The Sun. — London, England, 1835-06-06 00:00:00

body only, consisting of a Mayor Comtn on C ounc il , i n w h om this power shall be vested. The C ommon C ounc il s s h al l consist of various members, in a manner not arithmeti cally,' but generaYly .xed, and varying from fifteen, in the smallest boroughs, where th ere are about 2,000 inhabitants, to 90 in tle largest.—( Cheers.) With respect to the largest,bf these t owns, t h ere are only twenty in number in welch th ere are 25,000 inhabitants, and we propose that tF.ese towns should be divided into Wards, and that a certain number of Common Councilmen, as stated in the Schedule, should be chosen in each Ward. With regard to the 162 other towns, the whole of the inhabitants, as stated, shall elect a Common Council. —( Hear, hear, and cheers.)cheers.)— With respect, however, to those persons who at present enjoy advantages, we do not propose to deprive them of them during their life, but we propose, in future, that no person shall be admitted a burgess of these Corporations, except according to the rules I have just mentioned, namely, that of permanent residence, and duly paying rates. I know not what argument can be raised with respect to the re gulations which we propose to lay down. I do not believe that there will be any sufficient case to be made out, when we have established the facts as they are stated in the Reports, or that there can be any case made out for admitting persons to become Members of Corporations, except as we propose.—( Hear.) I will just mention the right of birth, which is undoubtedly one of those ancient rights belonging, and most properly, to Corporations. In former times the inhabitants of towns were justly proud of their place of birth. When they saw that all the inhabitants round them were villains and slaves, they had.a just right, if they left the town, to claim free dom by birth. In the same way the right of freedom by trade and by servitude arose in those times when those trades re quired it—ls:lien they were rising and making their way against tlsie barbarism that surrounded them. But in those slays, when we are all equal and free subjects, when those trades are not, as formerly, matters of great Par:ty interest—( Hear, hear)—l do not think there is kny reason for distinctions of this kind, and, I think, we Ought to abolish those kinds of right altogether.—( Hear. ) it is proposed to abolish all exclusive rights in trading, with a due regard to the pecuniary rights of persons now living. For instance, I may mention the case of two persons in the city of Exeter; one of whom, not belonging to the Corpora tion, pays 100/. every year for certain tolls to which he is liable ; while the other, who lives next to him, has no toll of that kind to pay, because he belongs to the Corporation. So far as the pecuniary advantage of the latter person is concerned, he will continue to enjoy it during his life • but we propose that nothing in future shall exist of the nature of these ex clusive rights and exemptions, which are, undoubtedly, inconsistent with the good government of these towns. ( Cheers.) Now, Sir, with regard to the election of Coun cils, we propese that the members of Councils should be elected every three years, one-third of whom are to go out every I , ear. For my own part, I must confess, my conscientious belief is, that the inhabitants of the town, in select ing persons in whom they can place confidence, whether they elect them for either three years, or for one year, would generally elect the same persons for whom they had a regard, and in whom they believed the disposal and management of their property might be safely placed, and by this plan they will certainly, at all events, have two thirds of the council who have had some experience in the management of their affairs. In regard to the mode of election, it is not important at all ; but it will be done by a written list of persons, containing the names of all those who wish to be elected on the Council. We propose that the Mayor should be annually elected, and that he should be during the time of his mayoralty a Justice of the peace, and a deputy lieutenant of the county—we do not propose any qualification. It often excites great ill will, and we have therefore thought fit to have no other qualification than that which is now naturally preferred in all civilized socie ty. Now, Sir, with regard to the Councilmen, they are to have the power of appointing a town-clerk, treasurer, and all officers required to carry on the business of the Corporation. Cer tainly we do not intend to oblige them, for it would be totally inconsistent to make the attempt to oblige them to preserve the present town clerks —( Loud cheers, and cries of " Hear.") Of course, when I say it would be utterly impracticable to do it, it is because, with a new council coming in, it would be quite necessary to have persons in whom they can confide, and who will do the business in the manner that they lay down, and not presume to hold them at defiance—( Hear)—at the same time when there is any peculiar claim that can be made by an officer for services rendered, if compensation can fairly be demanded, it would accord with my feelings to pay it. ( Hear.) Now, Sir, the most important part of these municipal Corporations is the management of the funds, a management which certainly at the present moment does not shew any very great wisdom or economy—( Hear)—while the gross income amounts to 367,0001. the expenditure is 377,0001., and the debts amount to 2 .000,0001.._(Hear) We find that some of these Bodies have incurred debts from year to year, and have been, up to the last two years, raising loans which they were dividing amongst themselves, the proceeds of those loans, and getting deeper into debt---( Hear.) We propose, therefore, Sir, that the Councils should have power to have any Committee in order to manage these finan cial affairs, and that these accounts should be regularly audited and regularly brought before the public, and that they should no longer be kept as secret accounts.