The Sun. — London, England, 1858-06-23 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS.-4YRSTERDAY,) The Loup CIIANOBLLOR took his seat on the woolsack at five o'clock. LEASES AND SALES OF SETTLED ESTATES. Lord CRANWORTH brought in a bill to amend a defect in the bill passed in 1356. The defect complained of was that by the bill married women residing abroad wishing to dispose of proper ty were put to inconvenience in consequen ce of being obliged to employ an offioer of the English Court of Chancery. The bill was read a first time. INDEPENDENCE OF PARLIAMENT BILL. Lord BROUGHAM presented a petition in favour of this bill, the object of which was to require peers and members of the Commons House of Parliament, as well as ot her persons to pay their just debts without being privileged from arrest. The LORD CHANCELLOR said the provisions of the noble and learned lord's bill, which stood for a second reading that evening, very seriously inter fered with the privileges of both houses of Parliament, and such being the case he trusted the noble and learned lord would not, in the absence of the noble earl at the head of the Government, press forward the bill. Lord BROUGHAM said he had no wish to go on with the bill in the absence of the noble earl. The bill was by no means a new one, and he regretted there elLould be any delay in proceeding with it, yet under the c;ecumatances mentioned by the noble and learned lord on the woolsack, he bad no o b j ection to the postpone meat of the discussion. Liao second reading of the bill was then postponed. PRIVATE BUSINESS. On the motion of Lord REDESDALE the following bills were read Cornw all time : —Brantford and Rich mond- R.ailway, Railway, East Suffolk, Yar mouth anti Haddescoe and Lowestoft and Beccles Railway Amalgamation, Norwich Gas, Eastern Coun ties Railway - , b i ll s were The following read a third time and passed : —HAr. ycl'e I:state, Eastern Steam Navigation Corn pany, Globe Insurance Company, Cromford and High Peak R a il wa y, Manchester Poor, Wallasey Improve ment, Ballymena- and Balleymoney, CAraine and Port rush Junction, iTar Bridge, Liverpool Improvement, and London and South-Western Railway. THE OATHS BILL. The Earl of MALMESBURY moved that a com mittee, consisting of certain noble lords, be appointed to draw up reasons for their lordships persevering in their objection to the Commons' amendments to the bill, and that the said reasons be sent to the Commons on Thursday next. The noble lord appealed to bis noble and learned friend (Lord Lyndhurst) to postpone proceeding with his bill in the absence of his noble friend. Lord LYNDHURST said he was extremely sorry for the cause of the postponement. He bad no objec tion to postpone his bill, but what was the course to be pursued wi h respect to Lord Lucan's bill. The Earl c f LUCAN said his bill could be postponed tintil the same day as the noble and learned lord's. After a few words from Lord Campbell, Lord Brougham, and Earl Grey, the second reading of the bill was postponed till Thursday week. PROBATE ACT AMENDMENT BILL. Lord GRAN WORTH moved the third reading of this bill. Lord T. LEONARDS said he had a great objection to the 19th clause, which was to vest the property of intestates, in case of failure of heir, in the era wn. He moved that the words "judge ordinary" be inserted in stead of the word " crown." Their lordships then divided— Contents 22 Non-contents 22 The numbers being equal the LORD CRANORLLOR e• Glared the amendment to be carried. The bill was then read a third time and passed. DIVORCE ACT AMENDMENT BILL. Lord CRA.NWOR'TII moved the third reading of this bill. Lord REDESDALE said that on a former evening, when he had called attention to the extreme rapidity with which undefended suits had been hurried through the court, he was assured that nothing could be more certain than that due inquiry bad been made into every case, whether undefended or not. Since then he bad heard from persons practising in the court that serious objections were felt as to the manner in which causes were disposed of. On a single day no fewer than one de. fended and nine undefended petitions were granted ; and one of those cases only occupied 11 minutes —probably a less time than the union which was dissolved had in the first instance taken to cement. It was really impossible in that short space to make a proper investigation. (Hear, hear.) He was told that in the cases in question the parties had long lived apart, or the respondent was charged with bigamy, but that was no answer at all ; because there was no proof that the wife's conduct bad not itself led to the separation or the bigamy. In point of fact there were no cases in which collusion was more to be suspected than cases of this description ; and though it might be impossible for them to receive the same care as used to be bestowed upon them by their lordships, he hoped that at least more care would be shown in future. (Hear, hear.) Lord CAMPBELL complained of the noble lord's conduct in standing up in his place and impeaching the conduct of the judges of the land. He thought that such a step was a nary rash and ill-advised one. Ile had him self had the honour of presiding in the Divorce Court on four or 'five'days, and he would underteke to say that no case that had come before their lordships bad ever been more deliberately considered than those which had been decided by the court while he was present. Since then Lord Chief-Justice Cockburn and Mr. Justice Wight man had attended, than whom no more learned or cau tious judges had ever sat in Westminster-hall. Of Lord Chief-Justice Cockburn the highest expectations had been entertained ; but those expectations had been more than fulfilled by the learning, the caution, and the vigilance which he had uniformly displayed since his elevation to the judicial bench. He felt certain that the cases tried before Lord Chief-Justice Cockburn had been as fully sifted as those which bad come before him (Lord Campbell). He believed that in the nine cases re ferred to, there had not been the possibility of collusion, and that there was not the slighest ground for the sus picion of any improper haste in arriving at a decision. He believed, too, that the court would have a most salu tary effect in preventing bigamy from being so common in future as was now the case, because there was no doubt that the impossibility of obtaining a die, olution of marriage under the old system, had bad a direct. ten dency to produce bi.arny amongst the lower orders. The Bishop of OXFORD said the noble and learned lord bad read his noble friend a very unnecessary lecture, for his noble friend had really done no more than speak out that which was felt by a large number of persons bath in their lerdships' house and in thecountry. (Cheers.) Many of their lordships, who had given a somewhat rapid adhesion to the Divorce Bill, were beginning to be of opinion that too great facilities were afferded for the dis solution of roarria6e ; and those who felt the sacredness of the marriage bond, however they might think that for great causes it, might be dissolved, were beginning to regard with apprehension the rapidity with which suits could be carried through the court. (Hear.) Toe noble and learned lord said that in nine cases which were dis solved the other day the parties had long been living apart. That was precisely the stafe of things in which they might expect to meet with collusion—a state of things, namely, in which both the parties were desirous of dis solving the connexion between them. (Rear.) His noble friend had not impugned the conduct of the court ; he bad only called attention to a fact which was well calcu• dated to excite alarm amongst the thinking people of this country. (R ear .) Earl GRANVILLE did not object to any member cf their lordships' house speaking out what he felt ; on the contrary, if he thought there was any abuse in the ad ministration of justice it was hie duty to bring the sub ject before Parliament. Neverthless, he considered that a severe reflection ought not to be cast upon the mem bers of an important court by a noble lord in an official position without giving notice to those upon whose con duct he thought proper to make remarks. Lord CRANWORTH said that the rapidity with which a court disposed of the business before it was an advantage, unless it could be shown that there was an undue baste, or a want of proper precaution. But he should like to know in what respect the old system af forded a better guarantee against collusion than the new one i He protested that there was no advantage what ever on the side of the old procedure. No doubt there was an accumulation of ca es just now among the pauper classes, but nothing that bad occurred excited the least doubt in his mind as to the policy of the Divorce Act. Lord ST. LEONARDS knew nothing about the court except from what he had read in the papers, but he had read with great attention the reports of its proceedings, and he certainly thought there was no fault to be Lund with the manner in which the learned judges discharged their functions. Under the old system the:r lordships had no power whatever to detect collusion. (Hear.) The Earl of WICKLOW said injustice hail beers done to the noble lord the chairman of committees by the noble lord, who said that he had brought forward this subject without notice. In point of feet, the noble lord gave no tice when he mentioned the subject the other night, and the noble lord the Chief Justice ought to have been suf ficiently prepared for a repetition of those remarks. For his own part he felt much obliged to the noble lord (Lord Redesdale) for bringing the subject forward. Lord CAMPBELL had never heard anything more illogical than the speech of the noble earl. (Cries of spoke, and order.) Viscount MELVILLE rose to order. The noble and learned lord had o r ght to make another sp, eel). Lord CAMPBELL had a right to make an explana tion. If the noble lord had been a lie tle more familiar With the forms of their lordships' house he would not have interposed. There bad been no notice given. (Loud critis of , seder.) The Bishop of OXFORD rose to ord r. Lord CA XPBELL--1 Lace a right to offer an ex planation. The Biahnp" a OXFORD —W hat The noble and teartied l or d answering n is t g h the e ex p n l o a b a l a e ti c o a n