The Sun. — London, England, 1846-08-08 00:00:00

Member for Bolton, that all corporal punishment be abolished. Such was the argument of the Hon. Gentleman.—( Loud cries of " Nu, no," and " Hear, Lear.) He said besides that the officers in the army were totally unfit to control any body of men. —( Mr. Bright said the Hon. Gentleman entirely misstated his argument.( He (Mr. Goulburn) said it was difficult to apportion punishment in any case, but much more in the army, where the consequences that followed in the community from acts which e ere yet not immoral must be taken into consider ation. Insult, for example, of which in civic society no no tice was taken, would produce consequences, if allowed to go unnoticed, which would undo the discipline of the army. He found that some of those who were for reduccing the degree of punishment, or rather for abolishing it altoecther, were for re ducing the pay of the soldier; the Hon. Member for Coventry, for example, and yet it was stated in evidence that same evening, that increased pay in certain regiments had made punishment almost unnecessary. Now, amid these conflicting opinions, it was difficult to fix on the degree of punishment which would be proper. But, besides these, Hon. Gentlemen had not said whether they would substitute any, and what punishment, if they abolished this. If they would suggest extra drilling, it must be recollected that the press had taken up that very subject, and, in the case of an officer who had been shot, cue paper even said that he had been justly shot at because he had over-worked this instrument of punishment. Looking, then, at all these difficulties, he would support the reduction proposed by the Government, and would maintain that number of lashes, in hopes that, by and by, it would be unnecessary, when the character of the soldier should be elevated, Me. HUAIE said he had seen many changes, and with gratification, and he was not a little gratified at seeing the change which had occurred in the Hon. Gentleman who bad just sat down. Fifty lashes suited the Hon. Gentleman now. He (Mr. Hume) had seen him when 300 would not satisfy him, when he would have a thousand.—( Hear, hear.) He had also misrepresented some of the Hon. Gentlemen beside him (Mr. Hume.) He had charged the Hon. Member for Coventry with wishing to diminish the pay of the common soldier. Such was certainly not his wish. or the meaning of his words. He had advocated a short term of years, and the absence of favour to particular regiments ; that all regiments might share the changes of climate, and the dangers of transit. These were subjects on which that Hon. Member had addressed the House. As for himself, while he advocated economy, he had always been forward in advancing the comfort of the soldier. When the late motion was made for Uraties to the soldiers, he did not oppose that ; he cordially supported he motion. Why has the Hon. Gentleman, who said so much on this sub ject, not made some effort to ameliorate the condition of the army ? He was asked by a party. as he was coming into the House that very day, how it etas that the army continued to pig together in the way they did ? It surprised him ; but from the statement of the Hon. Gentleman, he now understood the matter perfectly. It was evident that there was a scarcity of water provided in barracks, and that, too, at a time when the Commissioners on the subject of health ascribed disease and unhealthiness to the want of water as an agent to promote cleanliness. He was a friend to peace, but as it was necessary that they should have an army and navy, it was his desire that they should be kept as respectable as possible.—( Hear.) Now his opinion might be in some degree biassed by his own circumstances, having been once be the army himself, in the East Indies, for twelve years, during which period their had been no corporal punishment, while in the European army there hail been several instances. In Madras was considered a punishment to be turned out of the native army. He con tended that the system adopted in the British army had a tendency to brutalise the soldiery. It was the tendency of all human authority to misuse power; and he contended that, at the Horse Guards, the cases were not so strictly inquired into as they should have been. He considered that the mind of the public was so deeply engaged in this matter that it must be altered. It should be remembered that every 50 lashes inflicted 400 stripes. Now, supposing there was no important physical injury inflicted, he contended that the mental degradation which was caused was sufficient to induce them to abolish punishment of this de scription. It appeared to him that if the lash was abolished and limited service were to be allowed, a great thing would be effected in the military establishment of the country.— ( Hear.) He should conclude by stating that he would support the Hon. Member for Bolton. Mr. GOULBURN denied that he had at any time supported the infliction of 300 lashes. Mr. H UAIE said that the Hon. Member had done so in the year 1838. Mr. GOULBURN said that in that year the proposition made was for total abolition of corporal punishment, and it was that which he opposed, and not 300 lashes. Colonel SIBTHORPE could not but express his disgust at the opinions of the Hon Member for Durham. He thought there could be but one feeling of sovereign contempt for the opinions of such a man.—(Cries of " Order.") The service would rejoice to know that the Hon. Member did not belong to the army—(Laughter and cheers)—and although it was composed of the interests of society, yet that he would never belong to it.—( Laughter and cheers.) Colonel WOOD considered it necessary for the true disci pline of the army that better accommodation should be afforded to the troops than they at present possessed ; and he hoped the Hon. Member for Montrose, in spite of all his jealous watch fulness ever the army estimates, would be prepared at an early period to give his support to an increased vote for affording this necessary accommodation. —( Cries of " Divide, divide.") He believed that nothing did so much to cause a reluctance to enter the army as the diminution in the pension. He thought that by increasing the pension they would get a better descrip tion of men fee the army, and consequently the necessity for inflicting corporal punishment would be completely removed. Mr. H. CURTEIS moved the adjournment of the debate. — (Cries of " Oh, oh.") Lord J. RUSSELL hoped that the Hon. Member would not press his motion, as it would be more advisable to bring the debate to a close that night. Mr. H. CURTEIS said that his object in proposing the ad journment was to afford Hon. Members a further opportunity of expressing their sentiments on this subject. The Hon. Member proceeded to say that the Horse Guards might soon set their House in order, for public opinion would force them to do away with this degrading punishment. He thought the country was deeply indebted to the jury who sat on the Houns low affair for the way in which they had done their duty. He would further observe that great obstacles were thrown in the way of a full investigation, and it was to the moral courage of the Rev. Mr. Trimmer that they were mainly indebted for originating the investigation. He would now withdraw his motion for the adjournment. Colonel PEEL wished to explain, in correction of a state ment made by the Hon. Member for Bolton, who stated that the offences in the British army were as two to one compared with the French army. This was not correct, as the returns furnished by the French Government would show. After a few observations from an Hon. Member, whose name did not transpire, the gallery was cleared for a division. On our re-admission, there appeared— For the motion to go into Committee For Dr. Bowring's motion .Majority against Dr. Bowring's motion... —53 On the motion for the Speaker leaving the Chair, Mr. OSBORNE moved that it shall not be lawful to in flict any corporal punishment by flogging on any private soldier, corporal, or noncommissioned officer in the army or militia of the United Kingdon, save for offences committed on the line of march, mutiny, or theft ; and that in all such cases the number of lashes be limited to fifty. The Hon. Member said he would press his motion to a division. Atter a few words from Lord JOHN RUSSELL, urging the Hon. Member to withdraw his amendment, Strar gers were ordered to withdraw, and the House divided. when there appeared, For the motion • Agsinst it Majority against the motion —s6 The House then went into Committee, pro forma, and obtained leave to sit to-morrow, The House then resumed. The following Bills were then read a third time and passed:— Copyhold Commission Bill. Turnpike Acts Continuation Bill. Stock in Trade Bill. Highway Rates Bill. Loan Societies Bill. THE FORMS ASSESSED TAXES BILL went through Committee pro .forma. MILITIA PAY BILL. light be had shown that he was justified in making the he did, bet it was said Mr. Wilson, being a friend of his, o pportutities of speaking to that gentlemen upon the and biasing his judgment. Now the fact was, he never ged a sentence with Mr. Wilson on the subject, nor did ! what Mr. Wilson's opinion was, or Mr. Wilson big orlon upon i t , t ill after the inquir( Hear, hear.) It we true th at D r. Hall, Dr. Reid, y.— and Dr. Warren and Ij expressed an opinion different to Mr. Wilson ; but il disput e t h e discoveries made by that gent l eman ? : l a %) Did they di s p u t e th e change in the poseion of e s r—(Hear, hear.) Did they dispute that there was in a'ter surrounding' the muscles, or did they dispute ; t niuseles were i n close proximity to extremely iefismed letebody Hear, hear.) ,No ! they did not. Well, them remember that Mr. Wilson expressed a positive 05 tie subject, and gave it as his conviction that the was the cause of death.—( Hear, hear.) Could the otherwise than rely upon such practical and impartial ' I Y as e this. The jury agreed with Mr. Wilson, and onviction that they were perfectly right.—E Hear, th" ° „ lir this brought him to the question immediately the Rouse. The Noble, Lord proposed to limit the th o lashes to 50, but there were circumstances under e might be as severe as "00.—(Hear.) Of what l i as the cat to be ?—( Hear, hear. wash weiht V' lid of thong ? How many knots it to have? e rne was the punishment to take up ? ( Hear, hear.) :,7r things which had not been taken into considera. i 3 l • E they were not carefully regulated, the 50 lashes li n Unfortunately worse than 100.—( Hear, hear.) jest connected with the influence which external in 'otevelved on the interior of the body had undergone ni i°w of late, but it seemed to be an established rule l .n3' that flogging could never cause death. — (Hear , . 