—( Hear, hear. ) Now making this security of publicity, we make, in my opinion, great progress towards placing these boroughs under better management.—( Cheers.) There is another point of duty on the part of these Corporations, which has been no less badly managed ; I refer to the management of estates which have been left them for charitable purposes by charitable per sons.—( Hear, hear.) We propose that these Councils shall become the trustees of those charitable funds, appointing, if they choose, a Committee for their management, at the same time appointing a separate Treasurer and Secretary. It of is likewise provided that the persons having the management those Charity Estates shall not be less in number than fifteen, chosen from among the general body of burgesses in the town, because it me.y often happen that there may be persons who dislike to bear corporate offices, but there may be others who, from their knowledge of business of this kind may be most fit persons to fill such offices. Now, Sir, having mentioned all the persons in whom the government of these Corporations are to be vested, who are to be the electors of the governing body, and wh a t is to tak e p l ace w i th respect to th funds of these charities, I come next to the part which regards the administration of justice and police in these boroughs. Sir, we propose that the whole watch of the town, the business of watching the town, shall be placed completely under the control of the council, and all provisions in the local Act, so far as they militate against that power, are not to be continued. It seems high] y necessary for the municipal Government, that the keeping of peace—the quiet of the town as it was termed in the olden time—should be with those who are to have the government of the town. We think there ought to be nobody acting inconsistently with the general council, so far as the watch is concerned. I will not now enter into the provisions made as to paving and lighting, those powers are often exercised under Local Acts by Commis sioners. It may be desirable hereafter that this power should be cancelled, but we do not propose to interfere with these local Acts, so far as relates to any consolidation..-( Cheers.) With respect to the police of the towns (and there was a portion of the police which led to great abuses), it was pro per that their appointment should not be vested in the Ma gistrates. It was not conducive to the ends of justice, to have the power of appointment mixed or confounded with the power of administering justice. It was therefore de termined upon that this privilege should be left to tlse Council, or to a Committee of the Council—a Council elected by the rate-payers of the town—by the popular mode of elec tion, and- although there was no doubt that the Members of that Council would be naturally inclined to favour their private friends, yet a body elected under popular control was less likely to make an improper appointment than if the power were confounded with that of the local ma gistracy, and not so calculated to do an injury, as if the robe of justice were sullied by so vile a contamina tion.—( Cheers.) Another portion of the question I shall now approach—which is totally separate and distinct from that of which I have now been treating—l mean the administration of justice in towns and boroughs. We propose that there shall be a division of these 183 towns into two sche dules. We propose to put 129 towns in schedule A—to which we shall give the Commission of the Peace. In the remaining 54 towns, they may, if they think proper, have a Commission of the Peace. With respect to the 129 towns the Council is to have the power of recommending a person —a Magistrate—for the Commsssion of the Peace, but not a power to elect a Magistrate in such a manner as that the power of the Crown would not be necessary to perfect it. There are more than 1,000 Magistrates in these boroughs—. that number is not, in my opinion, necessary, and I think that the Councils will take proper care not to recommend any Ma gistrates but those whom the advisers of the Crown are most likely to appoint. I propose that the Magistrates shall not have the power to preside at the Quarter Sessions—which were held in a great many places for the administration of justice. But, Sir, there is at least a considerable number of these boroughs in which it may be proper to have a Court of Quarter Sessions, where they have now a Court of Quarter sessions ; and in many of them there is a Recorder, who is per fectly fit for his situation, which Recorder ought to be con tinued. We propose, therefore, that on application to the Crown, by the boroughs, for liberty to have a Court of Quarter Sessions, and upon stating that they are willing to retain the Recorder, the Recorder shall be re tained-4 Hear, hear)--but these Recorders must, in every instance be barristers of five years' standing. Therefore, in those towns where there is now a barrister of 5 years standing as Recorder, and the town is satisfied with his administration of justice, that Recorder may remain, and the Court of Quart er Sessions be also continued. With ' respect to other towns, who desire to have a Court of Quarter Sessions, and which have no Recorder, we then propose that, with respect to all nominations of Recorders for the future, that that nomination shall be vested in the Crown.