The Statesman. — London, England, 1818-05-28 00:00:00

Ilr ,:;, .. k•‘. ...- . .cr R. ♦ r ~ 5 .. 4 - w ~' • ~. i i , . i -; ',~ f ,:,.. ~t,~. r . , M~ fAtbing faces iierespi.y t o di r e c t the ror ieetlings of Peilignietit with tegsrd In the Education of the rnor• —They had e right an to em - tu i r p, an d is w as time esioogh when tl,e ii.sult of their investigation was known, to stale in what way it was propowsti to le gislate on the subject. The Noble end Learned Lord had shown great 'cuteness at various times its., picking hols, in Bills, but when be endertonk to' bring forwird Bills of his own, he did not always manifest the most estssordinary sagacity in their pre. paiation. 1 4 14 feet r erpl o rtpd hi m of a story be had beard of • certain Member of Opposition, who, while he yeitiiiried with his party, delivered many eloquent .peeches, but nn being transferred to the Administration, spoke w ith loss talent then before. —The circumstance being mentioned to Mr. Some • Jennings with some' expression of surprise, he an - -awered that it was nothing ealraordinsry. A man, hid he, hat Now big life in breaking windows, and 1 3 , 10 w waneto make tint a glazier.—(A laugh.)—lt was twicans. the Subject required investigation—be l'thlose p.olipment had s right to enquire into it—and o'i l i4so.• the Mode of enquiry proposed to be adopted was recognised by the 'Victim of Pirliament, that I. should vote for going into the Committee, and af 'lord the Bill every supportin'his power. Lord RF.DESDALE opposed the Bill' upon the 'grounds aireidyltated by the Lord Chancellor, and thought that timelier necessary it might appear to some that the House should legislate on the subject, the present Bill wasincapable of reetiving such im. • provemeat in the Committee as would remove the ob -' jealous te t e/MA tft)iris liable. Lords HOLLAND sad REDVIDALIN mutually es• •. . • • ti. , plainer' • The Berl of CARNARVON spoke in favotir of the Bill. • The House then divided on the question for going 'inter the Comitittee,— For the Committee, 10 I Against it, A I Majority, 2. The House having resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill, a clause was adopted, on the proposition of Lord LIVERPOOL, confining the enquiry of • the Commissioners to Charities established for the purpose of Education. Several verbal amendments were also agreed to, after • 'which the House resumed, and the Report was order ed to he received to-morrow. ...Adjourned,at Half-past Eleven. HOUSE OF COMMONS. A Petition wait presented from a Parish in. Brecknockshire, agninvt the Poor Settlement Bill. The Nnvy Prize Bill woo rend a third time and passed; nlso the Elio Indi i Marriages BM. The Fast Ihdia Shipping mWand the Soldiers' Pensions Bill went through Committees. Lard G. HER ESIF'Oft fr•Nm the Prince Regent, informed - the Biome that his Royal Highness had given directions respect ing the Addresses of the 24th and 25th hut. A Petition who presented by Mr. CANNING from the Watchmakers of Liverpool against the Watchmaker; Regula tion Bill. The Rock Salt Duty Bill was read a second time, and went ;,..thrnue a Committee. .. The Negociable Securities bill was read a third time and passed. f LINANCE. Mr. MA BERLEYwished to know whether he had tightly understood the answer of the Chancellor of the Exchequer to a question pot last night by the lion. Member for Nottingham (Mr. J. Smith)? Lie bad understood the Chancellor of the &chequer to say, that in consequence of the great amount of Es cheqoer Bills already funded, there would he no more funding either this year or the neat. The pre. stem amount of Exchequer Bills in circulation was 44 millions—theium which would be required for the neat year would probably be 14 millions, making in all 58 millions, which if there was no funding neat ' year, would he kept afloat in the country. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said, that he had declared that there would be no additional sum fended this year. Ile had gone far ther, and had said, that he saw a possibility that in the nest year it might not he necessary to have re . course to funding ; but be had not been so rash as to say positively what would be done in that year. MINES ASSESSMENT BILL. Mr. MORRITT, in consequence of of the eppo. sition which had been made to the Mines Assessment 13111, and the late period of the Session, thought fit to withdraw it for the present.—The - Bill was order od to be committed this day throe months. BRITISH MUSEUM. General THORNTON, after stating how very desirable it was that the facilities of admission to the Library of the British Museum should be in. • creased, moved for Copies of the Regulations re specting Admission to the Reading-room of the Bri tish Museum, end of Students to the Gallery. Mr. BANKES agreed that it ws desirable every facility should be given to the Public, consistently with the security of the books ; but it was to be re • membered that any arrangement for throwing it more open to the-Public, most be attended with additional ' sixpence in officers and boildings. Mr. GURNEY called the attention of the House to the great danger of the books and manuscripts of the Museum from fire, and the necessity of putting that great national repository in a state of safety against such an accident. Mr. C.