4 rule whi c h, i n hi s o pi n i on , was in opposition to ' i nciple of common sense.—(oh, oh !) He said that :P i nion, and let him remark that he 11,,d no motive for 1: (Hear, bear. ) The Honourable Gentleman ,tided to two cases which had recently occurred, al ight skin injury had produced inflammation of ! a t , which resulted in death, went on to ' l rnPortan ce of the skin had hitherto been overlooked, ! al oow tolerably certain that many persons had died hires to the skin, without the cause of death ever being I red .• -- (Hear, hear.) It was said, however, that the ;n,ght to exercise caution, and take especial care to h wnthe r the man were in a condtn toe unished. , e r e .) Now, was not this absurdi ?io Wha t t human skill I P Could discover the condition of the interior of the aces might be lying dormant, whose existence the t e leer would be ignorant of, and yet a single lash ~4 1 them into fresh action in the course of a few hours. , n " , bear.) Well, then, he said their sentence of 50 night end in death. They had already seen 150 Ipro laute'esult, and it was notorious to medical men tht a might produce a skin injury which woud result t rillear, hear. ) Now, under these circumstances, o n system be continued ? From the Noble Lord's „ e ll: thought he was strongly opposed to the system, or, not favourable to it. Now, if the House should 'T reject the motion, he trusted the Noble Lord 'e'er thIS matter, as a medical questum. fur the conside- IM decision not of army or navy surgeons, bat of the l'aost eminent anatomists and surgeons of the day.— e ar.) If they did not report that 50 lashes, nay, even would be dangerous to life, he never would address use neon the subject again.—(Hear, hear.) BERKELEY having been alluded to by the Hon. r for Finsbury, claimed it as a right, as an independent rof that H ouse , to express h i s op i n i on as t o th e con '''ch that Hon. Gentleman had lately persued, in his cape- Coroner for Middlesex.—( Hear, hear.) Now, what e fasts of the case which the Honourable Gentleman 'light before the House ? A death of a private soldier 7th Hussars took place, and the Hon. Gentleman was term e d of it. He held an inquest as to the cause of the and it was proved, upon the authority of f our medical weluding the surgeon of the army, who made a post ezaminition of the body, that the flogging was not Ise of death.—(Hear, hear.) The Hon. Gentleman, isfied with the evidence, appointed another medical lan •to make an examination of the body, from which luded the other four gentlemen. Now, if everything r and above board, where Was the necessity for this n?—(Hear, hear.) Over and over again had the lerober refused to hold his inquest on a murdered man the murderer were present ; but in the present case he allow no officer to be present while the examination ing proceeded with, lest they should influence the GREAT TEM if ERANCE DEMON ST RATION AT COVENT-GARDEN THEATRE, This grand dernonstation, in concexion with the sit tings of the World's Temperance Convention, to which the friends of the cause had so ardently looked forward, took place last evening, in Covent-garden Theatre, and was all, and even more, than the most sanguine amongst them could have anticipated. The platform (which was erected upon the stage), pit, and galleries, were crowded to excess (notwithstanding the admission was not free), and the boxes were filled with elegantly-dressed ladies and gentlemen. The vast building consequently pre• sented a most animating scene, and forcibly reminded us of the similar immense gatherings that were wont to be held there for the purpose of promoting that other great cause—free trade which has now happily triumphed. On the platform were delegates from different quar ters of the globe ; amongst whom we observed G. W. Alexander, Esq. (treasurer of the National Temperance and Anti-Slavery Societies) ; the Rev. Dr. Beecher and the Rev. Dr. Massey, of Cincinnati ; Henry Clapp, Esq. and Frederick Douglas, Esq., of Massachussets; the Rev. E. M. Kirk, of Albany; Dr. Campbell, B. Potter, Esq., G. W. Attwood, Esq., merchant, London; Rev. J. Burns, J. Meredith, Esq., Wm. Casher, Esq., Rev. Dr. Marsh, Rev. Dr. Patton, Rev. Dr. Cox, Lawrence Heyworth, of Liverpool ; Dr. Beaumont, of Bradford ; J. Rutter, Esq., Shaftesbury ; J. S. Buckingham, Esq. ; Henry Vincent, Esq. ; Dr. Oxley, Dr. Lovell, W. Jan son, jun., Esq., &c., &c. The proceedings of the meeting were opened at half past six o'clock by the Rev. JABEZ Bonies moving that George W. Alexander, Esq., take the chair. The motion having been seconded and carried, that gentleman took the chair amidst great cheering. The CHAIRMAN commenced his observations by saying that he was little worthy to occupy the post to which he had been called that evening. He would not, however, abuse the trust which had been confided to him by troubling them with many observations, know ing as he did, that he was surrounded by some of the ablest friends of the anti-slavery cause—(Great laughter and cheers)—he meant by some of the ablest friends of the total abstinence cause, not only in this country, but in the United States of America—(Cheers) —and it had been to some of them a delightful treat to listen to the statements which they had given to them (during the three days of the Convention) of the cause of total abstinence in the United States. Ho did not doubt that that assembly would listen to those gentle men with equal satisfaction ; and ,he trusted that no small amount of benefit would be derived to this great cause from the meeting of that evening.— (Cheers.) It was, he thought, quite needless that he should attempt to address to them any arguments in favour of that cause which they had met to promote. It appeared to him that there were one or two simple con siderations and facts, which were abundantly sufficient to commend it to the attention and command the esteem and regard of every philanthropist and Christian. If, on the one hand, they compared all the good that it could be alleged that intoxicating drinks had done (supposing them really to have been productive of any), and on the other hand, the incalculable amount of crime and misery, both in this world and the next, to which they had led, he thought they should be prepared to make any sacrifice which might be demanded of them, in order to promote the cause of total ab stinence. (Hear, hear.) But besides all that, they were able to appeal to the very delightful fact, that there had been a very large number of persons who a few years ago were supposed to be incapable of re formation—that there had been a very large number of drunkards who had been reclaimed from the ranks of intemperance.—(Cheers.) And he believed it might be safely stated that there was scarcely a place to be found, in which total abstinence had been established, in which such results hnd not followed.—(Hear, hear.) He con fessed that that one circumstance was with him quite sufficient to induce him to adopt the practice of entire abstinence—(Hear, hear)— but as he had already said that he did not intend to make a long speech, he was determined to adhere to his promise. He did feel that while some of them esteemed it to be at once their privilege end their duty to do all they possibly could to abolish slavery from every part of the globe—(Cheers)—it was at the same time a solemn duty, which was incumbent upon English men, to abolish the slavery of drunkenness, and to re move from our own countrymen those dreadful evils of which intoxication was the cause.—(Loud cheers.) With these few remaks, he felt satisfied that his office, as chairman, would be very light, and he would now take his seat, in order to listen to the addresses which would be delivered to them.—(Cheers.) The CHAIRMAN again rose, and said, that he was re quested to state that as it was desirable that they should have the opportunity of hearing as many speakers as possible from different parts of the world, each speaker would be required to confine himself to the space of fifteen minutes.—(Applause.) He ought also to state, and he did so with considerable regret, that he had re ceived a letter from their friend Joseph Sturge, in which he stated that Elihu Burritt, in consequence of indisposi ion, would not be able to take part in the proceedings of let evening, and that he had been compelled to leave WAKLEY—That is not true. C. BERKELEY said he would refer the Hon. Mem the reports of the proceedings which had been pub from day to day in the public papers.—(Cheers.) With to the main question he would say, in answer to the 'ember for Bolton, that he knew the case of several per u) had been flogged, and who were now most excellent WAKLEY said the Hon. and Gallant Member had t several charges against him ; first, that he had ex medical officers from the post mortem examination. I so (said the Hon. Member), and I would do so again.— !*) The Hon. Member seemed to have &strange notion rte, if he thought it was unjust in him to do so. They 'Judged their case ; they had come to the conclusion:that ‘as not caused by the flogging, and he wanted to know r t ne would have been justified in permitting those three ,Ohe present at this examination, after the intimation i i!sd been thrown out to him by the jury ? '4 not want to see any more, they had red cause o f d ea th. The rule which he adopted „ • ' 14 4 acted upon in cases of this sort by the superior leeor was it out of an feeling of disrespect for those 4tiellien that he would not permit them to be present referred to by the Hon. Member. Three ex ?it,. of the bogy were made. The first one by Drs. 111 I l ls and Reid. And it was not until he found that ad arou employed in the succeeding examination, Mr. on 0 , 4 1 into the same error as the preceding gentle ad t :le subject—(lronical cheers)—that he had de te send for Mr. Erasmus Wilson to make a wore t e - , l nlination of the body. On that occasion Mr. Day ifruded. He should have exposed himself to much robed acted in any other manner than he had done. le /10 4 1 e brought against him was that contained in he ar l'', Member called an excellent medical work. le p e i n e r that the Non. Member quoted from was thenstupid lawyer, so little did the Hon. Member publication in question.—( Hear, hear.) He also rued that upo n former occasions he would not go on e Inquest on a murdered man in the absence of the Cr . Why the Hon. and Gallant Member must be aware are was no prisoner in the present case, or he might erred that he would have had him present, if he could Y have obtained his attendance.—(Cheers.) He had 'd this attack upon his conduct, and he had come down id with ammunition, although he did not belong to the Y Profession.