was ; he had worn the give the Honourable Member the information he de- " Prince's button" for upwards of thirty years—(.l sired.—The motion was agreed to. , laugh)—he had been very intimate with the King, SCOTCH JURIES. who, when Prince Regent, had had an opportunity Lord BINNING said, he wished to know from the of knowing that there was no class of his people more Honourable Gentleman opposite(Me. Kennedy) when loyal or attached to his Royal Person than his (Sr he meant to bring on the subject of Scotch Juries for G. Noel's) tenantry. If the Petitioner was an is. discussion? . postor, her guilt would appear on inquiry —if, on de Mr. KENNEDY said, he was most anxious to bring other hand, she was unjustly kept out of her birth it forward at the earliest opportunity. It was not his right, in an inquiry that injustice would be awe fault that it had been so long deferred. tanned, and redress would consequently follow; thus EMPLOYMENT ON THE rooa IN IRELAND. in either case, the ends of justice would be attained 1 Mr. S. RICE rose to present a Petition from the The Hon. Baronet concluded by moving that the Pe. Hibernian Philanthropic Society, praying that the tition of her Royal Highness Olive Princess of Caw House would take some measures for promoting the berland, be referred to a Select Committee. employment of the poor in Ireland. He should.take Mr. HUME seconded the motion. He said, be that opportunity of asking the Right Hon. Gentleman knew nothing of the Petitioner, but he felt that it was the duty of. Ministers to inquire into her claims, the Secretary for Ireland, whether he should object to. the appointment of a Committee to inquire into and set the matter at rest one way or another. The the best means of employing the poor of that coon- document purporting to be the Will of his late Ma try ?—at no time had the attainment of that object jesty was in the possession of the Petitioner's cm& been more desirable, or of so much importance, as at tots ; one of the subscribing witnesses to that dos* the-present. He did not concur in all the opinions of ment was Mr. Dunning; and he was informed that the Gentleman (Mr. Owen) with whom had origi- the only person now in existence capable of proving nated the Society whose Petition he (Mr. Rice) had the handwriting of Mr. Dunning had sworn that, to in his hand, but in one mode of providing employ. the best of his belief, the signature of that name was ment for the poor he fully agreed with that Gentle- genuine. His late Majesty was said to have died air man and with the Petitioners, namely, the introduc- testate, but he (Mr. Hume) thought , before that op tion of a long-promised bill for promoting a general position had been acted upon, that the Will in nisi system of draining in Ireland, by which the-necessity don ought to have been examined into and its sal. for granting pecuniary relief to the poor there would dity decided upon. To an application from the Pa be °belated. He begged leave to add that the Nei- titionet to the Lord Chancellor, all that the liable don was signed by a number of respectable persons. and Learned Lord said in reply was, that he had as Mr. GOULBURN was not disposed to object to or authority on the subject ; the only way, therefore, 111 oppose a motion for the appointment of a Committee which truth could be arrived at was through isuptio. of the nature described by the Hon. Gentleman ; he He had himself seen a document in the handcarit* would - go further, and say, that the appointment of of the late Duke of Kent, in which his Royal Iligle such a Committee would give him sincere pleasure; ness expressed his belief that she was the legitim me but he would, at the same time, say that he had daughter of the late Duke of Cumberland; seen , " doubts with respect to the benefits that were antici- other mode by which justice could be done than .14 tweed from the proceedings of such a Committee. inquiry, he had risen to second the motion. Mr. GRATTAN gave Mr. Owen credit for his in- Mr. Secretary PEEL said the worthy Baronet Mg tendons, although he believed that the plans of that the Hon. Gentleman had imposed upon him a * Gentleman were not practicable in Ireland. from which he would willingly have been cussed; After a few words from Mr. S. Bice, the Petition for so ludicrous was the subject in itself, that was ordered to be printed not imagined that it could by any pinata, he in reply to a question put to him.by Mr.GRATTAN, gravely entertained. The worthy Baronet had de- Mi. Secretary PEEL said, that undoubtedly some dared that he acted under " the Royal coaunsads" reports had been received by his Majesty's Govern- of the Petitioner • and he (Mr. Peel) felt in 4. 00 ' assent from the Marquis Wellesley, besides those laid quence that the best course for him to purstiewoeirl before the House ; but as their publication was not be to prove, even to the satisfaction of the Bea lb" calculated to be of public service, they had been with. ronet himself, that the lady in question was preetisiog held. lie wished to state, however, that there was no herself one of the most-impudent imposttnesthathat objection to the production of any documents con- ever been attempted, or that she was the der' aected with the proclaiming of any district in Ireland. some artful and infamous persons. But the no OLIVE " PRINCESS OF CUMBERLAND." Baronet had not stated the case of the Petition' Sir G. NOEL, pursuant to the notice he had given, therefore he (Mr. Peel) would. There lived in War rose to call thr attention of the Housem the Petition wickshire two brothers of the name of Wilmot: 011 e of this Lady. She had, he observed, been now for of them was a Doctor whose name was James; rtg three years applying, but without effect, for the pay- other was named Robert. The Petitioner Nil te e pent of a sum of money alleged to have been be- daughter of the latter, for thinly/SU proof of her blir queathed to her by the will of the late Kiug, which tism as the daughter of Robert Wilmot, aad hi dau. she declared to be necessary Tor the payment of her comparatively humble capacity the Petitioner ba d 'eebts. He was an old Member of that House, though for many years been content to figure. Bat all sr 07ot an old speaker in it, and he feared that the cause once, in the year 1817, she discover ed that she es' this lady would not be much advanced . by any ad- not the daughter of Robert Wilmot, but of his Rol e ventitious-aid from any eloquence of his. His was' Highness the late Duke of Cumberland; however's *otthe eloquence which could make a bad cause ap- 1817, she did not profess to be more than the Meet pear good ; but certainly he never would have taken mate daughter of that Prince. In that year she ac r d e present tf he had not thought it a good one— to be presented to his Majesty (then Prince Re vo thr, hear). He had thought that all the members a Petition, signed with her own name (Olivia Sooner e Royal Family should belong to the Civil List, , The Petition was inclosed is a letter from a persaav i t . W. that some provision should be made for them. whom she had confided the particelars 01 ber liewas'not aware that it was the prerogative of the who represented to his Majesty that the Petitiooer ._ Crown to. say which should be provided for,. and - die daughter of the late Duke of Cumberland. /al' which not—that he could say to hit sister or to any Mrs. Payne, and that she was born in Warwick Cir -.