Star. — London, England, 1814-05-03 00:00:00

constitution. It was the duty of every man to assist in the detection and reform of these abuses. "He should confine himself to the proceedings by mesne process, and of those in the cases of trover said bat tery, the verdict might be either for the !defendant • or not, so much as the expence and imprisonment previously imposed. Notwithstanding this, a man might be immediately imprisoned, however innocent, at the sole discretion of the plaintiff. The plaintiff was at any time permitted to make an affidavit of the debt, and on this alone throw the defendant into pri son, which was in other words permitting him to be judge io his own cause, and resigning the scales of justice into the hands of prejudice and passion. This position his Lordship illustrated by several interesting instances. Another grievance also was, that the plaintiff was not obliged to declare before the end of the term following that on which the writ was re turned, so that five months more might elapse before the cause could be bnought to trial, and during all this time the defendant, however just his cause, was suffering imprisoemeiit, and could have no compen sation, unless he could chew that his imprisonment proceeded from malice. A person leaving the coun try for instance, and going to America, might wreck vengeance on any man in this land of liberty, by taking an oath that be was owing him 10 or 413, and thereby subjecting him, for many months, to hardships and privations unknown to the greatest villains, suffering penal confinement for their crimes, and to which persons were not subjected that were suspected of the most atrocious offences. A late Act Clad pa,sse4 raising the slim from ten to fifteen pounds, but this was no advantage, as these rascally attor nies could easily raise a few pounds or a few shillings to the sum required. Would their Lordships thus allow•a salutary Act to be evaded by fraud and chi ;Very- By all o wing this, there could be no sense and ne utility in the proceeding. It often happened that the defendant and the plaintiff were at last in the same prison, because, if the plaintiff was un able to pay the costs, the attorney would send him to keep the defendant .company, after having first set them by the ears. His Lordship sheaved besides from the report, that out of five hundred and twenty cre 'elitors, not more than forty-five had been able to pay a shilling of the debt, and of these twenty-two could Only pay a trifle more than the expence. His Lord- Ship also took a view of the extravagant expence of a apunging-house, and wishe.Lto hear the opinito of a Learned Lord present (Elleilborougli). 01 the law yers he was sure the Noble and Learned Lord on the woolsack would not say a word in their favour— lauzk.) A lawyees bill had sometimes eight and even twelve counts, which were each of then, but one, perhaps a fiction ; of this he gave an instance that had come within his own knowledge, of an actor aoy making twelve counts, in a case of stealing a pair of leather breeches, none of which, except one, were any thing like the truth, ft r saying whicn, the attor ;ley told his Lordship he knew nothing of law, — This was reckoned a very clever attorney, so far as cleverness consists in a man's taking money out of other peoples pc ckets and putting it into his own. He complained also of die mode by which causes were brought into (,oust, that had legally no cognizance of them, by the introduction of mere fi ctions. Mr. brook Watson, once Lord Mayor of London, had lost a kg in the West Indies by a shark ; on one oc casion, when he was inveighing severely against law yers, an attorney present asked a thend, " What made the worthy Alderman such an enemy to law yers r' " Why," says his friend, " Don't you see that he has already lost one leg by the sharks." It was better to begin reform at the head than at the tail, and he called oo their Lordships therefore, whose accidental birth had placed them at the head, to com mence this reform, and abolish for ever the unjust I practice of mesne process, as inconsistent with the rights of Magna Plana, which proved that nobody should be imprisoned unless by the lawful judgment of his peers, or the law of the land, which knew of no mesne process. The object of his first Bill, therefore, was to put an end to all prec:Adaigs by mesne pro cess ; which was read a first, and ordered to bt read a second time. His second Bill was, for the better protection of poor debtors, against petty-fogging attornies, and had for its object that no expence should be included as part of the original debt. This Bill was also read a first time, and ordered to be read a second. • These dill*, he misted, if carried, would destroy the great facility of swindling ;- and, if deify were car ried, he was sure that all the swindlers about town would meet in one of the squares. and hens him (his Lordship) in effigy—( 4 L,80.) susPrimom OF 110111T!LITIE4. Lord LIVERPOOL, by the command a his Royal Highness the Prince Regent, laid on the table a copy of the convention betweeti the allies and the government of France for the suspension of hostilities ; as also a copy of the treaty•Of concert and subsidy be tween this country ar.d the allies. NORWAY. Lord GREY moved that there be laid before the House a copy of all orders given to the officers of eruizers or squadrons on the coast of Norway ; also, an account of the sums paid to the government of sweden, and the number of troops it had brought into the field ; with the time at which the island of Gua deloupe had been actually ceded to that government. These papers were accordingly ordered, and are in -Melded ai preparatory to a motion on the subject of . tiorvay, of which the Noble Earl gave notice tor to ooryow ;!'night.—Adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS. Tits Committee of the whole House on the Election Exiences Bill was, oo the motion of Mr. pooGLA.s, postponed du Than *ay next. Ccatioshaps inelosore Bill was ordered to be read p se cond time on this day si; months. The Cordage Bill was read a third time and passed. The Gas bight and Coke Company BM was read a second tbse, and ordyrtd to be compiled. be third reaetng of the Cambridge Cam' MU was postponed. Sir J. NEWPORT stated that k was no above smooth since be bid moved fur returns of certain Fees received by Judges, Mere of Gyro, kr.. sad not este had yet found its way to the Table of the How. Hs siamid ear move, therefore, that Re turns be made t 9 the NM order forthwith. . tUtillakat PlUe Sir W. cuRTII, niuyt,d the wood reading of tb l 4 Mr t. MONCK wiled the Has. Barton had explained the oteare sad etwsat of the duties to be Oil breveari l / 2 acc 4ll .ll to this au, jaa how fsc they were different hew thee , ass* levisti_l?y loran. A ga , ' Sir w.C1.310.. 11, ob aer ,„A front vortansouth to Loodtm. It'lli...ry7tiolYr-t:tbat.l4ttuteTh'e'rsebowullisdnploy":o: Sannate, and it was tau , ~— " •1 1 40610 enter, except , • su • • • - • • - 8. - ••• '' 4 ;4 ' war d, defraying the expecces Incident to'eeping the harboring happy, filit (or Norway as a power, but for Norway s safia,and good state. as a people. The case of Norway, he believed, was The Hnuee divided Upo nthe second reading, and the Bilt was not much understood in this cottritry : it was one, thrown out by a majority of lt—there being 16 for, and 30 however, worthy of the most serious and solemn con against. sideration. They had been told that the ratification of the Treaty between England and - Denmark had not yet bees exchanged 4 but they had not yet been told why. For himself, he found it difficult to ima gine a reason, when he reflected on the distance be tween the two countries. Not only, however, were the ratifications unexchanged, but the Treaty had not even found its way into the usual channels of in telligence in rais country—he meant the daily Jour nals. He had himself been utterly ignorant of its stipulations, till very lately that a copy of it passed' into his hands ; and upon examining them, he found the second article provided, that " all prisoners of war should be given up en masse immediately after the ratification." Here then was the proper expla nation, which the Right Hon. Gentleman might have given in reply to the question that had been put die vetting the Danish prisoners ; but, instead of this, they were told that a person had arrived from Den mark with powers to concert the return of those pri soners. Were they to understand, that a sort of veto had been put upon the exchange of them by the Court of Denmark, or was there to be a distinction made between Danish and Norwegian prisoners, and was the Commissary conic over to separate the one from the other ?-11y another article of the Treaty, it was stipulated, that recourse was not to be had to force for effecting the annexation of Norway to Sweden, unless the Court of Denmark should not join the Northern alliance. Really, therefore, looking at the present situation of things, at a moment when we were applauding the magnanimity of the' Allied Powers in every other transaction, and when we were rejoicing in the effects of that wise, moderate, and li'oeral policy which they have adopted, it is melan choly to think that so bright a scene should be clouded—that the lustre of such achievements should be tarnished by a spat like this—that we should be engaged to starve a nation into submission to Swe den, whom, as a people, they detest, and whom they are resolved to resist to the last extremity. If, ac. cording to the Treaty between this country and Swe den, we are bound to accomplish the cession of Nor way, and if the Norwegi.sus mast be transferred like sheep, from one master to another, surely, by the of ficial and solemn surrander.made by the Danish Go vernment, that end had been accomplished, and they had now, in fact, become the subjects of Sweden.