—( Laughter, and cheers.) He had a letter le solicitor approving of the course he had adopted. F• BERKELEY rose to order, he did not think the b r x her sho n ld b e allowed to make a second spech. 3 insisted upon his right to be heard; serious b • a ' been brought against him of Mr. Wilson's evi ...alien to order. B ERKELEY said it was list his charge. 'rw AKLEY—Th a H on . M em b er h a d a d opte d t h em , an d .. i Wakley) had instructed his solicitor to move for a al nformation on the subject of the paragraph. He was however, to say that, if the solicitor was satisfied with aduct (who was present during the whole of the pro go), he thought that at least the Hon. and Gallant ier, who was not present, might be satisfied upon the t. The lion. Member then read a copy of a letter he solicitor, as follows :—" Dear Sir,—You request me .5 what was my impression of your conduct at the in held at Hounslow on the body of White, a private in the iussars. As I conclud e your inquiry had reference only tr own conduct upon the occasion, I have no hesitation ing that you allowed us to have any witnesses examined I we pleased to offer, and allowed them to make any lent which was desirable, and which the ends of justice aded ; your conduct during the investigation was marked :raordinary patience and ability." The Hon. Member sad a letter from Mr. Trimmer, a magistrate of Hounslow, came effect. .He had al so ot h er letters from influential s of the same tendency, which he would read to the s if they wished.—(Cheers.) In conclusion, he hoped I satisfied the House that there had been nothing unfair conduct during the whole of the proceedings.—(Th e Member resumed his seat amid loud cheers. ) '• C. BULLER said that he felt bound to say a few S upon the subject before the House, with reference to the i,sition brought forward by the N o bl e L or d at t h e h ead of z overnment. The Hon. Member for Finsbury said that 'ght be evaded by an alteration in the instrument of re, so that, though nominally the number of lashes might !duced to fifty, a severer punishment might be in d by tampering with the instrument, and thus by defeat the object proposed. He could state, in his communication with the Noble Duke, the greatest ` fl eas was manifested by that Noble Personage to meet Public feeling with regard to corporal punishment. He i i ß uller) did not mean to dispute the m e di ca l au th or ity of Linn. Member for Finsbury, but when he stated that five or one, might by possibility produce fatal results, he d ask hi m what secondary punishment was not equally etionable ? The treadmill was liable to the same objection; 141 solitary confinement. The former had led to fatal re '', and the latter had produced loss of reason and loss of life. : 1 1, no Gentleman would contend that punishment was to ; o ne , away with altogether. — ( Hear, hear.) They h a d et lttY heard of four dozen lashes being inflicted in th e ~. '' Yet he had never known an instance of this punishment 'ili sting fatally. No man could loo k with greater horro_r. 'he did upon the excess to which t hi s torture was carried, before they did away with corporal punishment theyshould to the c ombination of the British army. He considered , abolition, at the present time would be an extremely 'emus and unwise course—(Hear , hear) — and ther efore he opposition t gave to the motion of the Hon. Member % hen ]r ' BRIGHT thought that, taking the alteration pro d by the Government as agreed to, still there would P much • not that was disgusting and revolting. He agree with the Honourable and Learned Gentle . had just sat down, that the public would satisfied with the course pursued by Govern :. Though they would be glad at the change proposed to t t eP in the right direction, they would still have ‘ 1 . ',Letter satisfied had corporal punishment been altogether :" il d. --- (Hear, hear.) The opinion he was sure would ai l t : , 'ertained in the country that the Government sue t 1 30 4 to the Horse Guards. The military officers who .e so much referred to, he held to he the worst pos eiZges as to whether corporal punishment should be with. Th e y were so used to arbitrary authority C i wer, that it was w ith the greatest difficulty they could 'sentlced to give up any of the influence which they at f 1/1 ; 4; b ad. The military officers had always opposed 10“Tflation of corporal punishment, and they were equally 1, - ;" to the abolition of it now. He would not, therefore, 11. ‘0 them as an authority on the question. great deal 4 e :l said about improving the condition and s haracter of • ;her, but he for one believed that all they might attempt f til— the soldiers were raised, of necessity, from the lowest roe the }, Population. When parties in any locality had run list,'. e ery course of bad conduct and dissipation, they then toast ,e army, so that the service was recruited from the ,°‘ the population. The people of this country were e d o s o l .l a commer c i a l, an d no t a fi g hting people, and they is s expect that any but the lowest and most degraded tiZtild.become private soldiers. He would give his vote a 4l t hi ic e owtothoni:sfotohe Hon. Member for Bolton, and he hoped soon come when not only corporal punishments . the abolished, but the employment of large bodies of men d to• purposes of destruction would be entirely put an ~,,eBt:at_e,?.irsieosufeLtthllellNwas sorry to rise to express his opinion occasion, after the speech of the Noble Lord at Government. He considered it was not of •oul - r be " a to . the public or the service that such a question 'eedgaitated in the way it had been done ; but of all the 1 ,01. hbee wandobeen delivered on the question that of the last addressed the House was to him the et east I, hing. He said the army was composed of the mere ositi(ll.Ll, society. He (Mr. Goulburn) denies that pro -sfeo f h Hear,seielay_ if he s a o r : ) He as cried that they were the did he wish for their improvement? o e said the commercial spirit of the country is such as b ett e e a r or i age all m an i festation of the military spirit, and that ~.ar.inyclases..oLrf soldiers need not be expected. He declares '"+ct th eir "tut, of necessity, be of the character he had stated; "0 stated he would vote for the motion of the Hen. town. JOHN BUTTER, Esq., of Shaftesbury, then presented himself, amidst loud cheering. Silence having been ob tained, he said that,'instead of wasting their time by apologies for his at once answering the call of the Chairman, he would commence the few observations which he had to make to the immense assembly before him, by remarking upon the very dif ferent standing which their cause now assumed to that a hich it did a few years since, when it was established, amidst contempt, by a few noble-minded working men at Preston—(Cheers) —a standing not only proved by the overwhelming scene before him, but proved, also, by the convention of men assembled from different parts of the world, now assembled on the subject within this city, and proved, also, by the presence of their American brethren then around them, who had come across the Atlantic to bear with them the kindly feelings of their teetotal friends in America, and to give them the right band of fellow ship, and to wish them " God speed " in their noble and philanthropic cause.—(Cheers.) Not only was it proved by those circumstances, but by the great festival which was held in connexion with this move ment, on the previous evening, in the Freemasons' Hall. And when he looked around upon that building and its characteristic decoration, and when he saw the walls de - corated by the portraits of so many of their grand masters, he could not but think that the system which they had that evening met to propagate, was a far better system of freemasonry—(Cheers.)—because they were free from the slavery of strong drink, and the drinking customs of this country.—(Loud cheers.) And he also thought that amongst the members of this society there were grand masters, and when he referred to such men as his friends Bowley and Sturge, and to Dr. Beecher, from America, and their Father Mathew in Ireland.—(Loud cheers.) Then he said that they had grand masters amongst them, who had done more for the human race in the way of elevating them and doing them good than all the grand masters that ever assem bled in Freemason's Hall.—(Cheers.) Those leaders were kept in remembrance by the pencil of the artist around the walls of their hall, but the grand masters of this society were engraved upon the hearts of all thinking men of the present generation so deeply that their memory would be fragrant, and continue so through the present and every succeeding generation.—(Cheers.) And was it not the duty of every one present to do all in their power to benefit their fellow man ? Were not the members of the Total Abstinence Society the true Samaritans, who looked after the poor drunkard, wounded by strong drink ? They went over to him, and poured the oil of consolation and hope into his wounds. Yea, if he were hungry they fed him, and if he were naked they clothed him ; and when they had thus restored him to the condition of a rational being, they took him as an immortal being, and brought him into the refuge for the outcast, and made him acquainted with the one true Samaritan, and thus gave him hope and comfort in this world, and prepared him for the enjoyment of a blessed immor tality.—(Cheers.) And he conceived that although they did not substitute their principles, or the practice of tee totalism, for that of Christianity—(Hear, hear)—al though they did believe that their religion was not meat and drink, but the righteous joy and peace of the Holy Ghost to those that believed, they still did believe that their plan and their principles, and their practice, were the true handmaids of religion, for they reformod those who might be compared to persons whe had lost their senses, and after having re stored them to their right mind, and clothed them, they recommended them to sit at the feet of Jesus.—(Cheers.) And not only were their society and their principles calculated to redeem the drunkard, but oh! let no one there forget that they performed another equally great and important task—they pre served the temperate and taught them that they were in a dangerous position.—(Cheers.) How often had he and the friends around him been told, when they had conversed on this subject, even with serious and pious me mbers of religion, that though teetotalism might be good for the drunkard it was not good for them or for him. Ab! he never should forget a fact which took place in the West of England, and which convinced him that so long as he continued even a moderate drinker of the drunkard's drink he was in danger of dying the death of the drunkard too.