tl! (clear.) Lord CAMPBELL, 'however, continued hie remarks for a few moments longer, but, it was amid loud cries of " Order." Lord REDESDALE also wished to explain. Many things had been att ributed to him w hich be lad never said. He had cast no im p utation u p on members of the court. He bad only called attention to a system, and be must repeat that the rapidity with which gases had been disposed of was incompatible with due precautions against these practices against which' their lordships used so carefully - to guard. Earl GRANVILLE rose to order. The noble lord was hardly giving an explanation. Lord BROUGHAM thought that greater licence had been allowed o the Chairman of Committees than to ate Lord Chief Justice. The bill was then read a third time and passed, The Peace Preservation (Ireland) Act Contioxiance Bill was read a third time and passed. DELAYS IN CHANCERY. The LORD CHANCELLOR said that sor.ne time ago a noble lord (Lord Lifforti) called his attention to cer tain complaints which had been made with regard to the state of the Court of Chancery, and he mentioned a par ticular case in which he understood the noble lord him self was in some degree interested. He (the Lord Chancellor) had misapprehended the direction of the noble lord's complaint, which he-had understood re ferred to the delay that had taken place in the chief clerk's office. Helhad made inquiry into the subject, and he had had the valuable assistance of a noble and learned friend of much greater experience than himself, and who would be able to give their lordships much more accu rate information. He (the Lord Chancellor) had required a report to be made to him ; and from that report it would appear that there were some grounds for the noble lord's complaint, although the blame did not at tach to the chief clerk's office. It appeared that a mat ter had been referred to a Master in Chancery in March, 1850, and the Master's report was not made until Dec , 1855. Zor that long , and unjustifiable delay not the slightest explanation was afforded. It had, how ever, taken place under the old system ; and since the matter had come into the chief clerk's office no delay was attributable to him. The order for an inquiry was made in June, 1856 ; and the order was rather of a complicated description. It was for the purpose of ascertaining what portions of a certain fund paid into court had been received on account of the settled and unsettled estate; what annuities were in existence, and what arrears still remained to be paid. When the chief clerk appointed a day for the parties to meet, it fre quently Kapp( cad that they were not ready, and the matter had to be adjourned. There were only two days on which the postponement had been occasioned by the chief clerk himself. There was an annuitant who was dead, but the noble lord, and those whose interest the noble lord represented, bad no possibility of proving that fact. There was no knowledge of it, except that which existed in the breast of the parties who opposed him ; but the noble lord informed him that the solicitor on the other side was perfectly aware of the death of the man. He submitted • to the noble lord that there was an easy remedy by calling the solicitor before the chief cler, but the noble lord told him that the chief clerk had no power whatever to summon parties before him. He could not have believed that such a state of things o)uld have existed. However, he believed that the case to which the noble lord had referred was now almost ripe foz the certificate of the chief clerk. There had been consiJerable delay in the case, but that delay was not at tributable so much to the chief clerk as to the old system. With regard to the delay in the office c 4 the chief clerk, the noble lord had made a thorough investi _ _ getion. His noble and learned friend had submit' ed some changes which might be introduced, and if they were adopted, he believed hie noble and learned friend would be of opinion that the business it the chief clerks might be conducted in a satisfactory manner. Loral ST. LEONARDS, who spoke in a low and in distinct tone, so as to be frequently inaudible, said the statement of the noble lord was one that called for ex planation. Their lordships were aware that by the act of 1852 great alterations in the procedure of the Court of Chancery were made. The masters were abolished they were judges of a minor character. By the altera tions it was provided that there should be no person act ing in the character of a judge but thejudge htmsele and that he should have a chief clerk, to whom matters of detail should be referred. The object was to avoid the necessity of referring matters in the cause, and havin g long reports from the masters, and to keep the chief clerk in the chamber of the judge in constant communication witu him, to enable the clerk to receive the instructions of the judge, and thus come to a conclusion with a say• ing of expense, of time, and of labour. The chief clerks had thrown upon them onerous duties ; they had inqui ries to prosecute as to who were heirs at law or next of kin, to decide on questions under the Winding-up Act, and a variety of other business to transact. The noble lord asked if the chief clerks prosecuted each matter de die in diem. He could not answer that question, but the instructions he laid down when Lord Chancellor were that, as far as possible, each case should be proceeded with de die in diem, before they commenced with another Lord CAMPBELL observed that they did not give the whole day to a case, but only one hour. Lord ST. LEONARDS said at some offices he knew they proceeded the whole day, but there were other offices where they did cot act upon that system, but hay • ing appointed certain matters for the day, when the hour or two hours allotted to a particular case had expired they went on with another case. That was one of those things that required to be corrected ; and the noble and learned lord on the woolsack, with the judges, could easily correct that and lay down one uniform rule for all the offices. He believed that the new system worked admirably. When it was first adopted he went to each judge and communicated with him, and then he went to the chief clerks' chambers, and saw the chief clerks, who showed him their systems, and he never was so struck with the competency of men. The plan was this, for every day there was a paper drawn up of all the business to be done during that day. They first took all the business that was unopposed, and then Until 11 or 12 o'clock they finished the cases that re mained for deci-ion. After that the heavy cases came on, and they proceeded with them as far as they could. They worked till 4 5, or 6 o'clock, and did as cinch as it was possible for men to accomplish, But it was fre quently impsssible to proceed with a case until it was finished. For instance, a heavy case was fixed for a Tuesday, and perhaps one hundred persons, many of them from the country, would have to prove their debts in the case ; but a case which had been expected to be concluded on the Monday was not concluded, and if they put off the case which had been fixed for the Tuesday the parties would be greatly inconvenienced. With regard to receivers, when the court appointe I a receiver it ought to see that he did his duty. Some of the chief clerks thought they ought not to take an active part with regard to receivers. He thought differently ; and he would have a rule promulgated that the chief clerks should at the end of every term make out a list of all receivers who had not passed their ac counts. This list he would have hung up in the Lord Chancellor's court, and if within fourteen days after wards the receiver did not pass his accounts, the solici or to the suitors' fund should be instructed to proceed against the receiver, and to apply to the court to appoint another. He had said that in appointing the chief clerks one great object had been that they should be in constant communication with the judge. The chief clerk ought to be in the chambers of the judge, and to have constant access to him. But from the confined, space on which the courts were built, the requisite accommoda tion could not be given, and in consequence each judge bad a set of chambers at some die ance from the court. He saw no way of obv:ating this difficulty but by taking down the range of buildings at the east end of Stone buildings, and building new courts there, with the re quisite chambers attached, He might observe that one of the great evils in the administration of properly was the long continuance of a manager or receiver, who generally considered himself master of the property, and nothing was more difficult than to get rid of him ; and with regard to the selling of property, he thought the court ought not to fix a high price, and he did not know whether it would not be. best .to announce to the world that the sale would be without reserve. He thought it was due to the character of the court to make these statements, from which it would be seen that there had been every desire to remedy the evils that existed. Lord CRANWORTH said he bad beard the state ment of his noble and learned friend (Lord St. Leonardo) with the most unmixed satisfaction. His noble and learned friend had the happiness of being instrumental, in a great degree, in reforming the Court of Chancery. It was his (Lord Gran worth's) fate to receive the great seals just as those reforms came into operation. It little booted the public to know that the holder of the great seal did not come into contact with the officers of the court, but he felt it was one of the duties imposed upon him to see that the new system should operate fairly and in the mode contemplated by the act of parliament ; and in order to accomplish that obj,ct ho adopted the course every term of having an interview with the judges, who used to C 91,18 to him in the evening, when they discussed the alterations made and how for they worked well. It was the universal feeling of the judges that the proceeding in every contested matter which had been begun should continue till it was ended, but though that was unquestionably the correct theory, it was im possible to carry it out in practice. They might re quire the debts against an estate to be proved, and there might he creditors in India or Australia. Then a case, which it