— The question then resolved itself into this, whe ther the House would sanction the Goverement of this country in aiding Sweden to starve a people into submission to her power and rule, they having, in fact, been transferred, as far as it was in tl:e ierwer ,of Denmark to make the traosler. When all the pa pers that would be moved for should be laid before them, it would then be seer. whether the stipulations so entered into by Sweden had been soperfortned by her as to call upon England 'for what she was now doing, in co-operating to produce a measure so de testable ? He should be most happy to learn that the .negotiations now pending had tendered it unneces sary. When ' the Swedish Commissioners entered Norway, their first demand was, that arms, ammuni tion, and fortresses of the Norwegians should be sur rendered. This demand was instantly resisted. Lie knew it had been said, that this resistance was the act of a single individual, who was intriguing to secure the possession of Norway to himself, but that the people of Norway were universally desirous of being incorporated with Sweden, and taken under her pro tection. From all the inquiry, however, that he had made, and from all the information produced by that inquiry, the inhabitants of Norway, a patient, brave, and enterprising people, were resolved, as one man, to sacrifice their lives in the struggle rather than sub mit. This sentiment pervaded every part of the coun try, from not th to south, and the peasantry had already armed, and were suffering the most dreadful privations. They were determined that Norway should become a' 'desert rather than they would submit to the Swedish yoke. And under whose auspices was all this cerded on ? Under those of a great Captain who had been elected to the high situation which he occupied ; and who, having thus owed his elevation. to the choice of a people, entered into a compact with other nations I to deliver to him another people who had no choice with respect to their Government.—(Heate hear.)- 1 . He hoped, for the sake of humanity, for the s.ike ut that great person who had achieved so much for the deliverance of Europe, for the honour of thiecoun try, for the honour of Government, whose steps with' respect to foreign relations he had from a certain pe riod been most happy to applaud, that Ministers would be able to extricate themselves from the diffi culties in which they seemed. involved on the subject; and if not, he hoped he should be able to persuade the House of Commons, on an examination and corn-, paristm of the stipulations of the different treaties, that the Government and the country were in no way bound to be the abettors of this most disgraceful l attempt. tit present he would not further trouble the House. He should be very glad to hear from the Right Hen. Gentleman, why the Danish treaty had not been ratified, and whether any Commissioner had been sent from Denmark to make a selection between the Danish and Norwegian prisoners, in order that the one might be retained and the other set at liberty ? Before he sat down he begged to recall the attention of the House to the debate on the Swedish Treaty last year, in the course of which a Right Honourable Gentleman, whom he did not then see in 'his place, asked whether the terms of it were to be interpreted into a guarantee of the possession of Norway to sty;. den ? The answer was, no; and more than that a Noble Lord, in a remarkable mode of expression, observed that the Right Hon. Gentleman who put the question ought to be better disciplined in diplo matic terms than to suppose that the treaty could be interpreted into such.a guarantee. The fact was, that no tie existed by which the country wits bound, or which called upon the House, to sanction the pub lication in the Gazette of Saturday last. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER observed ? that it could not be expected he should be prepared to answer all the questions that had been put to him. With respect to the treaty with Sweden it was one which last year had received the approba tion of Parliament. The House would recollect that the. treaty between Russia and Sweden was the key stone of that glorious confederacy by which such sig. nal benefits to Europe had been atchieved. 'or our part, we had done nothing in the coarse of the whole TREATIES OF ALLIANCE. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER presented a copy of the Treaty of Union and Subsidy between his Britannic Majesty and tj►e Emperor of Austria. concluded at Chaumont the 31 of March last. Also a copy of a similar Treaty with Russia, and likewise with Prussia. He also presented a copy of th,e Convention between his Majesty and the French Goverutnent. concluded at Paris on the 2sd April. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER stated that, with respect to these papers, it was at present only his intention to wove that they should lie on the table. Mr. WHITBREAD took that opportunity to alk Whether the Right Hon. Gentleman and his' col leagues had yet decided that they would or would not lay before the House the Papers respecting the negotiations at Chatillon, which had been prepared and printed for production ? 1 - le, of course, under stood that the Right Hon. Gentleman would soon ropose to the House some motion on the subject of the Treaties which he had just presented, and there fore begged to know his intention respecting those papers.hitherto.withheld. as it was possible that the/ might be of the utmost consequence (as in his opin►on they certainly would), to enable the House to form a correct judgment respecting the Treaties then pre sented. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER— " At present his Majesty's Government had no in tention of laying jhese papers before the House. If at any time it should be thought necessary that they should by produced, they would immediately b 2 laid before the House ; •but hitherto this did not seem at all requisite . 