—(Hear, hear.) There was in a city in the west of England a gentleman of the same profession as he himself—a lawyer—bet greatly his superior in his understanding and intellect, and a man possessed of a large property, and command• ing influence, who married a lady in every way equal to himself, and adorned with every grace that became the female character. They possessed every thing that the human heart could desire, and had every prospect before them that the heart could anticipate for times to come. For a short period they went on well, but at last they felt themselves on a very slippery precipice, till, in the course of a very few years, they were lost from the ob servations of their friends, and then it was that in another city in the west two little girls were found in a Sunday-school, and produced much interest by their intelligence and beauty, but at length they were found absent from the school. It was discovered they were absent because they had not clothes to come to school in, and the Sunday-schoel teacher supplied them with them. They were again regular in their attend ance, but after a few weeks they were again absent, and the teacher requested the superintendent to accompany her to their dwelling. In one of the lowest districts of the town they found the hovel; and, on entering, there were those two children, the eldest girl peeling potatoes which were to be boiled as their only sustenance, and the younger 25 This Bill also went through Committee pro Prma. • NAVAL MEDICAL SUPPLEMENTAL BILL. The report on this Bill was brought up and agreed to. R A TEABLE PROPERTY (IRELAND) BILL. The Committee on this Bill was postponed till this day (Saturday). EXCLUSIVE PRIVILEGE TRADING ABOLITION BILL. The third FISHERIES (IRELAND) of this Bill was post BILL. oned till this day. The reportMEDICAL on this Bill was PRACTITIO brought up NERS and agreed to. Mr. WAKLEY obtained leave to bring in a Bill for the Registration of Medical Practitioners in England and Wales. Mr. PARKER moved for leave to bring in a Bill "to em power the Commissioners for the Issue of Loans for Public Works and Fisheries to make loans in money to the Commis sioners of her Majesty's Woods, in lieu of loans heretofore authorised to be made in Exchequer Bills," which was read a first time. The House then adjourned, at Half-past One, till Twelve to-day. PARLIAMENTA RY BUSINESS. ,From the Votes and Proceedings of the House of Commons. TRURSDAY: AUG 6. MESSAGE FROM THE LORDS. Messengers from the Lords brought up the following Bills, which their Lordships had agreed to : Cheshire Returning Officer llill—Auctrallan Agricultural Company Bill—Dublin Cemeteries Bill—Amendments to Yeovil Borough Estate Bill, without Amendment—Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway Branches Bill—Plymouth Great Western Docks Bill, with Amendments. THE SUN, LONDON, gATURDAY MORNING, AUGUST 8, 1846. needing to address the meeting in very able terms, when he was reminded by the Chairman that the fifteen minutes allotted to him had expired. He, therefore, at once withdrew amidst loud plaudits. The Rev. E. N. lime, of Boston, America, then pre sented himself at the call of the Chairman, and was re ceived with great cheering. The meetings in connexion with the convention were now drawing to a close — in fact, the great services of that evening would virtually terminate them. Nothing remained to he accomplished but the formal transaction of a little business, and he therefore felt, as a member of that convention, that they were at the termination of a most interesting and most important session. —(Hear, hear.) They had passed four days—Britons and Americans had met, not in deadly conflict—(Great cheering)—they had met to make mutual congratulations—they had met in friendly council. They had met to impart mutual encouragement and metual instruction, and they felt at the close of those four days, terminated by the proceed ings of the vast assembly before him—they felt not only that they had enjoyed the favour of Divine Providence, but they felt that they were now about to enter afresh upon their great work with renewed vigour.—(Cheers.) As one of the American delegation, he must express his most cordial thanks to their British brethren for that distinguished courtesy with which they received them. — (Cheers.) His own impression as to what had been done was a permanent and serious one ; he was firmly convinced that the work before them was a vast and difficult work; and during. the few moments that were assigned to him he would devote to the impressing upon his fellow reformers the magnitude of the work to be done.--(Hear, hear.) The work was vast, and they could not succeed in its accomplishment without the help of God—(Hear, hear)—who alone could change the entire convictions, maxims, and cus toms of a nation and of the world.—(Cheers.) The members of this society meant by the help of God to set free the face of the earth from one of its direst scourges—(Cheers)—and dry up one of its damning fonntains.—(Cheers.) Their great difficulty would be the discountenancing the use of the intoxicating cups in the fashionable circle.—(Hear, hear.) And their legislators had yet to be converted, for they were against the members of this society. The mighty of the earth were also against them, and so was the whole of the trade. Every man that owned a brewery or dis tillery ; every man that had a wholesale and retail estab lishment for the traffic in ardent spirits, or malt, or fer mented liquors was against them.—(Hear, hear.) And they were not a few—not to be despised. The whole habits and customs of society were against them in this reform. But God was with them, and they need not fear the issue. —(Loud cheers.) Truth immortal, insurmountable truth, was what they relied upon as the chief means of diffusing the glorious princi ples of total abstinence. They heeded not prejudice passion and interest ; as Milton had well said " Only give truth a fair open field, and she must triumph."— (Cheers.) They believed it, and stood in the midst of the vast British public, as Temperance Reformers, in a very different position to that which they occupied in their own country where public sentiment had changed. He knew there were many excellent men in a is country, whose heart and soul was with them, but they could not take a decided step to refuse imparting the poisonous I beverage to the guests at their tables. Why there was such a power of public sentiment against intemperance, that it was not considered inhospitable to sit at the head of one's table, and to give nothing to those who sat at it but the pure beverage of Paradise. —(Cheers.) The great work they had performed was to be accomplished, he thought, by four instruments—light and love, patience and prayer.—(Cheers.) And lie hoped that every tem perance reformer would go forth girded with this holy principle. They had a secret which they did not wish to conceal, and the freemasonry of that right was to open the arcanum of the world—the panacea that could heal many—he was almost going to say most of its woes.—(Hear, Lear.) The persons with whom they had to deal might be divided into two classes—persons that had consciences and regarded its influence, and those who adopted their principles through the operation of public sentiment, which they were too cowardy to resist; and when our blessed Lord was on earth he went about among men preaching his religion, never expressing his disgust at anything that offended him, but dealing with men as if they had consciences and hearts that could` feel the power of the holy lessons he inculcated. There was but one class of men against whom he dealt in words of thunder—the proud, stern, self-righteous Pharisees, against whom he addressed that beautiful figure in Holy Writ, and said "Wo ! Wo ! Wo !" They could not convert some men ; they might address them in the language of truth, with angels' tongues, but without causing the moral sensi bility, inherent in all human nature, to respond.—(Hear.) He knew this did not exist to a great extent in England, but he knew that there were men who would deal in the drunkard's drink till nothing but public senti ment shamed them from continuing it.—(Loud cheers.) But to form that public sentiment they had another class to deal with ; they must deal with men as if they had consciences, as if they possessed sense and benevolence. The facts that had converted them would, he sincerely believed, convert others. "Do uut ) others as you would have them do unto you," for if a man could not convert another unto his sentiments, not by knocking him down, but by the repeated presenta tion of arguments, by example, and by charity, he must be almost beyond the reach of cure. They could not fail to conquer, for they had truth enough on their side to conquer the world. Let them go into towns, and other places where intemperance was rife, and by the influ ence of love, and peace, and prayer to the Giver of all good gifts, and of wisdom, and strengh, propagate the doctrine of total abstinence.—(llear, hear.) He wished to say one word before he sat down, with respect to the training of children. Having had some experience as a pastor in America, with respect to children, he wished to add his testimony to the great advantage which was gained by teaching children the principles of temper ence. lie entered upon the work of administering the pledge to children with great warmth, and he was struck with the development which it created. The full de velopement of the mind of a child was the moral senses. The conscience and heart of a child were very suscept ible of cultivation. He had found that they could un derstand the difference between right and wrong long before they could solve the sth proposition in the book of Euclid. He had made experiments, and the result was the conscience of a child was made of as stern stuff as that of a man. He had seen them put to the test, and knew that they were acting rightly in first con vincing them that a thing was right or wrong, and that they ought to abstain from it, to induce them to follow that advice. He could not sit down without saying that he did feel ashamed, as a child of England — a grand-child, he should rather say—to pass through the streets of London, and see so many trap-doors for im mortal souls.—(Cheers.) He did think they could be closed, or changed to a better employment ; and his prayer was, that with God's blessing, that conviction, and all their efforts, might enable them to behold old England and America delivered and emancipated from this evil, and going forth under the blessed unrestricted influence of the Gospel of God's grace, to teach mankind the advantage of temperance and peace.