had been calculated would be finished on a Saturday, was not finished, and another case had been previouly fixed for the following Monday. B, fore ha l b o e f t m t a n d e e great n s o ea t l ieg la i e s a f e t l o t ri t a h l a b t u t t h e m r e e c a h l a i n m i c p a r l o . v l e t m w e n o t u t l d o be placedan i n advantage an ai ryc leeboreimkynsfoonrdt a a b l l l e p e w e ritf, withhe judge a o c p o e r u fi l d u b t y e of chambers, where immediate eatdth.tmee juniorl contiguity n t s t gc ue might irtkys t o e i wait, co and d t duct wher e their the business chief • of the judge. (Hear.) Lerd CAMPBELL expressed his great satisfaction at the exilanation which had beeni given by the not le and learned lord who had taken so much trouble to ire eeHtigate the matter. Lord LIFFORD said be had received numerous letters from suitors, who felt the greatest satisfaction at the promptness with which the question had been taken up and invo-tigated. The subject then dropped. CHUI;CH RATES, TUE JEWS, so. The Earl if CARLISLE, in presenting a petition from the Society of Friends against church rates, baid he did not feel called upon to declare the manner in which h e should vote before hearing whether her Majesty's GJ vernrnent had any euggeetion to make on the slibj(ct. His obj, : ct in giving notice of his intention to present the petition was merely a mark of respect for the cha racter of the petition and the respectable body from whom it proceeded. The petitioners were the members of a body representing the Society ( f Friends in: Great Britain, and he believed the petition conveyed the una , nimous opinion of the members of the society generally. They stated that they had for more than two centuries stedfastly maintained those great principles which they believed to be founded on the Gospel—that man is re sponsible to God alone in matters of religion, and that legislative interference with the rights of conscience is not only impolitic, but contrary to the spirit of true re ligion. They went on to say that, influenced by these considerations they had felt themselves called upon to refuse payment of c hbrol a rates, because they were en forced for th e upho ldi ng o f buildings.and- ceremonies in connexion with a mo d e o f wors hi p w hi c h th e y did n o t consider to be conformable to the spirit of the Christian • religion. They expressed t'aeir gratification that a bill THE SUN, LONDON, for the abolition of church rates had passed the House of Commons, and entreated their lordships to give their ready and cordial sanction to the measure. The noble earl added that it was only fair to say that the principles of the petitioners were equally opposed to the payment of tithes and any mode of supporting an established church. The question having been put that the petition do lie on the table, The Earl of CARLISLE said he understood from the clerk that the petition was informal, inasmuch as it did not contain the word "humble." He was convinced that the petitionerti did not intend any disrespect to their lordships; but, as the petition was informal, he would withdraw it. The noble earl presented similar petitions from congregations in Leeds, Otley, Halifax, Todmor den, Thirsk, and several other places. Also three peti tions from the synods of Dublin and Coleraine, praying that no change may be made in the national system of education in Ireland, and for an extension of the system of middle education in that country. The Bishop of OXFORD presented a " humble" peti tion—(a laugh)—fron. Exeter against the abolition of church-rates, and similar petitions from Aylesbury, Oxford, and many other places. Also petitions against the Jews being allowed to legislate in a Christian nation; and petitions praying their lordships not to pass any law for special services which would allow one elergy• man to officiate in a parish without the leave of the clergyman of that parish. The Bishop of LONDON presented petitions from Barking and West Ham against the unconditional aboli tion of church-rates. The Earl of CLANOARTY said the noble earl who had presented petitions on the subject cf national educa tion in Ireland, and who had left the house, bad some what misrepresented the nature of those petitions. Only one of the petitions related to national education. The others were in favour of the formation of upper schools. A. strong feeling prevailed in Ireland that great injustice was done, not only to the Protestant population but to the whole of the country, by the practical exclusion of the poor population from access to the Scriptures in the national schools. When the noble earl stated that these petitions were in favour of national education, no doubt the mistake arose from his not having properly ex amined them, but they ought to be entered on the minutes in accardancs with their prayer., Lord TALBOT de MALAHIDE understood his noble friend the Earl of Carlisle to have stated that one cf the petitions was in favour of the present system of national education, and the other in favour of the educa tion of the middle classes. Their lordships then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS —YESTERDAY. Tho SPEAKEa took the chair at twelve o'clock. PRIVATE BUSINESS. The Lords' amendments to the following bills were considered and agreed to :—Luton Gas, Salisbury and Yeovil Railway, Blyth Harbour and Dock, Chiswick Improvement. The following bills were read a third time and passed : —Stockton and Darlington Railway (Durham Lines), Stockton and Darlington, Wear Valley, So., Railway Companies Amalgamation. The following bills were read a second time :—Sun derland Dock, Westminster Palace Hotel Company (Limited.) FOUR COURTS (DUBLIN) BILL. Lord NAAS moved that, in the CABO of the Four Courts (Dublin) Extension Bill, the examiner of peti tions for private bills have leave to sit and proceed on Thursday next.— Agreed to. NEW WRIT. On the motion of Sir W. HATTER, a new writ was issued for Cornwall in the room of Michael Williams, Esq., deceasei. MEDICAL PRACTIONERS' BILL. On the motion of Mr. WALPOLE, this bill was com mitted pro forma, for the purpose of introducing certain amendments, and the bill was ordered to be recommitted on Thursday week at twelve o'clock. LOCAL GOVERNMENT BILL. The house then went into committee on this bill. Clauses 1 to 8 inclusive were agreed to. On clause 9, which gives the power to determine whether the act shou:d be adopted or not in town cone oils and improvement commissions, Sir M. FARQUAHAR said he thought that this power ought to be in the bands of the ratepayers, and not in town councils. If such a provision as the one laid down in the clause was agreed to, the bill, in his opinion, would be a dead letter. He moved an amend ment to effect his suggestion. Mr. BAINES supported the clause. He thought the town councillors, who were the ratepayers•selection, were the proper parties to determine whether or not they would adopt the provisions of the bill. Mr. ADDERLEY said the clause provided that two-thirds of the town council must consent to the adop tion of the act before it could be put in operation, and then there was an ample power of appeal given to the ratepayers against the decision of the town council. After a short discussion, the amendment was nega tived without a division, and the clause was agreed to. On clause 10, which proposed that the petitions of the ratepayers and others against the decision of the town council in favour of the act be addressed to one of her Majesty's Secretaries of State, Mr. COWPER proposed that the petition of those opposed to the adoption of this act should be sent to the committee of Privy CJuncil, or in other words, to the President of the Board of Health. In tffact, such pe titions would go to the Howe Office, which was already overburdened with business. Mr. ADDERLEY said he felt disposed to adopt the amendment of the right lion. gentleman merely for the purpose of expaditing the pas,ing of_the bill, the male object of which was to get rid of the, existing Board of Health, and to leave local authorities to their own action, under the direction of the Secretary of State. But with this desire he felt he must adhere to the clause, being desirous of keeping separate and distinct: the medical and sanitary action from mere matters of police. The latter, be contended, ought to be under the direction of the Home-office, but the former under the guidance of the Privy Council. Mr. PALK thought the best way to expedite the bill was to refer it to a select committee. (ob, oh.) Mr. WESTdEAD said his constituents had a great objection to approach the Privy Cornell, but such was not the case with respect to the Secretary of State for the Home Department. The amendment was negatived. Sir G. PECHELL objected to the pluralty of voting as laid down in this clause, and such being his opinion, he should move an amendment to abolish such a pro ceeding, unless the hon. gentleman altered the bill to meet laisi views. Mr. ADDERLY said the gallant admiral objected to give the owner and bona fide occupier a vote, but he diffsred in opinion with him, and he felt it his duty to stand firm to the provisions of the clause. The clauAe was agreed to, as were the other clauses up to 28, with a few verbal amendments. Oa Clause 29, Sir A. ELTON moved the insertion of words direct• ing that in this act nothing should be held to affect the rights of landowners to make private roads on their own property. The amendment was negatived, and the clause agreed to. Clause 30 was under discussion at four o'clock, at which hour the sitting was suspended. The House resumed at six o'clock MAIL COMMUNICA.TION WITH AUSTRALIA, Mr. H. BERKELEY asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether any representations had been recently received from the Legislatures of New South Wales or Victoria with reference to the irregularities in the performance of the steam postal service between this country and Australia, and whether the Legislature of Victoria had not, by a formal resolution, recommended that the existing cletract should be annulled. Sir E. B. LYLTON replied that the Australian colo nies had made repeated complaints of the irregularities in the performance of the service between this country and Australia. In December, 1857, Sir W. Denison sent forward a representation from the Legislature of New South Walee, and subsequently a resolution of the Chamber of Co amerce on the same subject. No repre sentation had been received from the Legislature of Victoria, nor any recommendation that the existing contract shall be annulled. So great agrievance, how ever, ha I not escaped the attention of the Colonial. office. Teey had been in constant communication with the Treasury, and he bail the satisfaction of stating the existing contract would be immediately dissolved. He was informed by the Treasury that tenders for the new service woull be invited without delay. The terms would be modified in such a manner as experience had shown t ) be necessary, and every hope was entertained that the service would now be placed in all respects on a eatisfactery footing. To obviate any inconve nience that might arise from the sudden termination of the prevent contract, the Treasury would take imme diate steps to enter into a temporary arrangement with the Royal Mail Steam Shipping Company for the per formance of the service during the interval which must elapse before the new contract ceinmenced. Oa the 16th of June he wrote to the Governor of the Australian colo nies informing him that the existing c tntract had been dissolved, and that a temporary arrangement would be entered into at once. SITE FOR A BARRACKS AT KENSINGTON GORE. Mr. H. DARING a4ced the ChanceHor of the Ex chequer whether the G.