1 ' Mr. WHITBREAD Does the Right Hon. Gentleman mean to say, that his Majesty's blinisters refuse to produce these papers ?" • , The CHANCEL LO of the EXCHEQUER — Sir, it is initrossible at present to answer such a qtrestion. It may be found necessary for the coavc nience of the Huu►e to pres►x►t them." COILN LAWS. Sir H. PARNELL, without preface, moved three resolutions on this subject—lit, Respecting the policy of peimitting the exportation of Cora ; the 2d, Im posing new duties on Corn exported ;- an¢ the 3d, Stating tke expediency of tilting the average prices of Corn in kingdom from England. Scotland, Ind Ireland, in toad of merely from the English and Welsh markets, as had hitherto been the case. Mr. HORNER complained of the precipitation of the Hon. Baronet. At least he might have given ,the 4 House time to consider the nature of ais resolu tions, by putting them into the hands of Menthers before he called updu them to vote on them, Sir H. PARNELL then proposed to adjourn the question till to.morrow. Mr. WYNNE wished 3 more distant day to be named. Sir H. PARNELL said that the alterations which he proposed were of the simplest kind ; and the House had spent so much time last year in discussing the subject that he thought it was quite prepared to decide the question immediately. Mr. HORNER could by no means agree that the question could .be put so very simply as the Hon. Baronet thought. For instance, in changing the du ties, the alteration of one sum caused au alteration through the whole schedule. The question was finally postponed till Thursday. SUBSIDIES. Mr. WHITBREAD wished to ask the Right H.QII. Gentleman opposite whether any advances had already been made by Government in consequence of the Treaties which had just been laid before the House • And whether advances had been made to • . any or to the whole of our Allies ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER replied, that advances had been made to some of the Allies, out of the sum placed at the disposal of Go. veriment by the House. Mr. WHITBREAD—" Had any of these ad vances been made since the signature of those Treaties ?" The CHANCLELOR of the EXCHEQUER— ,, Some advances had been made subsequently to the &gnature of the Treaties which he.had just laid be fel e the House." NORWAY. Mr. WYNNE, in rising to move for certain papers connected with the question of Norway, wished to know whether any negotiations were now going on.with respect to that country ? From the nature of certain operations indeed, such as starving the Norwegians, it did not appear as it there could be much room for negotiation. According to the Treaty between this country and Sweden, we were bound to assist Swe den in obtaining the cession of Norway, but it was to be done with so every regard to the harmcny and happiness" of that country ; starving a nation, how ever, was not one of the most approved modes of producing happiness—(Bear, hvir.) . He concluded by moving, first, for an account of all the sums of money that had been advanced to Sweden since the signature of the Treaty .between that country and England on the 3d of March, 1813. Mr. HORNER was desirous of asking a question of the Right Hon. Gentleman. He understood we were at peace with Denmark, and yet if he had not been misinformed, orders had been issued to die ll•uard of Transports to detain the Danish - prisoners of war. tie wished to know if this intelligence was correct ? The CHet+ICELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, in reply, observed, that, with regard to the motion of the Hon. Member s fcr the production of papers, be `was not aware that there existed any objection to lay ing them before the House.—ln answer to a question that had been asked, as to whether any negotiations were carrying on about Norway, he had no difficulty in stating, that negotiations were still pending. The Treaty with Denmark had not been submitted to Parliament, because the ratifications were not yet ex changed. With regard to the Danish prisoners of war, he could inform the House, that a person bad arrived in this canary, commissioned by the Danish Government to re plate their exchange. Mr, WHITM,AD raid he was happy to hear from the Right . Him. Gentleman that negocksilons were still carrying on respecting Norway. He Was " ::t:srA • ' - 0 • of the proceedings, but in the strictest concert with l.ur Allies, and which we had not been uninirnously called on by them to do. It was perfectly true that we had not engaged to guarantee Norway to Sweden. after the cession of it by Denmark ; but that cession had not taken place. It would be improper for him to go more particularly into this subject at peewit. but he desired that the House would suspend then judgment upon it, until the whole case came before them. The Hon. Gentleman opposite had been greatly misinformed. It was by no means true that from one end of Norway to the other there existed a • spirit of resistance to the Swedish Government. Tt was equally unfounded that no liberal offer had been made to Norway en her annexation to Sweden. On the contrary, a more generous offer had been made than in any other case of cession that had occurred Ls the history of the world. With respect to the cause• that had led to the rejection of this offer, the presert was not the proper time to communicate them to Par liament. As to the Danish Commissioners, he was not aware that any officer from Denmark, with wall an object as that ascribed to him, was in the country. Mr. WHITBREAD asked, whether the offer of a constitution, or of a participation in the Swedith constitution (which the Right Hon. Gentleman had chosen to characterise as the most liberal offer th.it had ever been made to a nation in the history of the world) was net preceded by a demand to the Norwe. gians to deliver op their fortresses and arms ? He would also ask, if in a country possessed of not more thas7 or 800,000. or at most under a million of in habitants, 30 or 40,000 persons were not actually embodied to resist , the .ann-.:xation of Norway to Sweden ? No answer was returned, and the motion vas it ,, ree,l to. Mr. WYNNE that moved for a return of the pt , n..