--(Cheers.) The Rev. J. MARSH of New York, next addressed the meeting. He siad there was not a more beautiful figure than that presented in one of the old proverbs with re ference to the Scriptures, which represented the Gospel first as a little stream, reaching to the ankles, then swelling to the knee-, till spreading and rolling on it became a broad, deep river, fertilising the nations of the earth. Everything was small at its beginning, yet they see things gradually enlarging and extending over the whole earth. The very Gospel itself was once confined in an upper chamber. Mark the amazing revolution which took place in the sixteenth century. Why, at one tune the predominant religion was confined to the breast of a monk. (Hear, hear.) Wilberforce, that man SO beloved in America that man whom they thought of when first they saw England's shore— when they said, " we are going to the land of Wilber force, who laboured twenty-six years before he could induce truth and humanity to break up the slave-trade —and the cause in which they were engaged had also overcome great obstacles, and was now delivering flu world from the thraldom of intoxicating liquors. Any famine or disaster which cost the country 30,000,000/. would have been considered its ruin, and yet that vice of intoxicating liquors had saddled this country with an expense of 60,000,000/. If Nero had taken 600,000 of the population and stripped them of their clothing, their fuel, their food, and their lands. and caused them to subsist upon charity, it would have been a tyranny which Rome, in its degenerate days, would not have borne (Hear, hear)—yet intemperance produced in this country greater misery and wretchedness than such an act would have created.—(Bear, hear.) Had some fiend been let loose from the realms of dark ness, to produce such mischief as these liquors had created, we should have asked to be at liberty to pur chase his absence, in order to save ourselves and our children, and yet the law invested every gin-shop in London with this fiendish power, counselled men to com mit crimes, and sent thousands unprepared into eternity. Look at the poor drunkard ! what a wreck of a man Look a t him, and at his family ; look at the miserable man in his bed of straw, dying of delirium t . remens, and who, before the breath leaves his body, in the very agonies of hell. Look at that burning ship on the ocean, amidst the dark mass of midnight, all enveloped in flames, and rising up the rigging to the sails. See the miserable beings rushing to and fro in agony, and then hopelessly plunging into the ocean. Such, alas, was but a picture of the desolate condition of 600,000 souls in this city, and of 300,000 Americans; and progressing in that state towards eternity, and yet they had a cure for all this evil—a cure so simple, so easy that they were too proud to anopt it—a cure costing so little, and blessing them with everything, namely, total abstinence.—(Hear, hear.) It was their duty to adopt it—it was the duty of England and America—the duty of the Chris tian, and of the whole civilised world. lie had heard a very pretty anecdote of the Queen, through one of the American newspapers, which gave them a good opinion of her, and they had never lost it.— (Cheers.) The year after her inauguration—he did not vouch for the truth of the anecdote—but it got into one of the American papers, and he believed it was true. — (Laughter.) One day her Minister waited upon her and urged upon her a particular Act, on the ground of its being "expedient." She replied, "My Lord, talk not to me of expediency; is it right?"—(Cheers.) He would put that question to her Majesty, and to her Ma jesty's Government : whether it was right, with such a mass of the population plunged in crime, immorality, and wretchedness throughout the kingdom. and throughout the whole of her Majesty's dominions, whether it was right for a humane Government to license men to cause individuals all this misery ?—(Hear, hear.) He would put it to ministers of the Gospel in Great Britain, whether, when such was the result of intoxicating liquors, it was right for them to use them?—(Hear, hear.) He would also put the question to any philan thropist, and to any patriot. Moderation was intemperance, and he stated before that great British au dience that total abstinence was the only true principle child was standing by her side waiting to devour the naked rind of the potatoas v.hich the elder child was preparing for their meal. On inquiry for their mother, and seeing an expressive look on the countenance of the elder child, they mounted a sort of ladder to a room above, and there was a female on a lot of straw, in a corner, brought virtually to death by want, misery, and disease. They were not in time to recover her, but they found that the father of those children had taken the clothes which had been presented to them by the Sunday-school teacher to enable them to attend school, and had pawned those clothes and spent the money in drink. That father never returned till the day that his wife was buried. And that father was the highly respectable gentleman to whom he had at first referred ; and that woman, that died on the lot of straw, in the corner of a hovel, was the delightful woman that married the father of those children ; That melancholy history could never be effaced from his memory. That father was a mode• rate drinker—and it was moderate drinking that brought that family to so degraded a position. — (Hear, hear, and loud applause.) He (Mr. Rut ter); therefore, trusted that in times to come neither he nor any one else would consider themselves safe un less they entirely abstained, and prevailed upon their youths and friends to do everything in their power to remove the snare of intoxication from the earth. If they found—as they all would do—that they had no strength of their own, but that all their dependance was on God, then let them pray to God that, in his goodness, he would give them strength to persevere until they were protected from the danger of moderate drink ing.—(Cheers.) This was truly a great and good cause. It had received the stamp of approbation from on high—(Hear)—and therefore it was the privilege as well as the duty of every thinking man and con sistent Christian, to give it the right hand of support and help.—(Loud cheers.) The CHAIRMAN then said that he had the pleasure of introducing to their notice the Rev. Dr. Beecher, from the United States of America, and it might be as well for him to remark, at the same time, that that Gentle man was one of the fathers, if not the father of this movement in the United States, and the world at large. —(Great cheering.) And on account of his age—he being upwards of seventy years of age—he was sure that they would listen to him with the greatest atten tion.—(Cheers.) The Rev. Dr. BEECHER, according, presented himself to the vast assembly, which was the signal for renewed and long-continued cheering, which having subsided, he proceed to say, that it was an unhappy fact, in the pro gress of this reform, that many great and many good men had doubted the necessity and lawfulness of it. Those men thought that Jesus Christ had committed to his church, and to his ministers, and to the preaching the gospel, the whole work of the reformation of of mankind.—(Hear, hear.) Now, with respect to this reformation of drunkards, he had two rea sons to assign why the preaching of the gospel would never reform them. The first reason was, that, as a community, tbey never did, and never would, go to hear it.—(Hear, and cheers,) The second reason was, that the Holy Ghost would never regenerate and sanc tify a man as long as he was dealing with his cups— (Hear, hear)—and they might just as well sit at home and not hear at all as to go half tipsy to hear the word of God.—(Hear, hear.) Now, to settle this question, and for argument, instead of declamation, be wished to call their attention to the consequences of the preaching °the gospel in alliance with social temperate drinking —he did not say in alliance with drunkenness—but he did say in alliance with what was popularly called tem perate drinking, He wished to state this subject very concisely, because his time was short, and because the argument needed but to be presented to be interesting. All the other obstacles to the preaching of the gospel had been surmounted, and if they could but remove the monster obstacle of temperate drinking, and if he could impress that audience with the conscientious and firm conviction that temperate drinking would defeat, and had paralysed, the extensive preaching of the gospel, and render it nugatory to reformed drunkards, why, then, the seed which they had sown would yield an abundant harvest that would wave over the world. The speaker then proceeded at some length to prove his po- sition that the gospel could never be truly spread whilst the present system of temperate drinking continued. Things had been continually going from bad to worse, whilst the liquid fire of intoxication continued to be poured out amongst the people ; but be firmly believed that God, who had delivered up his only begotten Son to death to save mankind, had, in his goodness, raised up the advocates of this cause as his instruments to sweep intoxication and misery from the face of the earth. The success which attended this cause at its commence ment was but weak, but its most ardent friends could, scarcely have predicted for it such triumphs as it had already achieved. The success that God had given to it demonstrated that the cause was of God.—(Cheers.) Thousands and thousands, and thousands and hundreds of thousands of drunkards had been rescued and washed from their outward filth, and purified from the sin of drunkenness.—(Loud cheers.) The number that had now taken the pledge was equal to that of the professors of religion.—(Hear.) In conclusion, he would merely say that he had watched this cause for the last 36 years. He had seen it falter, but never stop. (Cheers.) After it had faltered its elastic powers increased when it moved again.—(Cheers.) He did not expect that he should have lived so long, or that he should have seen the splendid sight he had witnessed in connexion with the cause. It was said, that Bonaparte in one of his battles took down his telescope whilst the war eves raging at its height, and calmly said to his generals, " the battle is won." And he (Dr. Beecher) had lived to see the indications, the progress, and results of this cause, till he could say, not with faith, but with a firm conviction, " the battle is won."