-WYNN also *Wired, that from the con struction of the Museum, the roof being supported by a large wooden cornice, which rendered it impro bable, if the building once took firs, that any great part of the books and manuscripts could be saved. The subject was well worth attention.—The motion was !greed to. BANKRUPT LAWS. Mr. J. SMITH rose to bring forward his motion for leave to bring in a Bill to Alter and Amend the Bankrupt !Jaws. He apprehended he should be obliged to trespass something longer on the in dulgence of the House than be had been in the habit of doing; bet he would assure them he should not say a word more than was necessary to express the reasons of the motion he intended to propose on a very important subject. The Bill it was his object to obtain leave to introduce was founded on the opinion and recomrr. ndation of the Committee on the Bankrupt Laws. The grievances of the bank rupt sjoem had long been matter of complaint ; the existence df old ones had been proved to the sa tisfaction of the Committee; and new evidence of the inutility and inconsistency of the present laws on the subject had come out since their appoint. • meat. As the. Report of the Committee had been primed, be should not trouble the House by going ' V • Z; ~, ; CBE STATESMAN_ into it. Bot the House would suffer him to state shortly the opinions of • certain individuals Ole Com• niittf bad Egli an opilirtiini;y - of eximining, from their high professional character, must be supposed escellently 4aalieed to take a correct view of the subject. Messrs. Montagu, Cooke, and Cullen, concurred in thirikirphal a material change In the Bankrupt Law - was indispensably neces sary. The first of thine. Clentlesneo, who had been a Commissioner above twenty years, gave evidence before the Committee to this effect :—that there were persons in the City of London who car ried on a regular trade of . proving the debts of fic firms creditors—and that the entire system of the bankruptcy was a combination bet ween the petition ing creditor and the bankrupt. Ile could adduce a further authority in the fiord Chancellor of England:' Having occasion to offer some remarks of censure on a very gross case that came before him, in 1801, his Lordship concluded by saying, that en. Jess the Court kept a tight hand over bank rupts, bankruptcy would soon become as great nuisance as any in the land. After this, it would not he considered necessary to produce stronger testimony. The first opinion of the Committee he would allude to, related to the narrowness of the esisting laws, in the means of making bankrupts.-- A person might pass bill for hundreds of thousands of pounds in certain cases, without a possibility, of being made a bankrupt. To 'Vend the remedial in fluence of the Laws in that respect was one of the ie• commendations of the Committee. The Report nest proceeded to consider'the acts of bankruptcy. The only one heard of now.a.days was the bankrupt's denying himself to one of his creditors, and as that was (Pettily done, and as ninety-nine bankruptcies net of a beindred were precencerted between the debt*, and pititioning creditor, this gave the bankrupt the power,• at any time after the proceedings had been commenced, of overacting any thing done, and ran. dering all invalid. Reasoning from this, the Cote mittee gave it as their opinion, that it was exceedingly improper there was not some mode of making bank rupts different from the present. Another act of bankruptcy was, being arrested for debt, and lying in prison two months without finding bail. But the mischief in that case was, that the debtor had it in his power to defeat the object of the arrest, by going to jail and disposing of his property beyond his credi tors' reach before the two months ezpired. The Corn. mittee were oferpinion, that when a man with honest intentions found himself to be insolvent, he should have a power to make himself a bankrupt. To effect this was one of the provisions of the Bill—and it di rected that a trader, being insolvent, and desirous to have a fair distribution made of his property, should lodge with the Secretary of the Bankrupt Commis. sinners a paper stating that fact, which should have the same effect as the striking of a docket by a cre ditor. ft was advised also, that keeping a shop shut for seven days together should lay a foundation for a bankruptcy, as should remaining in prison on civil process for 14 days. Another great defect under the existing laws was, the inability of securing the bank rupt's books, papers, Sm. By the law there was an officer to attend to that, called a messenger ; but he was appointed by the solicitor to the bankruptcy, and was not a free agent. The duty, besides,was never performed by himself, bat by some poor fellow out of the street, for the fee of a few shillings, who lived with the bankrupt's servants, and was no sort of check on their master. This Bill made the messenger independent of the solicitor. Guild hall, where the Bankrupt Laws were administered for London, was more a place of confusion than one fit for the transaction of serious business. The Com mittee thought it was quite necessary that some other building for the purpose should he immediately erected. As a remedy for the greatest mischief, they recommended, that any debt to be proved should be declared by the creditor to the solicitor four days before the day of proof. The Bill conferred on the Commisdioners a power of rejecting debts dis covered to be fraudulent, after supposed proof, which they did not et present possess. The bank. rapt business was conducted in Scotland according to the provisions of an Act passed in the year 1814, and the system there was perfection itself to *hat it was in England. There an Officer, called s trustee, collected thedebts, and give security for the due perforinance of his duties. The Committee most strongly recommended the appointment of an officer similar to the trustee, to be called an agent.