►vernment prop )sed to take any steps for obtaining such portion ► f the Kensington- Gore estate as would suffice for the erection of barracks for the Guard, in lieu of the present quarters in Port man-street ? He had given notice of the question be fore the diacuc4ion on the subj-2ct last evening, awl now put it on account of the great anxiety which prevailed on the mat', r. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER assured the hon. gentlemao her Majesty's Government had made due inquiry into the fut jeer, but it was not in the power of the royal caminission to enter into any arrange. went of ‘lie kind without avi lotion of cor.tract. Tne land bad been purchased not from one but from several proprietors, who still lull land immediately contiguous. They made it a condition cf the sale that no building of an offensive character, or which could deteriorate the valus of the surrounding property,. should be erected on it. Very stringent engagements and conditiOns were required from the commissi,ners, but as some difficulty was found in putting them into a legal shape the land holders agreed, in consequence of the high character and social positi , n of the commission, to take the per sonal engagement of the comizi-sioners that no buildings should be erected except for the purposes of science and art. The commissioners., therefore, were not ill a posi tion to li ten to any overtures of the kind suggested. It would be a breach of faith to devote the land to any other purposes than those originally intended.' CORRUPT PRACTICES AT ELECTIONS ACT. Mr. REBOW asked the Secretary of State for the WEDNE I SDAY EVENING, YUNE Home Department when he proposed to bring in the bill for continuing the Corrupt Practices at Elections Act ? Mr. WALPOLE said it was difficult in the present state of public business, to say when he could bring in the bill. His intention was to do so on Monday, if pos sible, and he trusted to get an early day after to proceed with it. REWARDS TO MEMBERS. Lord HOTHAM rose to propose the following reso lution :—" That it is contrary to the usage, and deroga tory to the dignity of this house, that any of its mem bers should bring for yard, promote, or advocate, in this hcuse, any proceeding or measure in which he may have acted or been concerned, for, or in consideration of, any pecuniary fee or reward." In doing so the noble lord said he was not actuated by any private feeling but solely from a sense of public duty. (Hear.) Tnere were precedents for the course he was pursuing, and therefore in asking the house to record their opinion on' • the resolution, ho was establishing no new principle. The house from the earliest period has shown a determination to sustain its own purity, and at different periods they had passed resolutions restraining members from the commission of acts calculated to undermine the indepen dence and to lower their efficiency in the eyes of the country. his motion emanated from the report of a committee which sat in April last, and investigated the charges contained in a petition presented by Mr. Coffey, but it was not his intention to cast any reflection on the members of the profession of the law. The first resolu tion direc►ly interfering with the free action of the mem • hers of the legal profession belonging to that house, pro vided that members of that house being lawyers should not take part as counsel on bills before the House of Lords prior to their coming to the House of Commons. Subsequently to that various members were expelled for accepting money bribes in consequence of the performance of certain duties ; and in 1667 Mr. Aahburnham was expelled the house for taking a bribe of 5001. from the French merchants. In 1694 the Speaker of the house was expelled for taking a bribe of 1,000 guineas relative to the London Corpora tion Orphan Bill, and Mr. Hungerford, for receiving the very moderate sum in those days of 20, guineas as chairman of the committee on the same bill, and in 1695 a resolution was passed, making it a high crime and misdemeanour, and tending to the subversion of the British constitution, in any one to presume to cffer sums of money to members to stimulate honourable members in the discharge of their duty in any particular direc tion. (Hear, hear.) From that time things appeared to have gone on without interruption till 1830, when, in consequence of an honourable member entering into partnership with a gentleman who carried on the busi ness of a parliamentary agent, a resolution was unani mously passed condemning the practice, and the part nership was dissolved the next day. H's reason for taking that prominent position was in consequence of there having grown up of late years a practice of send ing appeals from India to this country. That practice had, year after year, become a matter of more frequent occurrence ; and, in consequence, a practice had grown up with it which be thought it behoved the House of Commons to guard against. (Elear, hear.) The public mind was impressed with the belief, in consequence, that a system was being adopted that was not calculated to sustain the purity of the house ; and they had it on less authority than the hon. member for Guildford, late chairman of the Court of Directors of the East India Company, in his evidence bet •re the committee on Mr. Coffey's petition, that it had been publicly stated in India that the services of the members in that house were obtainable by means of money, and he (Lord Ho them) asked the house if it was a system that ought to be permitted I The truth of the statement referred to had been corroborated by the report of the committee, respecting which he would then say nothing, because he was bound to believe they bad done their duty fairly and honestly, and given a right decision on the evi dence adduced before them. The resolution to which he had referred did not apply to the cases in question. The former referred to the payment of money for Parlia mentary services, but the cases in question were of a dif ferent character. As he understood, a legal member of the house was retained, with a very heavy fee, to con duct the case in a court into which it was never intended by those who paid the fee to take it, and afterwards he was asked to undertake to bring the case forward in Parliament. The money, no doubt, was paid legally, and there could be no doubt a legal gentleman, a member of that house, bad a perfect right to bring the case before the house, but i❑ doing so could it be considered as any thing else than an evasion of the law of Parliament laid down to protect its own purity ? He considered it was the duty f the house to declare their opinion on the subject, and say such a practice should no longer exist. (Hear.) He denied that the resolution he proposed would interfere with the free action of the members of that house. Already the number of the legal professional members of that house were relieved from the share of the committee work of that house to go on circuit, and it was unreasonable for the members of the legal profes ,ion to expect that the character of that house for purity should be sacrificed by their conduct. It was said there was no occasion for this resolution because publicity. was a check en them, but the legal profession was different from all others, in that they received their fees before they did their work, and having received their fees legally with a brief in a case purporting to be brought before the courts in Westminster-hall, it could not be said they had taken bribes, when they advocated certain claims afterwards in that house. , Since he had put his notice on the paper, he had received expressions of ap probation of his conduct from a large number of gentle men, connected with the luish and English bar, 'who wished to see the prat' ice put down. It was because he cordially concurred in the opinions which Thad been expressed by the !italic journals that he had thought it his duty to propose the resolution to the house. Whatever might be the merits of the resolution which he was about to submi► ; at all events it would not be open to the charge of ambiguity. There could be no doubt whatever as to its meaning. (Hear) He appealed to hon. members, , as men of integrity, honour, conscience, honesty and common sense, what opinion would the public entertain of the House of Commons if, while professing so much abhorrence of improper conduct in others, they were squeamish respecting charges which affected their own purity and integrity 1 He ventured to hope that the house would rise above ad minor consideration, and de clare boldly and in the face of day and of the world, that while they were resolved to punish corruption without, it would not tolerate even so muoh as a suspicion of c ,r -ruption within its walls. (Hear, hear.) He therefore wised the house to declare that it was derogatory to the dignity of the house that any of its members should bring for ward any motion, or