—(Great cheering.) He had seen the beginning of the end, and he could now die. not mourning, but shouting victory; and his heart exulted at what had been done, and it therefore glorified God, and magnified his praises. —(Cheers.) Mr. FREDERICK HOPWOOD, of York, next addressed the assemblage. He felt it, he said, to be a most diffi cult task to make a short speech on this great comprehen sive question. When first they commenced the advocacy of their principles, it was perfectly well known to many that they appeared before the public with some great timidity. It was true that they themselves were convinced of the purity and excellence of their motives ; but they were confident also that those principles were as much op posed to the existing habits and practices of society—as much opposed to the general thinkings of the great mass of their countrymen and women, that as he had already said, they appeared with something like fear and trembling. They availed themselves of experience, and that experience had fully realised their expectations. They expected that those individuals who were engaged in the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors, and whose interest it was to perpetuate that state of things, from which so many and such dreadful evils had arisen—they expected that these persons would be up in arms against them. It was quite natural that they should be. They expected, also, to meet with op position from those thousands—nay, he might say those m illions—of individuals, who cared nothing about the suffering of their fellow -creatures, and were not pre pared to male any sacrifice, however small and insigni ficant, for the sake of their country's prosperity and h ap piness.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") Indeed, they expected to meet vvit'a opposition or indifference from all who were any great worshippers at the shrine of Bacchus, and who for a considerable length of time had been in the habit of looking upon the use of intoxicating liquors as one of the principal enjoyments of life. They expected all this, and they were in some measure pre pared for it ; and the result of their labours was, that thousands had perceived the ignorance that pervaded the human mind in reference to this subject.—(Cheers.) The advocates in this movement found,- after inquiry, that the expenditure for intoxicating liquors in this country amounted to a hundred times as much as all the religious societies put together expended in the pro pagation of the Gospel both at home and in foreign parts.—(Hear, hear.) They found that the mortality occasioned by the use of strong drink had reached to nearly the number of 40,000 or 50,000 every year, That 600,000 of our fellow-countrymen and women, immortal beings, created in the image of our God, and destined for a life of usefulness and enjoyment here, and for a glo rious immortality hereafter, had become converted by the influence of those accursed poisons into so many fiends and maniacs, and by which means the greatest miseries were inflicted upon their families and all those with whom they were connected.—(Cheers.) By means of those fatal poisons our poorhouses were filled with paupers, our prisons were filled with criminals, and lamentations and woe covered the face of the country. —(Hear, bear.) Looking back upon all the means that had been employed by the advocates of this Society, they found that the same Government that had legis lated for the punishment of intemperance had licensed thousands and tens of thousands of houses for the sale of intoxicating drinks.—(Cheers.) He found that magistrates, after having inflicted fines upon parties who had been brought before them on charges of drunken ness, retired to some friend's house to enjoy a good dinner, and it was no uncommon thing with many of them to indulge in a bottle or two of port or sherry, and a n g g i s s t c r o a u t e ld s, n a o n t d enterfin Ministers, s kingdom drank return home in their T h ca ey rr f i o ag u e n s d, dr a u l n so k , .— th ( a " t H m e i a n r ist h e e r a s r o ,'; and loud cheers.) found that whilst Governments, religion had faithfully warned the drunkard, upon the authority of holy writ, and had declared of f a H t s e u a c v h en d . eg n ra u d t ed o b em e y i Drunken natural conse quence, and Ministers, were thus employed, the r:raeta created e a r cheering.) g a . ) sameth edrunkard's ap petitesr uGn w ok e va r er e rdn' smde rr being t:; I " —(dailyG and the prevalence of the vice of drunkenness was carried to such an extent as to threaten the very stability of our social and political institutions.— (Chtera ) Every means, then, used for the purpose of or rather, h e reclaiming the drunka rd, should say of preventing the sober men from becoming drunk tailed. Total abstinence, however, commenced its operations, and from the time when it first sprang into existence it had continued to progress. The cause spread with almost miraculous rapidity through every part of the civilised world.—(Cheers.) And notwith standing the opposition with which it had met, great things had been done in the work of reforming the drunkard, and preventing the sober man from falling. They met, in some instances, with the malignant oppo sition of those individuals who were engaged in the manufacture and sale of strong drink, but then on the other side the cause of total abstinence had now such support as it had not a dozen years ago.—(Cheers.) They had now a healthful, active, and public sentiment. —(Cheers.) They had roused public attention. They had presented to the notice of the public various great questions for their consideration and the people at large, and they had found that whilst the manufacture and sale of intoxicating drinks kept up a few in noble palaces it was also beggaring and damning its thousands and tens of thousands. —(Cheers.) The cause was now reaching its meridian s plendour, and an enlightened and indignant British public were determined to promote the peace and prosperity of th e countr y by abolishing the u se of strong drinks.—(Cheers.) The speaker was pro of temperance.—(Lond cheers.) Moderate drinking was not temperance. They had raised this standard in America, and they had so pressed it to the consciences of men they durst nut drink there, because they knew that wea the only way to redeem this world. They were satisfied of this principle, that supply creates demand, and they wished them to understand it here, and also that as long as it continued the demand would continue. (Hear, hear.) Take away the supply, and its loss would not be felt—take it away from the poor drunkard, and he would care nothing about it in six weeks.—(Hear, hear) In America they were going on gloriously on this principle, and he believed they were going on gloriously here also. It had been his province to read the journals of this country carefully, and they had shown a progess on the part of this ' country, which they were not sensible of. The people of this country were doing more than they thought, but they thought too highly of the Americans. They did not think highly enough of themselves here.—(Hear, hear.) Her Majesty in her new year's gifts withheld beer, and he trusted she would withhold wine on the next occasion. —(Hear.) Through God's omnipotent blessing he had no doubt the cause of temperance would prosper throughout the world.—(Cheers.) The Rev. W. REED, of Edinburgh, next came for ward to address the meeting. He said he must acknow ledge that he was a little squeamish about coming into that house, being his first appearance on any stage. —(Hear, and laughter.) But having got into it, and contrasted it with the place in which he was accustomed to minster, he was almost tempted to sing a stanza of a song which was sometimes heard in Scotland : "'Phis is no my ain house, I ken by the biggin' o't." —(Laughter.) And yet after all he did not feel himself out of place, Minister of the Gospel though he was. — (Cheers.) When a mechanic found his machine out of order, did he continue working at it without inquiring into the cause? When a husbandman found his soil unfruitful, did he not adopt means to make it fruitful? and should a Minister of the Gospel, when he found an obstacle meeting him at every turn, remain igno rant with regard to that obstacle, instead of acting con sistently with the great commission assigned to him ? There was one point to which he would confine his attention during the few moments he had to address them—he referred to the young. They had also a most important duty to discharge to the rising generation, and they had no right to leave a system behind them, which would degrade, demoralise, and ruin them.— , (Cheers.) Poets had compared young children to flowers, but if they neglected them like a deserted garden, they could not send anything forth so noxious. —(Hear.) If they could look upon them with the eye of Jehovah, they should tremble with the great responsi bility which devolved upon them with respect to children. lie considered that there was a great relation between the mind of a man and the mind of a child—the con nexion was as intimate as the connexion between one end of the electric telegraph and the other. To ascer tain the dispositions of children they must look into the play-ground, where they would find the future warrior, the future grasping merchant, playing at pit-:h and toss, the boy who in after years might aye his hands in blood and commit murder, they might see him make fiys spin round and round without their wings, for the examples set before children had a great influ ence on their future lives, and -in forming their disposi tions fur good or evil.—(bear.) Then the boy sitting on his father's knee at home learned his first lesson in intemperance by tasting a little drop. Parents might look upon this as simply an indication of juvenile folly, which in future years would be eradicated. The mind of man was being observed in the head of the boy, and he sought no other example than that inculcated in his father's house, and adopted no other opinions but that which received a sanction there.—(Cheers.) It was a great mistake to think that education began at school, or when a man went out into the world. The first teaching commenced at home, and was mate rially influenced by the kindness or unkindness of a father, and mother, and brother and sister. Their kindness or unkindness went a great way to form the mind of the boy in after years. It was a most beautiful and encouraging fact, and it was in this fact that he had the greatest hope for the regeneration of this great world. —(Cheers.) In fact the infant mind was free from prejudice. The boy of a better climate would find a companion in the child of this cold climate, and the child of this cold climate and a child of a Prince would not refuse to associate with the child of a peasant. — (Hear, hear.) They come into the world free from prejudice. He would be contented to entrust any great question to a jury of children, gathered from any corner of the world, he had so much confidence in them. He would refer the Oregon question to them.