— The Bill required the bankrupt to attend all the meetings of the Commissioners and the agent, under the penalty of losing the protection of the Commis.. sioners. 7 ro operate as a check on folly and Imtra• ravines., the Committee recommended that no debtor should be allowed a certificate, unless, as was for. merly required by law, four-fifths of the creditors is number and value signed it. They thought, too, that it would be very beneficial to make it part of the dirty of the Commissioners to enquire into the con.' duct of the bankrupt. Above all things, they re commend this, that no certificate should be signed by the Commissioners till the whole affairs of the bank rupt were fully investigated. There was oast other subject to which he wished particularly to call the attention of the House. It was the infliction of ca pital punishment on fraudulent bankrupts. That enactment, so far from having any good effect, did, by its severity, prevent, in many instances, the in. fliction of any punishment whatever en the bankrupt. With respect also to the allowance made to bank rupts, it appeared to the Committee that some alte ration was necessary. It was at present a mere trifle —and he was convinced, that, by granting a more liberal allosisnce, much good would, be effected.— The Committee conceived, that something about five per cent. should be granted to the bankrupt—but the allowance, In no instance, to exceed $OOOl. That sum might ippetr'very large—hut, when it was con sidered, that, in many bankruptcies, the individual had an opportunity of assisting the assignees to an in finitely greater amount, no fair objection could be advanced against it. The Committee were also of opinion, that farther protection should be granted to assignees, who were, at present, exposed to harass ing and vexatious suits. It must appear plain to the House, after the evidence of Mr. Cullen, and, other Gentlemen, that a considerable alteration ought to be made in the constitution of the Board of Com missioners of Bankrupts—which, it was admitted, was at present most ill-coostituted. The Committee were of opinion, that Commissioners should be ap. pointed in large districts throughout thescrontrys.s• an ides that had been thrown out by Lord Chan. cellor Rosalyn, who made an potter for that purpose. To this it was objected, first, that the appointment of Commissioners in particular disericts would give a priority of proceeding to the country Over the town bankrept s ; and next,..itirktit.xonold give to the Lord. Chancellor a degree of patiOnage that ought not to be conceded to him. He, however, was convinced, that the principle of this order might be advan tageously acted on, provided certain modifications were adopted. The Honourable Gentleman having gone over the principal points contained in the Re portt!atist, be hd a debt of honour and of gratitude ed to pay that to th a ose; professional individuals who had Rive n evidence before the Committee, and who bad sacrificed the' time which otherwise would have been devoted to' their professional avocations, in affording information on this most important sub ject.—( Hear, hear!)—The Hon. Gentleman con cluded with moving for leave to bring in a Bill to alter and amend the Bankrupt Laws. Sir J. NEWPORT observed, that it was abso. lately necessary to make some efficient alteration in the Bankrupt Laws. As the law now stood, it was, in fact, worse then no leer at all. The frauds latter ly committed under the existing system called loudly for the interposition of the Legislature. Mr. WROTTESLEY paid a high compliment to the Committee on the Bankrupt Laws, for the talent and perseverance they displayed in conducting this most important' enquiry. He most, however, ob serve, that, without the assistance of professional men, they never would have been able to arrive at the molt they had done. Ile did not think the coo stitution of the Board of Commissioners was so de. fective as had been stated. If a convenient place were appointed for them to meet in, their duties would be promptly executed, and the Public would be greatly benefited. The Corporation of London believed Guildhall to be the best place for meetings of creditors ; but, in his opinion, if some place, between Guildhall and Lincoln's Inn, were purchased for the purpose, it would be much better. Fund wars Inn appeared to him to be a proper place, and it could he procured at a moderate expellee. Mr. LOCKHART also bore testimony to the pa tience and ability displayed by the Committee, with most of whose suggestions he entirely sgreed. He was happy to find, that the true principle, that of rendering it, on the whole, advantageous to the bank. rapt to make a full disclosure of his atigirs, instead of proceeding against him by a criminal prosecution, the severity of which defeated the object the legis- Ware had in view, was recommended as proper to be acted on. Mr. FINLAY said, the copying of the Scotch Code, respecting the trustees and creditors, would, he was convinced, be found to operate most benefi cially.