- ber of,troopS brought into the field by :Sweden in the late campaign. Mr. WHITBREAD took the opportunity, in cr. der to thew that Norway had been ceded by Den, mark, to read the tenth aTticle of the Treaty, signed February 14, between Great Britain and Denmark. in which his Britannic Majesty declares. that seeing Denmark had ful4lled the engagement into which she had entered, to cede Norway to Sweden, he on his part engaged, on the conclusion of peace, to use. his influence with the other Allied Powers to procure for Denmark an indemnity for that cession. The Motion was then, greed to, as wore also sub sequent Motions, for a copy of the conditions of the surrender to Sweden of the island of Guadalonpe, and copies of all orders relative to the blockade of the coast of Norway. CiILONIAL OfFICISS BILL. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER. moved the Order of the Day for the third 'residing of the Colonial Offices Bill, with a view to its postpone, ment. Mr. WHITBREAD expressed his satisfaction that the third reading of this Dal was to be deferred. ?le wished the Right Hon. Gentleman, before the third reading of the Bill, to 1 Kertain whether the Civil Go vernor of Upper Canada had not been absent from his post for p.vo years, still retaining all the emolu ment of that offiet? The Order of the Day was then read, and the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER proposed to postpone the third reading until Thursday ; but at the suggestion of Mr. BROWN, who said that Frid.iy was the day to _which it had been understood the 34 reading of the Bill WAS to be postponed, the existing order was merely 4liseharged, and no new day fixed. The Corruption of Mood Bill, and the High Treason Punish' ment Bill, were read ifthird time and passed. 1 he Report of this Clergy Penalties Bill was taken into farther consideration, and, after the introduction of a variety of sow clauses and amendments by Mr. Bathurst, agreed to; and the Bill was ordered to be resda third time to•motrow.—Adinuru4. FRBlyl fl PdPER•i. PXOGRAMNIE br T/IX irri Olf THII simulates OF las NAJEsTr LOWS XVUL INTO HU CAPITAL. The evening preceding the entrance of the King into Paris, salvoes of artillery shall announce the let The same evening also there shall be a spectacle gratis at the eight Theatres, and at the Olympic Circus. The morning of the day of the entrance of the . King, there shall be salvoes of artillery at six o'clock. These salvoes shall be repeated on the arrival of the King at the barrier, on his arrival at Notre Dame, on his arrival at the Thuilleries, and at 6 in thz evening. A monument to the glory and hatpin:is of the King's arrival shall be raised at the barrier of St. Denis. Orchestras placed under this monument, as well as all those erected on this august day, will execute, on the arrival of the King, and during his progress, the airs of Vive Henry IV'' Oaf pest on 'Ore,' 6 &C. and all the airs dear to the French. The Municipal Body, having at its head the Pre fect who presides, will proceed to the barrier of St. Denis, to wait there to compliment the King, and present to him the keys of the city. The Municipal Body will be attended by detach ments of the National Guard, on foot and on horsc s back. The remainder of the National Guard, the Grena diers, and the Chasseurs, will form the line from the barrier of St. Denis to theThuilleties, in all the screeti through which the King passes. • The procession (in the order established by the Master of the Ceremonies) will put itself in order to descend the Faubourg St. Denis. The houses of that street, and of all those througk which the procession passes, will be ornamented with tapestry, flowers and garlands. The gate of St. Denis will be decorated with trq : . phie;, escutcheons and crowns. The inscription on the Nise will be replaced, and also all the emblem; in honour of Louis XIV, The procession will continue by the rue St. Deali to the Market des Innocent, which will be decer44l with garlands and flowers. The King will give permission, thaaccording ancient usage, the Market-women of faHalle shall b e admitted to offer him their good wishes and booT4ets, The procession will pass by l'Apport Paris, ti ll fountain of which will be ornamented with dowers ' s it will then pail by le Pont au Change le Marche ace= Fleurs, and will proceed to the Cathedral, passing by the Rues de la Lanterne, de la Juiverie, do Marche Palu, and Notre Dame. There will be a solemn Ts Dom and Thanksgivias at the Cathedral, which will be arranged to mein 'AM an 't of i 4 1 ..ten ir l'E 14$ J ch. , M. IS cc to ta els pi at at A