The National Register. — London, England, 1811-06-16 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL "REGISTER - tlenian and Mtrchant in the House to the importance of the ,subject. 'The intercourse under this Bill would utterly destroy the English trade. Counsel was then beard at considerable length. A very long discussion took place upon three new clauses proposed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer,. two of which were carried without opposition. The third was opposed by Mr. William Smith, but was agreed to without a division. Mr. W. Smith, Mr. Hutchins►n, and others, spoke, after which a division took place upon the engrossing of the Bill, when there appeared—For the engrossing, 66—Against it, 19—Majo rity, 47. FRENCH PRISONERS. - - - In obedience to an order of the House, an account of the state of French Prisoners in this Country was brought up. Mr. Rost, in moving that this account should be printed, took occasion to observe, that from the statements contained therein, it appeared that out of nearly 5000 French prisoners in Dartmoor prison, there were not more than nine and twenty sick, by which the assertion made by the Noble Lord (Cochrane) on a former night was completely disproved. The total number of french prisoners in England was 45,939, of whom the num ber sick was but 3'21. a number comparatively so trifling, that lie believed, if the most healthy village was searched, the pro• For Lion of sick would be found much greater.—(Hear, hear )- 1h: number of priioners on parole was .‘2710, of whom only 16.5 ere i::dispoi•ed. Convinced Ova this statement would prove extremely sati lactory to the House, and tend to remove all feelings ,:f doubt which might prevail on this subject in consequer.c.e of the assert.ons trade on a former night, he should content himself with moving, that the account should be printed. - Ce it aAN r., in a speech of considerable length, entered into a deft nce of the statements he had made respecting Dart ' moor Prison, and p: oceedr,cl to detail other circumstances, and draw conclusi.ini v,.:iich,•frim their naure, and from their sub sequent refutation in the runt cle.ir and satisfactory manner, by the Clianetli ,, r of the Exelitvier, Mr. Rose, and Mr. Whit bread, we t cfrlin trom reportit.g, as their publication could not be at:ended with aliy beneficial result. I,OVEDEN'S DIVORCE BILL. Mr. DAVIF.S GIDDY moved the thiid reading of LoVeden's Divorce bill. Mr. LocKHART said, it was far from his intention to say any thing in dt•fent,e of a breach of conjugal fidelity ; but he b.ttl obierved that this Bill was, in fact, a Bill of pains and peintltiei : far althOuL;ll the lady hroeght a fortune of 10 or 120001. no pro. vision whatever was here made to preserve her from abject po verty. He s'uould move, therefore, in the Committee, that Mr. Loveden do pay to Anne Loveden, notwithstanding the disco tit ion of the marriag e, 3001. per annum, during his life. Mr.GIDLY stated on the pin of• Mr. Loveden, some objec tions to this clause—and that the lady had a reversionary annuity 2001. Mr. LOCKHART, in conqcquence of the feeling of the House, moved in the Committee, that the sum granted should 1:0--10/. per annum. thr James Graham, Mr. Wilson, and Mr. Whitbread support ed the cause, which war; opposed by Mr. Swan, Mr. W. Smith, the Chant:llor of the Exchequer,••,ind the Spcaktr, when it was at length agreed to adjoui n the further consideration thereof till • to-morrow. MR. MANSELL PHILLIPS. Mr. LOCKHART stated, that Mr. Phillips had called en him this morning; that he had procured a copy of the indictment, slid engaged to plead to it. Under these. circumstances he pro posed to move that the former Order be discharged.—The Order was accordingly discharged. The other Orders were then disposed of, and the I - lopse ad journed. exporting Spirits from Ireland to Fngland to use a permit, si nifying the strength of such spirit ; &c. to prevent forgeries there" of.' The cause being agteed to, we. t through a committee, the report also received and agreed to% He nett introduce d a clause for limiting the operation of the Act to two months, which was also agreed to, and the Bin read a third time and passed. Mr. Snow LETEVRE gave notice for Tuesday next, that he should move a standing order of the House, that no Petitions for Private Bills should he received after the first one and twenty days in any Sessions of Parliament.