—Leave was then given to bring in the Bill. A Message from the Lords stated their Lordships' Assent fo the Paper Duty Bill and the Bank Restric tion Bill, without any amendments; and also that their Lordships had passed a Bill for amending the Regency Act, to which they required the Assent rag that House. REGENCY BILL. Lord CASTLEREAGH rose to move the G►st reading of the Regency Bill, observing, that it was his intention also to move, that it should be print ed, and that the second reading should be fixed for Monday. Mr. BROUGHAM observed, that he bad given notice of a motion for Monday, upon the subject of Charitable Funds, which, from its importance would, he apprehended, occupy the whole of the day. But, as the motion of the Noble Lord would interfere, he would postpone his motion until Tuesday, hoping the lion. Baronet, whose motion upon the subject of Parliamentary Reform stood for that day, would consent to postpone it. The motions of Lord Castlereagh were agreed to. CORRUPT INTERFERENCE WITH POPULAR ELECTION. Mr. BROUGHAM rose to call the attention of the House to what must be regarded as a most fla grant attempt to interfere with the rights of Election. Here the Learned Gentleman read a notice lately circulated in %%testatorlend, from the Clerk of the Commissioners for assessing the Laud Tee, of which the following is a copy : " To the Apse‘ mint of the {And Tot for the Township of —. " Take notice that ‘ott ate not to stake out. any avietannent of the Land Tait sill farther notice. " I am *yours, he. "Kendal, 9th May, ISIS. "JOHN THOMPSON. Clerk." Gentlemen were aware, that if the Freeholders were deprived of an opportunity diming themselves assessed to the Land Tax, they. Must be virtually disfranchised. 'there were two ways in which a no tice of this nature might operate—WC, if Freeholders were not assessed sic months before the Election, they were not entitled to vote. If it were said that the dissolution would take place so soon, that this was a trick without an object, he would answer, that he did not know that the dissolution would take place so soon, and that it might be postponed to such a period as would give a mischievous operation to this trick. But there was another mode in which this notice might have a bad effect. It was notori ous, that if the Land Tam were redeemed, there would afterwards be no occasion for assessment ; but then that redemption could not take place without previous assessment, and this circular was therefore calculated to prevent such redemption. It was clear, then, that this circular had a direct tendency to operate against bona fide voters, by precluding them from putting their names upon the register of assessment. This notice formed, in fact, one of the grossest attempts to defraud men of their right of voting, that ever, perhaps, was brought under the consideration of that House. But the attempt was still more to be reprobated, in consequence of the quarter from whence it came. According to the established law of the country, any person concerned in collecting the lases was forbidden, by severe pe nalties, from interfering in elections. Any such officer, indeed, interposing in any degree with elec tions, asking an elector to vote or not to vote, was subject to a pecuniary penalty, as well as to be dis. missed from his office, and incapacitated from holding any office under the Crown for ever afterwards. But how much worse was the Tal-office who took such steps as must render it impossible for electors to vote at all? and such was the tendency, if not the inten tion, of the notice which he had jest read. This . notice involved, indeed, not only a breach of the 11 ",1 14 r7= 1 r;-;-: * ~ . • .• • p.„.Q. • : I 11 • . . rA 4 • r• elnitiv 'fa c 'ls of t V i l'etwkAttl i t vi - the that wets , loges were nand up ids the rights of its ena c t. toents, t oss dereliction of duty the Holm For b4P noll i t: s at t of Ha officer II the till, that is, the mos spel t nos .o t if he d i( not collect t tat from Aor as soon as Was pri o r i . cable, such officer must be guilty of a breech s f ; duty. But here was a case in which a Collector o f the Tales spontaneously and wantonly mo l t e d 14 obstacle to the performance of his own of f icial dot ' . The case was, however, so peeeliarly flagrant that he felt himself bound to bring it sander the confidential' of the noose. Before any other proceeding weei e . stituted, he understood it was necessary to move f ee copies of any Notices or Circulars whirh hid be; issued by the Clerk of. the Commissioners for anew ing the Land Tax in Westmorland, within d ie last two months, together with a statement if the omen of the Commissioners of the Lend li st or others, under whose authority such Letters it Circulars had been issued. The