advocate any proceeding or measure in which he might have acted, or been concerned for, or in consideration of any pecuniary fee or reward. (Hear.) Mr. DIVETT si.conded the motion. Mr. BOWYER objected to the resolution, on the ground that it conveyed a vague censure upon all the legal members of the house. (No, no) He called upon the noble lord who brought forward the motion to state definitively and precisely who were the persons to whom the resolution was intended to apply. If it had no par ticular reference, then it was a mere abstract resolution of the worst kind, inasmuch as it conveyed a general censure upon the members of the legal profession. He was himself a member of the bar, but although not in actual practice, he felt it his duty to repel the accusation which was then brought against a most honourable body of men. The noble lord must, however, go a great deal further than his resolution went. There were rail ' way directors in this house who received salaries as director,e and they were permitted to advocate the in terests of he particular lines with which they were con nected. The chairman of the East India Company and the governor of the Bank of England ought also to be excluded from taking part in any discussion upon questions in which they were interested. Even the At torney e r e'reneral and Solicitor-General would have their mouths closed upon the same principle in . all cases in which they might have received a brief in any case affect • jug the iet , ,rests of the Crown. (A laugh.) It was, he contended, most unjust to affix a stigma upon the legal profession, leaving other members perfectly free. Toe noble lord ought, in justice to the house, to name the barristers who had, as he stated, misconducted them selves. (Hear.) Mr. WHITESIDE said that the argument of the hon. member that the chairman of the East India Com pany ought to be prevented from speaking on subjects connected with that company, did not in the least apply to the resolution before the house. The house knew per fectly well the position which was occupied by the chair man of the East India Company, and his arguments upon any question were taken accordingly, but that such conduct was very different from that of persons who indirectly received fees for advocating measures in the House of Commons. (Hear) The motion of his noble friend appeared to bim just and honourable, and so fir from considering it an impeachment upon the pro fession to which he had the honourto belong, he thanked the nolls lord far having brought it forward, and would give it his hearty support. (Hear.) Mr. BOUVERIE objected to the resolution, on the ground that, if entered upon the records of Parliament, it would convey the erroneous notion that general cor ruption was prey:elect in the House of Commons. The hon. member proceeded to read some extracts from con temporary werks of the time of Charles, showing the great extent of con option which then prevailed, and contended that the great security (or the continuence of the integrity of hon. membrrs was to be found in the ceaseless vigilance of the press. Dissenting, therefore, iron the resolution on the grounds which he bad stated, he moved the previous question. (Hear.) Sir J. PAKINGTON suggested that it was moat de sirab!e that if the resolution were agreed to, the words of the resolution should be so wideas to cover all honour able members and all cases. He thought that the words "in which he might have acted or been concerned" should be omitted, and the omission of those words weuhl remove anything like a stigma upon a particular class or pra,ssion. The standing orders of the house were, he believed, very strong against "offering" any brine t i the members of tee house, but he di I not think there was any ord against hon. na?mbers " receiving" a bribe. (Ili ar, h e ar.) Mr. LA 1301JCLIE RE hoped that the h , use would not accede to the suggestion of the right hon. baronet, the effect of which would be to seduce the r esolution to the merest truism, which it would be inconsisteut with the dignity of the house to affirm. (Hear ) The House of Cornmone, at tie present moment, stood higher than it ever did, but it was impossible not to understand that a very strong feeling existed out of the house on the sub ject, and it was, therefore, the duty of the house to give expreF,sion to its opinion that sue] acts as those which were peirved out by the resolution were derogatory to the character ef the Howie of C enceone. There was also an increased nee s,ity for agreeing to some resolution of the kiud, arising out of the contemplated transference of the government of India to theiCrown, one effect of which would be to make the House of Commons much more than it had yet been the arena fer discussing pecuniary matters and interests connected with India. We knight expect to have wealthy raj ahs and zemiudars coming over to England and endeavouring to interest hon. members 23, in the promotion of their claims, and endeavouring to obtain redress for alleged grievances. (Hear, hear.) Be lieving that the necessity for this resolution did exist, he should give it his cordial support. (Hear, hear.) The SOLICITOR-GENERAL concurred in the pro priety of a great deal that had been said by the right hon. gentleman who had just addressed the house, and had no hesitation in saying, on the part of the bar, that fer any hon. member to advocate in the house the same cause which be had been retained to advocate at the bar, was not in accordance with those notions of honour which generally actuated the members of the legal profession. (Hear ) While he entertained this opi nion, he regretted that some cases had not been brought forward to show the necessity of a resolution as that be fore the house. When it was said there were suspicions abroad on the subject of the conduct of the bar, and that, therefore, it was necessary to pass such a resolu tion, be felt it his duty, on the part of the bar, to state that there was no ground fur such suspicion, so far as the members of that profession were concerned. In his humble judgment, the resolution as expressed iu ono sense, conveyed much more than its authors meant to convey, while in another sense they actually shrink from conveying their full meaning. He should vote, there fore, fur the amendment r f the hon. member opposite. Mr. Sergeant DEASY, as a member of the Irish bar, entirely concurred in every sentiment that bad fallen from the hon. and learned gentleman the Attorney-Ge neral for Ireland, and in regarding such conduct as this resolution was directed against, as involving not only a violatio❑ of the duties of a member of Parliament, but likewise a violation of the duties of a member of the bar, and as entirely opposed to the feelings of the profession. He believed that members of that house who happened also to be members of the legal profession, bad very fre quently abstained from taking fees in matters to be sub mitted to Parliament. The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said that if his noble friend who brought forward the motion, or any other hon. member, really believed that there was any one member of the bas of England, Scotland, or Ireland, who happened to have a seat in that house that had afforded the slightest gronnds for a motion of this kind, it was due to the bar and to that house that the name of that hon. member should be declared. Now, as far as re garded the resolution itself, with the exception of the words tointed out by his right hon, friend the First Lord of the Admiralty, it was entirely unobjectionable, but at the same time it was entirely uncalled for and unneces sary. IT° the resolution, taken abstractedly, no one could object, but it wee actually implied in an order of the house so far back as the year 1695. But let them take it in connection with the position of the law officers of the Cro - on in that house. Why, it might so happen, that immediately after the Attorney-General was con sulted upon some important question it would be brought forward in that house. Such was the case with regard to the matter of the Cagliari, which was submitted to Par liament only three days after the law officers of the Crown had been consulted with reference to it. Well, what a position would not the law officers of the Crown be placed in under such circumstances if a resolution like that were accepted. Well, suppose again the case of one of those Indian princes to whom allusion had been made. A case is submitted to council for consideration, and the council comes to the conclusion that there is no legal remedy whatever for the grievance in question ; still Parliament alone ca❑ redress the wrong which has been done. Well, then, under these circumstances was a mem ber of Parliament to be precluded from delivering his opinions as to the law of such case in his place in that house. But the moment that a member of the profession perceived a case was likely to be brought before. Parlia ment, if he should happen to be a member of thathouse, it was undoubtedly his bounden duty to intimate te the solicitor in the case that he could no longer be profes sionally interested in it. He had most fully considered the resolution, and considering it in reference to the in numerable cases in which the bar might be consulted, he did not hesitate toaffirrn that its adoption must have the effect of driving many distinguished members of the pro fession from that house. Once more, with regard to the case of the Indian Prince , —he believed that none would be found advocating their cause unless such persons could declare they were actuated by none but the purest mo tives. But what he wished above all the house to bear i❑ mind, was the practical meaning of a resolution of that kind upon the members of the bar who happened to be members of that house, especially those who might happen to have duties to perform with reference to the Crown and the subject in connection with matters that might happen to be submitted to Parliament. (Hear.) Mr. MALINS must protest against the aspersions which had been cast upon his profession throughout the discussion of that evening. He was utterly lost i❑ amazement to discover to what conduct the resolution before the house could possibly refer. He bad the most profound respect for the noble lord who had moved it, but he regretted that he had not more