—(Hear.) He would put on one side the nature of that rocky country, and, on the other, the blood that must have been spilt before that country could be gained, and they would say, "Rather let the question remain un settled for ever, than that one drop of blood should be spilt." lie would submit to them the question of Eu ropean slavery, and, after considering it, they would say, " Let every fetter be struck oft'. and let the slaves gfree."—(Cheers.) He would also place this question before them, laying on one side the inutility of in toxicating drinks, and, on the other side, broken-hearted wives, unhappy children, and wretched homes, and they would say, " Taste it not—touch it not."—(Cheers.) They had perhaps seen a number of houses in flames, and after the fire could not be got under at the spot it had broken out at, they had seen the firemen play upon a house for fear it might ignite those at some distance, from the other portion of the fire, but when the fire ex tended to it, it was found as difficult to get over as it would be to swallow the ocean. It was well to play water on the old drunkard, but it was still better to go further, and prevent the flames from reaching the children.—(Cheers.) The Rev. Dr. Cox, of New York, next addressed the meeting. Ele said he hoped to be temperate, but he was placed in a position which might make one feel intoxi cated.—(Hear.) When he left America last June, he intended, when he returned, as he did in 1833, to have been able to say that he had never been at an opera or a theatre.—(Laughter.) But he should make no apology and tell the truth. There was a maxim est modes in rebus, but the cause of temperance was the cause of man—the cause of God. He asked England to help America with her example. So great was the extent of intemperance in the gin palaces of Lon don, that if the whole of the spirits drank in these places in the course of a year were gathered into one great reservoir, the whole British Navy might slum in it. the exertions of the Convention would, he believed, outstrip all other exertions, because they formed a body desirous of carrying out the principles of sound philan thropy. They would go forth to tell what it had done, the great progress it had made, and the potent influence which its labours would have not only on America but upon the whole civilised worhi. Ile could not conclude isithout expressing a hope that " God save the Queen" and " All hail, Columbia," would be sung together. — (Cheers.) G. S. KENDRICK, Esq., of West Bromwich, then came forward, and said that he considered it a good omen that this meeting was held in Covent-garden Theatre, because meetings of the first importance to mankind and to the country had been held in that place before— (Cheers)—and as these meetings had resulted in one of the greatest, one of the most important, one of the most beneficial measures of modern times, he trusted that this meeting, held in the same place, for even a higher and a nobler purpose, would reach an equally successful ter mination.—(Continued cheers.) The Premier had eulo gised one of the men who had been instrumental in carrying that measure as one of the heroes of the free trade movement ; but it yet remained for them to carry the much more extended, and the yet more important, measure.—(Cheers.) It was said that 5,000,000/. would be saved by the passing of that Bill, but he (Mr. Kendrick) affirmed that not five, but 50,000,000/. would be saved to the kingdom if they could pass a Total Ab stinence Bill.—(Hear, hear.) It was said that the want of such a law as that lately passed had restricted the food of the people ; but they had had undoubted autho rity to substantiate the fact, that seventy persons out of every seventy-seven were punished for crimes induced by drunkenness.—(Hear, hear.) That Bill had been passed to benefit the poor man principally, but this measure would be equally beneficial to rich, and poor. They bad heard, and many of them had seen rich men made poor by drunkenness. Just before he had come to that meeting, he had seen a carpenter who had been brought to that state of degradation, that for ten years he was not once perfectly sober.—(Hear, hear.) He had been separated from his wife three times, and when he (Mr. Kendrick) asked the cause of separation, the man stated that it was altogether owing to the in toxicating liquors, which had starved his family. For these reasons he thought that the question they had met to discuss that evening, was one of the most important and most interesting to the human race. He said that this law might be carried out, but how were they do it? The most effectual, the only certain way would bo by the law of kindness. The law of kindness was the only, the really beneficial mode ; for charity would in all circumstances be more efficacious than force; the laws of attraction drew everything to a centre, while the laws of force repelled them.—(Cheers.) Ile might be allowed to mention one word with regard to Ireland; he had often travelled through Ireland, and he had never heard but one expression with regard to Father Mathew, with the solitary exception of one publican, who was of course opposed to his reformation; all spoke well of him. Now he attributed all this to ' the prevailing principle of benevolence that pervaded all his lectures and his actious—(Cheers)—and he had found universally that no one had any wish to oppose, but that all in that country were willing to aid the temperance reformation. Ile had, not long ago, stood along with Mr. Houghton, on the balcony of a public-house to hear a lecture on tem perance reformation.--(Hear, hear.) The publican himself came forward, and said, " there are two or three persons in that corner who have broken the pledge, ad dress a few words to them." There were not above two or three who left that meeting who hid not signed the pledge. lie thought they ought to avoid addressing hard words to those persons who were intemperate ; he repeated, they ought to avoid these, because that was not the best way of making uonverts. There were 20,000 ministers of the Gospel in America, and the public feel ing in that country was very strong that ministers of all denominations should be teetotallers. The contrary was the case in this country. It a Minister of this country were to affirm these principles, he would be looked down upon; not one of the higher classes would support him. But a better feeling was arising through. out the country. As an illustration, he might tell them, that at an agricultural meeting at Newcastle, where upwards of 30,000 persons were assembled, and where, by the way, there was an horticultural show also, there were a number of booths erected for the sale of spirituous liquors, but these shops were quite deserted, and the speculators had lost by them.—(Cheers.) Dr. CALDWELL, Professor of Mental Philosophy in Dickenson's University,Pennsylvania, next addressed the meeting. He said he had not expected at that late hour of the night to be called on to say one word to that con. vention and vast assembly, and even then he was certain .r -, •----.4..- --- -7...;;-- 4 p % 1 ,..> ,:,,7::`,:' .1( 4 ' F ' 2 's‘Pr i :Tt' ..--4,- ; ~. , ... , that he would] be excused from attempting to make a speech.—(Hear.) He had declined coming forward on any former occasion from the fear that he might possibly ,- : -ti:7"- ; 3:-,St:t be misunderstood. The Learned Speaker then, after 'sk , f3 s;.W-1 lamenting the slow progress which the temperance cause had made in Pennsylvania, concluded by saying that only personal and individual eff or t s cou ld effect--a-/ ------ ` real reformation in that or any other country, and theig-TA VA . "; AA 1 ,4 - kj fore he urged all the friends of the temperance move ment to follow a maxim current in America, and suf ficiently- plain to Anglo-Saxon ears, "If they were sure they were right, jet them go-a-head."— (Cheers.) Dr. Patton, from New York, Richard Allen, Esq., from Dublin and John Andrews, Esq., Scarbarough, addressed the meeting in support of the general principle. Dr. BEAUMONT, from Bradford, Yorkshire, then said, the mere circumstance of his being connected with the medical profession might furnish an apology for his ad dressing them. The object which brought them toge ther was one of grandeur and sublimity, for it was their wish to elevate in every way the human being. The great difficulty which the friends of the temperance cause had to encounter was, the prevailing ignorance of the people as to the nature and quality of intoxicating liquors. All were not aware that all liquors, whether wine, ale, beer, or spirits, were necessarily unwholesome, and he would rest the fact that they were so, on the cir cumstance that no medical man who had ever examined the subj.ect, as he ought to do, had come to a different conclusion.—(Cheers.) So long as alcohol was an in gredient in liquors, so long must these liquors be of necessity unwholesome, and only so soon as medical men on the one hand, and Christian ministers on the other, came forward, would be introduced a per fect system of total abstinence. Mr. H. CLAPP shortly addressed the audience. Mr. F. Doucu-s, himself an emancipated slave, and the well-known advocate of his coloured brethren, fol lowed, and the proceedings were wound up by an able speech from Mr. J. S. Buckingham, Mr. MEREDITH moved a vote of thanks to the Chair man, which having been duly acknowledged, the meet ing separated. THE WORLD'S TEMPERANCE CONVENTION. The Temperance Convention resumed its sittings on Thurs day, Mr. Bowly presiding. - Ir. LOVELL proposed a resolution, by which the meeting pledged itself to use all its efforts for the extension of its principles. Dr. Cox, a delegate from New York, seconded it, regretting that they had not the co-operation of the clergy in their ex ertions, and the resolution was carried. Another resolution was proposed by Mr. WitEELooK, o New York, to the effect, that the hopes of the temperance reformation were in the rising generation, and recommending the formation in every county of juvenile temperance associa tions, was also carried, after some describing temperance as the same as Christianity. And, after a recommendation to introduce the principle into Sunday-schools, The Rev. E. N. KIRK moved the resolution, seconded by . Mr. T. B. Smithers, deprecating the practice of export ing liquors from Christian to Pagan countries, especially in ships which carry out Christian missionaries. Mr. J. S. BUCKINGHAM supported the resolution, detailing some facts of his own experience, tending to show the effects of introducing spirits among the llindoos, as prejudicing Ch: istianity. Dr. CAMPBELL recommended an address to Sunday-school teachers on the subject of temperance, which seemed to meet with general approbation. The proceedings then closed. In the afternoon sitting, Mr. DUNLOP made a few observations on fermented liquors, urging, as an argument against their use, the cus toms of the ancients, whose general drink was of an unfer mented kind. A resolution was moved by Dr. GRINDROD, and seconded by Mr. Rudge, proposing thanks to Mr. Dunlop for his ex ertions for many years past in obtaining certificates against the use of spirituous liquors, and deprecating their use as a medicine, which, like the others, was also passed. Dr. PAL'TEN, of New York, moved a resolution expressing the satisfaction of the meeting at the measures taken in some parts of America against the licensing system, and hoping that the example would be followed in England. Dr. Cox spoke in support, and Mr. HOPWOOD proposed an amendment, in reference to Sunday trading in liquors, the consideration of which was postponed. Mr. BAKER read a paper containing an interesting report from the Temperance Provident Institution, tending to show the extension of human life caused by the principles of tem perance. A resolution on the report was proposed by Mr. BURNS, se conded by Mr. IltsiEs, and unanimously adopted.