latter pe r t o r th e motion he proposed because he could not topp le' that • malice of this nature *masted s o l e ly N u John Thomson, and he geoid sot apprehend theta". part of the motion would be opposed, hom e i t eta impossible to conceive that any Minister of n o Crown, or any Member of that House, ceeld ham any concern in such a transaction, or the slightest wish to shelter it from exposure and reprehension. The motion being read, . M r. LUSIIINGION had no objection to the prof diction of the paper moved for by the Bsa, sod Learned Gentleman; but was desirous of stating* the House what had passed, as far as he was s e . quainted with the facts. The sehject bail never W ee before the Treasury, but it appeared, on enqiiirog the Tax-Office, that a reference had been made by Thompson, with regard to some freehold properti es of the value of 40s. iu certain parishes in Weimer. land, for the purpose of knowing whether they wi f e assessable or not to the Land Tax. The reply Mr. Lowndes was, that this liability did not depend alone on the value, but on the title and other qualities of the estate. This was all that was knows upon the subject at the Treasury, or the Tax• Office. Mr. BROUGHAM observed, that he never before heard of cottages being assessable to the Land Tao; but it seemed that time was to be taken for the de. termination of this question. The mere circumstance of being rated, however, did not confer a right to vote, and he could conceive nothing more 1 11 4 0 4 144 ikon this eagerness in Officers of the Revenue to I *offer their opinions upon such a subject. Mr. LUSIIINGION said, the Commissioners had stated that the assessment alone did not give tie right or voting. Mr. BROUGHAM replied, that this was essctly what be complained of. Whatever might hue best the original letter, the answer related to etectiooeer• tag. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, said a few words, which we could oot dibtinctly haw in the gallery. Lord LOWTHER believed the letter had bees copied from a provincial Paper, and that it tamale' many false end scandalous statements. _Mr. W CNN observed that the Officers of do Revenue were the last 'persons to express au °pieties on subjects of election. Sir J. GRAHAM expressed his belief that sro such letter had been written as that hearing, or par. porting to bear, the signature of John Thoniesni. The letter certainly contained a great deal of film hood and misrepresentation. The fact, howler, was, that a great deal of property, never towed for the last hundred years, had lately been offeredi fer , that purpose, and he apprehended, that it was ile duty of the local Commissioners to give informed.* to the collecting officer on such a subject. lis wished to see the whole correspondence produced. I. After a few words from Mr. BROUGHAM, ths motion was agreed to. HALF-PAY. Mr. LYTTELTON stated it was not his WM% tion to press his motion respecting the, regnired davits of Officers before they received their Half•psy. The subject, he understood, from the Noble Lad (Palmerston), was under the consideration of tle War.ollice, and he had every reason to hope the re• suit would be satisfactory. He was, however,antioes to know, whether it was the practice to refuse the pension to the widow of an officer who married whit on Ilalf-pay ? Such a regulation placed a military man, who married at the close of the war, in a well situation than one who entered into such an ewe ment (luring • war, without any osfeesible mieits for such a preference. He was also informed, the if the widow of an officer marries, she forfeited hic pension. That he considered a severe herds*. There was a third point on which he desired Woo* tine, it was as to the regulation of the pensioeste General Officers, limiting the number to 120, si vesting the appointment in the Crown. Lord PA LM EASTON, as we understood, eaidg was in contemplation to do away the resfrictionesils• ded to on widows' pensions. With respect to then*" lation affecting General Officers, he observed, thst tt the Crown had not the exercise of such a diecretior these pensions would often fall te those who did rat want them, to the exclusion of others to whoa the pensions were of importance. CAPE BRETON. Mr. BENNET said it was not his intention le trespass on the time of the House with a Attalla statement. When the Papers for which he shoehl move were before Parliament, the Haase IMIS then form its own opinion. The colony of Cie • Breton was in every view valuable. It was sn ile portant military and naval station. The security d such a possession should not be resigned by vernment, or an unjustifiable invasion of the 1 }1 " perty of the Colonists. The Honourable Me•hc a then moved for a number of papers, cons istin g • Minutes of Councils of Governor Ainslie Council—Copies of Correspondence between the 'unionist Secretary and the Governor, wherein Ile former complained of the unjustifiable interference jisf the Governor with the duties of his office—CA' -pies of the King's instructions to the Governor, lie- Mr. GOULIIURN had no objection to the lt d " doction of the Papers moved for, with the except" of the correspondence between the Secretary sell vernor. Whatever difference existed bad beta " 9~e - - - r -n - 'a 4 I I 1 I