specifically urged the grounds upon which his conclusions rested. If any Particular member or members of that house bad bee❑ guilty of the malpractices imputed by the resolution, let their names be published to Parliament, but do not let the House of Commons by a general resolution cast a slur upon a high and dignified profession. Mr. BENTINCK expressed his cordial concurrence in every line of the resolution, as well as in every senti ment uttered by the noble lord who had introduced it. Mr. GILPIN . opposed the resolution. Mr. P. O'BRIEN regarded such a motion as an invi dious attempt to asperse the character (f the hoeour able profession to which he had the honour to belong. Lord J. RUSSELL thought the noble lord had done great service to the house i❑ bringing forward this mo tion—(hear, bear)—but that great diflicu'ty s'ood in the way of so framing a resolution which should neither o❑ the one band fall short of the object in view, or, on the other, overstep it. (Hear, hear.) It would be found a matter of great difficulty to meet every case that might arise, and it ought to he remembered that the house had emphatically recorded its opinion against any memo• ber of Parliament receiving pecuniary reward for his Parliamentary strvice4. The rule for the guidance of barristers, laid down by the Attorney General was, in his opinion, quite satisfactory. The discussion would tend to clear up matters, but for his own part he would rather trust to the high sense of duty aniameing the members of the bar, than to any resolution which might be passed. He should vote for the previous question, but the noble lord deserved thanks for having brought forward the motion. (Hear, hear.) Mr. BOVILL, on the part of the legal profession, thanked the noble lord for having afforded an opportu nity for a vindication of the members of the legal pro fession. Mr. ROEBUCK said, that as the house was about to legislate for India, it was cf importance to lay down a rule which was to guide members of the bar, who were at the same time members of parliament. He would tell the house ezaactly what had occurred to himself. He was a director of a bank, and one day, when at the bank, was toll that an agent of the Queen of Oude wished to see him. He supposed that the Queen of Oude might possibly wish to open an account with the bank—(laughter)—and consented to see the agent. This individual affected to regret that the Queen of Oude should appear before him (the honourable and learned member) "in such a manner," upon which he (Mr. Roebuck) said, " What the devil do you mean ?" (Laughter.) "The Queen of Oude is poor," said the agent. "I understand you now," replied tae honour. able and learned member. "Oh," the other rejoined, "we know one who received a fee of 5001. !or advocat ing the claims of the Queen of Oude." So the matter ended, and the individual was bowed out of the bank. (Hear, hear, and Itughter.) The rule for the guidance of a barrister was clear. When a legal man caine into parliament it was clear that he should give up every thing in the shape of a fee. (Hear, hear.) He thanked the noble lord for having brought forward the motion, and if he went to a division, ha should go into the same lobby with him. (Hear, hear ) The house had dis tinctly expressed its opinion that no man, as a lawyer, ought to advocate any case in the house as a barrister. (Hear.) After that expression of opinion no man would dare to do so. (Hear ) _ _ _ _ Mr. MELLOR said that the legal profession were already precluded from doing that which the resolution aimed at. He hoped the noble lord would net press the motio❑ to a division, although he should feel reluctant to vote against it. Lord 110TEUI replied, and the house divided, when there appeared— For the previous question BO Ag,ainat it Majority --71 The SPEAKER put the resolution. The numbers were— For the resolution... Against it Maj rity (Cheers and laughter.) 210 27 ----183 iISSESSORS AND COLLECTOR.S OF TAXES. Mr. LINDSAY had given notice to move "that in the opinion of this house the assessors and collectors of tax,s, both assessed and income, should be appointed by the C nnmissioners of Inland Revenue." The su'isct was one o f considerable importance, and his constituents, as well as others, had suffered severely from the prevailing sys tem. He wished somewhat to modify his motion—to the effect that the present mode of collecting the assessed and income taxes in England was attended with great disad vantage and Ices, and that some other means of collect ing those taxes should be resorted to. Ile found that 71 paiishes had been called on fur second payments in c sequence of the defalcations of collectors. In one case the amount was as large as 2,5001., and his own cons' ituents had had to repay 1,7651. Two collectors for Tynementh were appointed in 1854 and 1855--Thomas Briggs and Joseph Pbillipson. The warrant appointing them autho rised them t o g i ve th e usual quittances, and to issue dis traints where necessary. atiggs became insolvent ; his cidleague Piiillipion could not be made rtsponsible ; en 1 the property i n th e h an d s o f the tfficial assignee crud not be seiz fir the purpoiie. Thu result was a loss of 1,765/ , w hien was made up by a rc-assessment as usual. Tile in habitants resisted and took legal advice ; but there were conflicting opinions, and ttiethard of Inland Revenue insisted on the re-asscssment of the parish, and called on the Commissioners to dis;rain. Two oilier parties were named as c 'Hectors, Jackson . an l another, but they de clined to act atid were fined 501. for neglect of duty. At kit a party had to be sent down from L ,indon ,espe cialfy to co ll ec t thi s t ax, an d t h e par p h i of 13'11e mouth were ob'i ge d t o p a y it. S e v e nt) -sine other parishes were in this same case. Tee law, as it stood, was extremely difficult to understand ; theta were a number f acts bearing on the subj-tet. The 43rd Geo. 111. gave directions for the appointment of assessors and coll ec t ors , an d by 5 an d 6 Via. parishes were liable to be re-assessed for defalcations. A subsequent act, 17 and 18 Viet., erepowercd the B iard of Inland Revenue t to requi re sourity frem the collectors. This was imper a ti ve , b u t oug ht to be made sc. would also have the c dle.c ors appoint®d by the Government, who would tlen be respo - o.ible for their deficiencieP.here was naturally a difficulty in obtaining collectors for s parishes, where the poundage , was scuall jt r . n those 1 8 s'B. cases he would not place the appointment in the hands of the Treasury, but would divide the country into dis tricts, under commiszoners, who sWo - tild receive instruc tions from the Board of Inland Revenue to require secu rity from the collectors. By these meaos real responsi bility in the collectors would be secured. He had stated the case briefly, but he hoped he bad said enough to show the house the necessity for inquiry and some change—(hear, hear) —and with these observations he begged to move "that in the opinion of this house the assessors and collectors of taxes, both assessed and in come, should be appointed by the Commissioners of In land Revenue." Mr. %V ILLIAMS seconded the motion. In two parishes of the borough which he represented very seri ous losses had been sustained through the defalcations of collectors. He thought the responsibility of collect ing ought to be throw❑ on the Crown. Sir J. TROLLOPE thought there would be great difficulty in carrying out the views of the hon. member for Tynemouth. In a large number of districts the re muneration was so small i.lsat no man would for it sub ject himself to the inconvenience of giving security to the Government. He bad been a local commissioner for many years, and never knew a case of defalcation in auy officer appointed by him. He would suggest to the hon. member that the best course would be to propose the repeal of the statute of George hear) — which enacted that in case of any defalcation the amount should be re-assessed on the parish ; that was a hardship. With taxes, as with anything el-e, if a person paid his money to the duly qualified officer the receipt ought to be a discharge under all circumstances. (Hear.) If the hon. gentleman pressed the subject to a division he must oppose it, although he admitted the law required amendment. Mr. RIDLEY contended the matter complained of was a great grievance. There could not be a greater hardship than that a man having once paid a tax to the proper officer should be compelled to pay it over again. He understood the matter had lately been under the consideration of the Beard of Island Revenue, and he trusted the Government would be able to provide a remedy. If something was not done the effect on the revenue might be very serious. Mr. INGHAM considered the suggestion of the hon. baronet (Sir J. Trollope) a very good one, and if adopted, i: would go far to remedy the grievance complained of ; but if the Inland Revenue Commissioners were respon sible for the collection of the revenue, they ought to have the appointment of their own officers. If that were done a much smaller number of collectors would do the work. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said the hon. member for Tynenacuth was fully justified in bring ing the matter before the house. No doubt what was complained of was a grievance. He knew nothing more severe than to have to pay taxes under any circum stances; but to have to pay them twice, and that because a person of whom you never heard had run away with the money, was a combination of grievances. He still wished, however, the hon. gentleman would ❑ot press his motion. The question was really under the consideration of the Government at the present time. He did not use this as a mere phrase to meet a motion from the opposite side. He could refer to the report of the Inland Revenue Commissioners just laid on the table. The Commissioners say, "The mode of assessing and collecting the taxes by officers appointed by the parish must before long demand your lordships' consideration ; the subject is in a most unsatis factory state." The honourable baronet (sir J. Trol lope) had made a suggestion well worthy of atten tion; but the matter was one which could not be imme diately settled. It required grave consideration and con trivance before a satisfactory state of affairs could be arrived at. It was not an easy matter to raise a large revenue at a slight cost, and, moreover, there was a local jealousy (isot to be discouraged) which must be taken into account, and it was not advisable to increase the patronage and power of the Crown beyond what the neces•ity of the case required. The hon. gentleman had done his duty in bringing the subject before the house, and he trusted he would be content with the expression of opinion on the sus jest. (Hear.) Mr. LINDSAY, after the clear and express statement of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, would ask leave to withdraw his motion---(hear, hear)—but he hoped no time would be lost in dealing with the subject. The motion was then withdrawn. LUNATICS UNDER THE COURT OF CHANCERY. Mr. TITE, in moving for a select committee on this subject, said the matter was so foreign to his usual pur suits, that he would not have moved for it, but a case of great hardship having recently been laid before him, he felt compelled by a sense of duty to bring the matter be fore the house. He regretted to hear that his motion was to be opposed—he would have thought that the feelings of every member would lead him to support it. It ap peared from recent returns that there were now 29,000 lunatics in England, the increase last year having been 1.000. There were 15,054 in the county asylums, and 7,060 pauper lunatics in the workhouses. Tee number of county asylums was 38, and it was gratifying to learn that last year the cures in them were 14 per cent. There were 551 lunatics under the control of the Court of Chancery, possessing property to the amount of 240,0001. a-year. The amount allowed for their support was 160,000/., or an average of about 3001. a-year each. It might be supposed that having such large funds for their support, those luna tics would be in a much better state than any other, but in point of fact it was amongst this class that the greater number of complaints of hardship were found to exist. The proportion of cures did not exceed 2 per cent. The act of 1853, though drawn with much legal acumen, did not work. In the first place, only two medical visitors were appointed to look after these 530 persons, and they were only paid 500/. a year each, an amount of remuneration for which it was impossible te expect gentlemen of their eminence to devote the whole of their time. The result was, that although the patients were required to be visited once a year, the visitation was not efficient, and without constant supervision the lunatic was sure to be neglected. Lunacy was tiresome and harassing ; and without constent vigilance humanity itself would cease to be humane with regard to this unfortunate class. In a recent return to the House of Lords he saw a case mentioned in which no less than 1,1001. a year was allowed for the maintenance of the lunatic—a sum that must make the fortune of the asylum in which he hap pened to be placed. In another case, a clergyman, sub ject to partial hallucinations, and fit to move in society, was placed, with an allowance of 4001. a year, in the care of an ex-sergeant of police, whose other income only amounted to SO4. He did not mean to say that the lunatics in these cases were unkindly treated, but he maintained that they were not treated quite fairly. With regard to other patients, the reports of the commis sioners were regularly laid on the table ; so that if there was any complaint it could easily be investigated ; but the reports relating to the class to which he was calling the attentio❑ of the house were kept secret. He would not detain the house while he quoted to them the cases of hardship which had come within his knowledge, but hoped the government would take into consideration the great importance of the subjec , and grant him the com mittee for which he moved. (Hear, hear.) The SOLICITOR-GENERAL had no objection to have the subject investigated ; but he thought if an inquiry were undertaken at all, it should be a thorough one, and one of a character which at that period of the session it would be impossible to carry out. If the subject were renewed next year and a committee were appointed, every assistance would be afforded by the government, and, he might add, by the Lord Chancellor. The hon. gentleman had re ferred to the small per tentage of cures amongst patients of this class ; but in point of fact commissions of lunacy were never take❑ out except in the last resort. Re ferring to the list for a single year (1852) he found that the shortest period during which the lunatic was found to have been suffering from mental infirmity previous to the proceedings being taken was two years. In one oc casion it was 50 years ; and some of the lunatics were returned as having been idiots from their infancy, co that in point of fast these persons might be considered as having been all but incurable before any steps were taken. The hon. gentleman stated tbas the act would not work. No doubt it was susceptible of improvement, but it had worked admirably. One great object of the meesnre was to reduce the cost of proceedings in lunacy. Formerly in the most ordinary cases the expenses up to the appointment of the committee amounted to 200/... now they were between 501. and 701., besides which all the subsequent bus!nsss was transacted before a Master in chambers and was attended with scarcely any addi tional coat at all. With regard to the visitors, he had first to observe, that half the patients were in private asylums, and had the advantage of the habitual visits of the commissioners, presided over by Lord Shaftes bury. With regard to the rest, it would no doubt be very desirable that they should be more frequently seen by the two medical gentlemen appointed for that pur pose ; but it was unnecessary to say that if they insisted on their visits being made oftener they must increase th, it salaries. At the same t'me it must be borne in mind that the pa ii u u a ere under theiregular medical supervi sion which was provided by the scheme in each case ; and the visitors, when they did see them, were in structed to ascertain that the scheme was carried out in its minute-t detail , . The lion. gentleman had referred tc a case where he sail 1,1001 was paid for the lunatic's mitintenance ; but his " maintenance" included not only what was paid for his board, but an allowance on account of his family. Mr. TITE said that in the report to the House of Lords (which was dated the 21st of February) the sums were placed under separate heads, and the 1,100/. was returned as "maintenance of the lunatic." The SOLICITOR-GENERAL said from his know ltdee of the manner in which transactions of this kind were conducted, he had no doubt the thing occurred in the way be nad stated. The hon. member said the re parts of the comeniseionere were kept secret, It coul ❑ot tie supposed that it would be agreeable to the friends of these uefer unate persona to have them laid on the table of that house. (Hear, hear.) He (the S , licitor- G enera ') thought the c untry was greatly indeb' ed to the Lord Chancellor, and inure especially to the Lords Justices, in whose doper tent the matter lay, for the attention which was bestowed on these subject•. Ho knew that in many cases the Lards Justices had made a laroonal txawinaiion of lunatics, and, generally speak ing, they had manifested tie most lively interest in the treatment and welfare of those who were under their special cere. (EL ar.) He was desirous that wheneser a complaint was made it should be fully investioa'ed, in order that the house inight see how the act of 1853, re lating to this subject, worked. lie did not obj=et to inquiry, but it was impossible that it could be properly conducted . in the present seseion, and if the hon. gentle man would withdraw his motion then, and renew it next session, he would have the support of the Government in his attempt to obtain a feel and ccmplete inquiry. ' Mr. H. DRUMMOND thought it would have been batter, if, instead of proposing an inquiry into "the 'awe relating to lunatics," the hon. member had proposed an inquiry into the care and treatment of lunatics. Every ono who had studied the matter knew perfectly well that the treatment of lunatics under the authority of the Court of Chancery was much worse than the treatment of other lunatics. It was impossible for the Lords Justices to bestow sufficient attention on the matter to discover all that was going on. (Due thing which ex cited his suspicion in a lunatic asylum was the circum stance that whenever a patient attempted to speak to him a keeper immediately came up and said, " Take care of him, sir, he is a very danqerous man." Mr. TITE said, in accordance with the suggestion of the Solicitor-General, he would withdraw his motion and renew it next session. The motion was then withdrawn. BANKRUPTCY AND INSOLVENCY. Lard J. RUSSELL moved fur leave to bring in bill to amend and consolidate the laws relating to bank rupts and insolvents." The noble lord said he made Olio motion at the instance of a body of gentlemen who met come time ago at Birmingham to consider the subject, and who had asked him to lay the bill before the house in order that it might engage the attention of the law officers of the Crown. It appeared that at present the ex.:eases of bankruptcy proceedings were so great that about 30 per cent. of the realised assets were absorbed in them. Three or four remedies were suggested in this bill. One was to put an end entirely to the distinction between bankruptcy and insolvency by providing that the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Courts should be united, and that all persons who became insolvents should be deemed to be bankrupts. In the next place, it was pro posed that the creditors should have power at their first meeting to appoint a creditors' assignee, instead of an official assignee ; it being the opinion of the promoters of the bill, that although in many cases the official assig nee was a man of knowledge and ability, and managed the affairs entrusted to him skilfully, in other cases, through indolence or carelessness on the part of that officer, a great deal of the property of the creditors was wasted. It was further proposed that the process should be very much simplified, and made cheaper than it was then, and in pursuance of this last object it was proposed that in