—Adjourned. WORLD'S TEMPERANCE CONVENTION.—A soiree was on Thursday held at the Freemasons' Tavern, Great Queen street, at which most of the delegates from the various tem perance societies in the world assisted. After partaking of tea and coffee, Mr. Lawrence Heyworth, of Liverpool, was called to the chair, and then commenced a series of ad dresses in favour of abstinence principles. The principal speakers of the night were Dr. Campbell, the Rev. William White, Mr. Gardstone, jun., Mr. Clapp, from Washington ; the Rev. Dr. Campbell, the Rev. Mr. Turner, from Bath; Elihu Burritt (the learned blacksmith from America), &c. Instrumental music and promenading occupied the spaces not appropriated by the addresses. Various sentiments, illustrative and approving of abstinence principles, were pro posed and agreed to. The meeting included a great number of the fairer sex, who seemed to take great interest in the proceedings, NEW ZEALAND. (From the Times.) We have received New Zealand papers to the 15th March inclusive. It appears from these that Governor Grey had returned from the Bay of Islands, where he had effectually subdued and brought to submission Ileke and Kawiti. The two rebel chiefs throw them selves wholly on the mercy of his Excellency, resigning all their lands, leaving it entirely to him to dictate the terms on which peace and order are to be re-established at the northern part of the Island. It is said that Governor Grey does not intend to deprive Heke and Kawiti of their lands, or to make them an appendage to the British Crown. The chief Nene, who had been received as a mediator in the matter returns forthwith to the Bay of Islands, and the blockade is to be at once removed, and the ports opened, and the customs re established. The following extracts show the state of affairs in the other parts of the colony : (From the New Zealand Spectator cf Feb. 28.) On Monday Mr. Sr. Hill, the police magistrate, went over to the Ilutt district, in obedience to the instruc tions of his Excellency, to put the settlers in possession of the land, but they were immediately driven back by the natives, and it was evident that an armed demon stration, and perhaps the employment o force, would be absolutely necessary to compel these natives to sub mission. Accordingly a body of troops, amounting to 340 men, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel llulme, left Wellington at five o'clock on Tuesday morning, and arrived at the Hutt bridge at eight o'clock, where they remained while a message was sent to Kaparetehau, the chief who has been acting under the directions of Rangihaeata, intimating the Go• vernor's desire to see him. His Excellency find ing any attempt to procure an interview with this chief fruitless, the troops were ordered to advance to the dis puted ground, and they crossed the Hutt by the ford near Mr. Boulcott's barn, and encamped in a large Maori potato-field, a short distance above Mr. Boulcott's section. The Al aeries immediately retired before the troops, and their numbers were rapidly thinned by the desertion of Taringa Kuri, and others who had no inten tion of offering any serious opposition, but who desired to try if the Government were in earnest. Towards the evening the natives retired to the hills, and left the troops in possession of the Valley of the Hutt, so that it was considered unnecessary to keep so large a force there, and on Thursday morning a part of the troops re turned to Wellington, leaving about two hundred men in possession :of the disputed land. The na tives expelled from the Valley of the Hutt were a small branch of the Ngatiawa tribe, called the Ngatitams, headed by Taringa Kuri, one of the parties to the deed of sale to the New Zealand Company, a large party of vagrants from Wanganui, under E. Maka, who had left that place in consequence of adultery with another chief's wife, and the Ngatirangatahi. These last came originally from the upper part of the Wanganui river to Porirua. The head men amongst them were Kaparetehau, commonly called E Pare, E Iloro, Te Kohera, Te Aribi, Papa Ahuapa, Bore, Te Atuta, and Kakaherea. They were all present at, and took part in, the sale of this district to the New Zealand Company in 1839. They were also at the Wairau massacre, where the two first were amongst the m ost active and ferocious, Porirua r aai 1844 where n Atuta a w n a d s kill e d.tha rest; K a immediatelyka cr° l died uft ae after the Wairau massacre , usurped and on the banks of the Hutt, under Rangihaeta's sanction, and have continued ever since to molest and despoil the settlers with impunity up to the time of their expulsion by the troops on Wednesday last. That they had no title to the land is confessed by Taringa Run, who, in his evidence before Mr. Spain's court, expressly admits that these chiefs were all present at the original sale of the land to Colonel Wakefield, that this was part of the land, and that they sold it for fear of Rauparaha and Watanui. The land has since been bought again by Captain Fitzroy, with the Company's money, but it re mained for our present Governor to do justice to the settlers by putting them in possession of the land, and driving away the horde of robbers and murderers to whose exactions they hare been so long exposed. It was left for Captain Grey to assure to the " distressed settlers in Cook's Straits" protection to life and pro perty. (From the New Zealand Spectator of the 21st February.) We understand that his Excellency proceeds on Tues day next in her Majesty's steamer Driver to Wanganui, for the purpose of settling with the natives of that district all ,questions and disputes connected with the land claims, and of putting the settlers in possession of their land. The natives will have their reserves pointed out to them, and after the necessary arrangements are all completed, the compensation money will be for warded to Wanganui, for distribution among them. His Excellency will then visit Nelson and New Ply mouth to settle all questions connected with the land claims in those districts, and will afterwards return to Wellington. It is supposed his Excellency's visit to the other settlements in Cook's Straits will occupy about three weeks. We believe Mrs. Grey will not accom pany his Excellency. (From the New Zealand Spectator of March 15.) BANGIIIAEATA. — Some persons who have just arrived from the coast state that 200 armed natives, from Taupo, have joined Rangihacata, and the settlers at Manawatu are very apprehensive that, in the event of an engage ment between the troops and the natives , this chief will make reprisals, and endeavour to cut off the outsettlers. On Thursday (three days only after the Governor's visit to Porirua) news arrived that Rangihaeata threatened to stop Mr. Skipwith's sheep, and to kill them if the persons in charge of them attempted to drive them be yond Porirua. It is plain that very little reliance can be placed in Rangihaeata's professions of peace ; he is evidently temporizing and watching the course of events, and waiting for some favourable opportunity of which he may take advantage ; as long as he is permitted to re main at large, he will always be a source of annoyance and trouble to the settlers. PARLIAIIIENT'AItY DIVISIONS (From the Votes and Proceedings of the House of Commons. THURSDAY, AUGUST 6. RELIGIOUS OPINIONS BILL. Order for Second Reading read; Motion made, an d Q uestion pro posed, " That the Bill be now read a second time:"—:Amendm ent proposed, to leave out the word " nosy," and at the end of the Question to add the words "upon this day three months:"—Questio n put, " That the word ' now' stand part of the Question." The House divided:— MAJORITY—AYES, 79. Aldam, William Forster, Mathew Pigot, David Arundel, Earl of Fox, C. R. Plumridge, Captain Bailie, Walter Gore, Robert Proaleroe, E. Bannerman, A. Greene, Thomas Pulsford, Robert Barnard, E. G. Grey, Sir G. Pusey, Philip Barron, Sir 11. W. Hatton, Captain Russell, Lord John Bellew, K. M. Hawes, B. Scrope, G. P. Berkeley, Craven Ilenley, J. W. Shell, R. L. Berkeley, Captain llobhouse. Sir John Smith, Vernon Bernal, Ralph Howard, P. H. Stewart, P. MA Borthwick, Peter Hume, Joseph Stra ;:t, Edward Bridgeman, Hewitt Butt, William Tancred, H. W. Brotherton, Joseph Jervis, Sir John Thornely, Thomas Brown, W. Labouchere, Henry Towneley, John Browne, W. Lascelles, W. S. Turner, Edmund Bruges, W. H. L. Layaid, Captain Vane, Lord 11. Colebrooke, Sir T. Lincoln, Earl of Wakley, T. Collett, John Macaulay, T. B. Warburton, 11. Cowper, W. F. M`Donnell, J. M. Ward, H. G. Crawford, W. S. Maitland, T. Wawn, J T. Dodd, George Mitealfe, 11. Wilshere, W. Duncan, George Moffatt, George Wood, Charles D undas, David Morpeth, Viscount Wyse, Thomas Eutwisle, W. Morris, David Yorke, 11. R. Escott, Bickham O'Conrell, M. J. TELLERS. Evans, Sir De Lacy O'Conor, Don Tufuell, H. Ewer t, William Parker. John Hill, Lord Marcus IN °lift 0E S, 10. Lygon, General Trotter, John Palmer, G. Shaw, Rt. lion. F. Spooner, R. Blackhurne, J. I. Douglas, Sir H. Fuller, A. E. Jones, Captain Lindsay, Captain TELLERS. Estcourt, T. G. Sibthorp, Colond ILLNESS OF THE POSTMASTER - GENERAL.—ThUrSday his Lordship, the Postmaster- G . eneral, the Marq u i s o f Clan ricard e, was taken unwell at his residence in Carlton-gardens. His Lordship had appointed to see the four men in the Post office, who had stated they were i under fear in giving evi dence before Mr. Peacock , but n consequence of his illness the Noble Marquis sent out word that he could not admit them that day. GRAVESEND AND ROCHESTER RAILWAY.—The fol lowing are the traffic returns for the week ending Aug 1,1846 .—Pamengerg 14,269; amount received 3461. le. 7d. H Pi f ii S TJ N