—Adjourned. SATURDAY, JUNE 15. Lord CLONCURRY 7 B Divorce Bill, and the Land Tax Qnalifi catiun Bill were severally read a third time and passed. LORD WEI4INGTON. The SrrAIER informtd the House that he had received a let • ter franl Lord Wel.ingr. n, dated \ ay 25th, in answer to the Thanks sent by that Flou x e, expresaing his high sense of grati tude, with the Officers and Privates, for the honour conferred on him and them for the same. At the same time expres.ing grew- rleasure that his and their conduct had merited Our ap proba • ior. The Retired Officers Bill, the Town Burial Ground Bill, arid the Bank Tokens Bill, were severally read a third time and paved, On the third reading of the Spirit Su:liension Bill, the Chan-. cellar Oche .Icclieqt:er introducoil a el:l4u, that such persons PARLIAMENTARY REFORM. On Monday last, the Friends of Parliamentary Reform met, for the discussion of the subject at the Freemasons Tavern. The Meeting was not so numerous as it had been expected. Sir JOHN TIIROCKMORTON having taken the Chair, called their attention to the subject for which they were assembled. It was unnecessary, he said, to trespass on their time by opening the subject at any length. Their object was known to all. They were assembled for promoting, by an limited effort in their seve ral counties, the cause of a Reform in the Hcuse of Commons ; and he trusted that Meetings would he held in all quarters, and petitions forwarded to bring about that desirable end. Mr. TR EVA N (ON (of COrilWa;l) then rose and began by begging leave to read several extracts from the Petition presented to the Hou-e of Commons in 1793, in favour of Parliamentary Reform, (by Mr. Grey.) The Address of that Petition he must, how ever, in the first place observe, was incorrect. It was addressed " to the Honourable the Commons of Great Britain in Parlia ment 'assembled"—that they were not what they professed to he —the representatives of the people. He moved the first reso lution : • - R, solved, That the much-quoted Petition presented by Mr. Grey (now Earl Grey,) on the 6th of May, 1793, to the Commons House of Parliament, and then entered on its Journals, affords a eemonstration that the said House cloth not represent the People. That it has beer; the perpetual theme of the despised Prayers and Remonstrances of innumerable Petitioners, that the said House loth not speak the sense of the Nation. That it bath been a subject not only of national complai,nt, but of Parliamentary Protest, that Parliament have had an unconsk stitutional duration. That these fittfl corruptions in that Assembly, which ought to be the Guardian of our Liberties, are the radical and true causes of national wrong and celarnitv, in ail their forms and varieties; whether of intemperate quarrels with other States—or of ruinous Debt, and the pauperizing of millions—or of the opprescivo, re lentless, and inquisitorial character of Taxation--or repeated restrictions on the Freedom of the Press—or of the complicated evils and dangers of the pres:!nt conflict—or of encroachments on the Independence of the Crown ;—or to tutu op all, of a sys tematic tencencv to subvert tl,e Constitution; V.Thc: cfore it is the conviction of this Nieeting, that a Rttorin hi the Commons House of Parliament is equally essential to the Indepeutlence of the: Crow'', and to the Liberties of ;he People. Nit. Pr rER seconded it. That a Reform or the lionse of Com mons was necessary, was a proposition so simple and self-evident, that the people could not avoid perceiving it in the recent con d'.tct of that House on many 'ct asions. The cot trot') of the Con stitue - •ts over their Repress ntative had 1.1: denied, because it was said.he ought to consult the go,d of the whoie eropi-e. That the good of the whole was to be prefetrtd to th,t of a part, was a proposition too clear to ;:emit d.spute : but if not ac countable to their Constituent-, to whom were they accoun,- abk. ? Did the people intend to appoint Lords over them instead of Represenla:ives? Was the se, vast greater than the master ? Unless the Representative was accountable to his Coro.t , tucnts, there was no security for his goad conduct. They had heard of e•:000mical Reform. That was errgood as GI- as it went, and he should he most happy to see it accomplished; but how is could he brought about without a Reform in the Representation. he could not conceive. 'Parliamentary corruption was fast under mining onr blessings. To preserve them was their übject, and in the end he trusted they would be successful. The Resolution was then rut and curried unanimously. Mr. 13t.uN T (of Staff :rdslore) moved the second Reso:ution: Resolved, Thu it being highly expedient that the Nation in all its divishos should, on the s. lajret of the decay of Reuresen tation, proclaim irs opinions, both as to the wrong an 4 to the remedy, this Meeti::g for is 1. declares— That the aggregate of U-urpations, which have taken from tilt People a majority of the Seats in the Commons House of Parliament, has eatahlish , :ci that most pernicious of all species of Governments—an OLIGARCHT. •_. _ • That the King, .with prerogatives balanced 1:ly thu indepoti otlee of a Parliament holding the national vurse, would have 134) ... •- 4