certain cases the creditors should have power to resort to the county courts. There were various other provisions, including one for placing retired allowances on the consolidated fund. The main feature of the bill was the consolidation of the Bankruptcy Court and the Insolvency Court. All he proposed to do now was to introduce the bill ; be did not expect to proceed any fur ther with it in the present session, but he hoped it would receive the fullest attention from the Government before a;:y alteration was proposed on their behalf. The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said the attention of the Government had long been directed to this impor tant subject, and, as the noble lord was probably aware, a bill was about to be introduced by them in the other house of parliament, which it was hoped would remedy most of the exiting defects. He was surprised that no attempt was made in the bill of the noble lord to amend the state of the law with regard to insolvent joint stock companies. At present it was impossible to do justice to the creditors and the shareholders without instituting proceedings both in the Court of Bankruptcy and in the Court of Chancery ; and the consequence was a conflict of jurisdiction, of remedies, and of officers, involving immense expense to the parties interested. He should refrain from expressing any opinion with regard to the provisions of the bill until he had had an opportunity of emamining them ; but as regarded the proposed abolition of the distinction between bankruptcy and insolvency, he might observe that the bill must go a great deal fur ther than that if the noble lord sought to make every class of British subjects liable to be made bankrupts. Mr. HEADLAM agreed with the Attorney-General as to the necessity of legislation with regard to insolvent joint-stock companies, but thought it undesirable to Luiz up that question with the subject of the bill. Leave was then given to bring in the bill. CORONERS INQUESTS. Mr. COBBETT moved for a select committee to cox. eider the state of the law and practice as regards the taking of inquisitions in cases of death, the app , intmeet duties, and remuneration of the officers employed there in, end whether it is expedient that any and what alter ation should be made in such matters. He said the com mittee that he asked for was one to revive a committee appointed appointed in 1851 on the motion of the hom member for Lewes. The committee sat for a con siderable time, took some evidence, and reported hastily just before the dissolution, recommending that the evidence should be printed. The evidences however, never had been printed. A great feud now existed between the coroner and the justices in no less than fifteen counties, and the question was * question of fees. The 25th of George IL, c hap. 29, gave the fee of one pound and an allow ance for mileage on all inquests which have been duly held, and which should be paid out of the county rate. This gave the justices a supervision. The lilt Viet., chap. 68, enacted that the expenses attending the holding of inquests should no longer be paid out of the poor rate. That act of course threw a greater horde° on the county rate with regard to inquests, and from that time to this there had been a growing dispositioa on the part of the justices to cut down the expenses of inquests. With regard to the expenses under the lst Victoria, the magistrates had no discretion, but witb regard to the fee of 1/ and the mileage, they had, there having been discovered lately an old decision of All, Court of King's Bench, by whi c h on th e wor d "d u ly it had been held that the justices had jurisdiction. The rule of law was that there should be an inquest in sa cases of sudden death, or death from violence, but the rule of the magistrates was that the inquest should not be he'd except there was some suspicion of criminality. The justices of Yorkshire had given directions to the constables to inform the coroner of cases in which the/ thought there was suspicion, so that the constables were made the judges of the necessity, in,tead of the coroner. A commission having issued, he believed that the rigbt hon. gentleman thought that a committee would be useless—(hear, hear)—but if a hope was not held 0 0 that the commission would go fully into the whole matter, he must press upon the house the necessity Of appointing a committee. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said, considering the number of hours the house had sat, the lateness of the hour, and the fact that there must be • debate upon this matter, he would move that the debate be adjourned. There was a sort of understanding th*S matters of this sort should not be taken after midnigh t ' The debate was accordingly adjourned until Wednet' day. _ _ SALE OF GRAIN. Mr. M‘C.A.NN obtained leave to bring in a bill for the sale of grain, meal, flour, butter, and potatoes, 1 1 .0 other agricultural produce, by the pound avoirdupolit the score of twenty pounds, the hundredweight of 000 hundred pounds, and the ton of two thousand pounds. The bill was read a first time. COUNTY PROPERTY CONVEYANCE. Mr. PALK obtained leave to bring in a bill to PO: vide for the conveyance of c oun ty, c it y , an d b oro ugh property to the clerk of the peace or town clerk of th e county, city, or borough. EXPIRING LAWS. Mr. HAMILTON moved for a select committee to inquire what temporary laws of a publio and genet A nature were in force on the let d a y o f J anuary l as t, aii" what laws of the like nature expired between the timeta which the last report on the subject was made up ep the said let day of January, and also which of the si t . laws in force on the said Ist day of January last 111 _,,' limited to expire at particular peri o d s , or i n consequ en' of any c >ntingeu t public event, and to report the EA. 1 . 1 1, with their observations thereupo n , t o th e h ouse Hamilton, Mr. Fi'zroy, Mr. Attorney-General, Solicitor-General, Mr. Adderley, Mr. Cowper, Sir Jolliffe, General P ee l, M r . _W i lli am Willi ams, Lor Naas, Lord John Manners, an d M r . H ar d y : pow er t 0 send for persons, papers, and ,records ; five to be t" - quorum. - The committee was appointed. The County Management Bill was read a third and passed. The Railways Act (Ireland) Continuance Bill was reA 4 a secnnd time. THE NISI PRIUS`COURT (IRELAND) BILL• This bid, as amended, was considered, JOINT STOCK BANKING COMPANIES BIM' On the motion for the third readingoftlisbnl, Mr. COWAN moved that it be read a third time tbo day six months. The house divided— For the third readi ng 6O Against l3 -11 The bill then passed, and The house then adjourned at a quarter before one. Sir James Matheson h as paired for the remain der of the session with Lord Alexander Gordon Lennox. DEATHS FROM SONSTROKE.—On Wednesday last two men near Rumford, irr Essex, and a man near MAO:i Sussex, met their deaths from sunstroke. Farm " I ii in Essex suffered severely f rom th e same cause, no t op e d bullocks, cows, and pigs, b u t d uc k s an d geese, dropPl" down dead through the heat of the weather. BIRTHS. BOWDEN—On the 20th inst., at Preston, the wife of Ms is f Bowden, 22d llegt., of a son. HARDINGE—On the 20th inst., at 20, Hanover- 3 9 °r" Viscountess Harding°, of a son. KNATCHBULL—On the 19th inst., the wife of Majo r . nald linatchbull, of a son. MAYOR - On the 21st inst., at 45, Park-street, Grosfe s°l" square, Mrs. F. J. Mayor, Esq., of a daughter. MARRIAGES. • 14 CORNWALL—WILSON—On the 111th inst., at Dah ill:l i rii• special license, Major G. Cornwall, 93d Highlaelior to Augusta Annie, second daughter o f th e late Brig ° Wilson, t 4th Regt. • OW STEEL—WOOD—On the 27th ult., a t St. Martin's - l n. tho Fields, Charles Steel, Esq., Captain 17th Lancerto,j, eldest son of Major-Genei al Sir Scudamore %Vinde a y, to Anna Caroline, third d aug hter of the •"" Sir John Page Wood, Bart., of Rivenhall, Esset. DEATH S. FRANCIS— On the 21st inst., at Cornwall-place, 11011011/' Mr. Edward Francis, aged 82. DARE —On the 21st inst , Miss Hester Dare, of WA tliur street, aged 82. D'EISENDECKER—On the 16th inst., at Pau, pyre', ts Valeria, BAroness d'Eisendecker, daughter of the 'l'4 Thomas Forster, of the Grove, Buckinghainshiles */' of Elim, Jamsica. PHIPPS—On the 14th just,, at the Curragh Can3l 3, g ad dare, William Heary Phipps, Esq., A ss i dt. .s u rgeoll Battalion Coldstream Guards, aged 27. ,'.- of PARKER—On the 14th inst. , P eter Parker , Esq.; 14 Andover, aged 6'. ? .10 .ONDON P r inted and Published by MIIRDO N ro " -- 4 0 of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at The Sun Ofliod. 112, Strand, in the Precinct of the Savoy. in the 04711° of Middlesex, Wedues lay, June 23, 1858, NI O M ?Elf, and I T RE SA3 CREX Ball, Afternoon a "-Maypole Pleasing- En ST Lis CHRIST S• talls (nui un▪ reaerved 'lairs Publl Acre: Air R. Lions b y very eyen i t Admission It the Roy erarner, ST. .; t he continuo uLosE on l'UrPose. A CI RRI TIIR THIN If EN Circus.--Ma .emission c introduced a n umerous !ornmencing Back, Is. Da 3, TI( I,ECTUREE quarter pa Ope DR. I'►~IIN 3 A 1,11,1 %1r •.1-11. WAL . Ny, F. t he Public ti of the ALH NPular and 11 0 ND AY, TWO Pert' , e oTanences 4t, 7 o'clock, Artistes al Dl , Etsing ent t Weetive Mi] entitled C oneludinz B ORNE IN .rigade. I?:r f v d a i t i e d;s l3 lo o : ' 3 . ; Reserv, ?Mace, Lei, () Den from I , dren under The most Itructed un Alhambra E LYLAS place, Lond( Cans on adv A .11. Po li Assured wit being deduct - BRIT Einpowc BA Empo Jon.-( Number o Annual I tents) upw: 'Every des Illthout par ❑ II I : ee N t, eddieeeiss T aBnoto3 E fa: curling wit] annual prep tll!Zritee. THE empowered VIVI ED, Wm. Rer Samuel E Jan Elli F.R.B. J. El earn% C The nem' •May, 1860. Polley - taken autin IR3B 1841 1845 1848 1851 The foil( national I The Soc Two-thl liVe years Its subs Its hive to one but Its ann Tho nu' About Since it Of three h For pro tan, 142, 142, St! ON New and Anatol free by ni o enOcts o qUences t 4 Ons of tons. I Usual (se floater-re ball-Etre, The Ci to reno; ita powe stxual Wes ail its unv2 or four ( The C litic rem the veil akin, hlc., tonsilq, actl sYstem 0:11s. PERI teal Ten and disc her boa Sold Hooper 0. F. W. Ed% Street ; Ylardin: , Mullah TIES Suit p El 0 and 0) !ram vi to Mar riaze it tetnari nryster urinary, Onnpin Matrli Men Ta, Calet] Circa COI )1