—(Hear, hear.) Therefore the town is to declare it requires a Court of Quarter Sessions, and it is to show that that Court of Quarter Sessions may be conveniently held within that town - it is to sho w th a t i t i s rea d y to provide the necessary salary of a Recorder, and then it is left to the Crown to appoint the judge who is to act. Sir, it seems to me that it is better that that power should be in the Crown, limiting it always to a barrister of 5 years' standing, than to have anything resembling the popular election of Judge. These Recorders will be appointed during good behaviour_. they will not be removable at pleasure, and therefore I think we may rely upon their exercising their functions independently and honestly. Sir, there are, some provisions that are necessary relating to Quarter Sessions, with respect to county rates, into which, it is not necessary that I should fully enter. It is reported in some pl aces, the County-rates would notbe levied ,by the Justices of the Courty, but in certain f proportionk by agreement, between borough and borough ; ~: ► '~S-~ and if that agreement cannot be made, it should be referred to some third party. I know of no better party that it can be referred to than the Commissioners of the Treasury, for the purpose of its being finally determined. These clauses have been framed with great care, after consultation with persons who are intimately acquainted with this subject. We propose, Sir, that in all of those great boroughs, the Commission should have jurisdiction in capital offences..... ( Cheers.) I believe that there are many gentlemen in this House well aware of the great importance of these Courts having the power of framing their own rules and regulations. Sir, I have now gone through the chief of the clauses proposed to be inserted in this Bill. There may be some parts of con siderable importance which I have not touched, but I hare given the House a general view of the whole matter.— ( Cheers.) In providing for these Corporations, many of them in a state of Insolvency—(loud cheers)—we are of opinion that by the provisions which I have now detailed WC shall be enabled—in the first place, we shall procure for the government of those boroughs a Council which shall have the confidence of the people.—( Great cheering.) We think there will be no longer an opinion entertained that those Corpo rations have been instituted for the exclusive benefit of one par ticular party in those towns.—( Cheers.) We are of opinion in the next place, that by these provisions we shall provide a secure and preventive police in these towns. We conceive, in the last place, that in providing for the pure and proper ad ministration of justice, we secure to it the love and admiration of the people—(Hear) --and we conceive that by the provi sions of this Bill we shall establish that pure administration of justice in those towns containing so large a mass of population. Sir, this is a measure which in my opinion is in strict conformity with the Reform Bill.—( Cheers.) It will reform one of our valuable institutions, while at the same time it destroys no part of them, except those which upon all hands are admitted to be bad.--( Hear, hear.) We have not interfered to destroy, but we have interfered to build up, after a long and patient investi gation. It is a measure, Sir, which is in conformity with the declaration of this House at the commencement of this Session in the Address to his Majesty—in conformity with the wish expressed by his Majesty in answer to that address, that the dissolution of Parliament might not pre vent any of those Reforms which were necessary. Sir, it is a measure upon which we, as a Government, are ready to stake what credit may belong to us for having proposed the Re form Bill, and the other measures which have obtained the approval of the country.—(Loud and continued cheering.) We, Sir, have paid grea t a tt en ti on t o thi s su bj ec t, a lth oug h we have been deprived of the benefit of some—one I have alluded to at the commencement of my address, another I may now mention. We have been deprived of the assistance of my Noble Friend Lord Spencer, who, at the close of the last Session, gave notice upon this subject.--( Cheers. ) lam sure that floe Noble Lord, if he had joined the present Go vernment—if he had not preferred, as he always did,—the unam bitious quiet of private life to any honours or advantages which office might confer ; if he had condescended, as was the anx ious wish of his Majesty's present Government, to have joined them, I think his assistance would have been most valuable, both in framing this measure, and in explaining it to the House, in a manner of which, so far as regarded details, he was the unrivalled master.—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") Sir, I have ventured thus to explain the general fea tures of this measure, and I shall leave the question to be determined and acted upon by the deliberate opinion of the House. I shall leave it to the judgment of the House, and to the judgment of the people of England, as a safe, effectual, and wholesome measure of Municipal Reform.—(The Noble Lord sat down amid loud cheers.) THE SPEAKER having put the question, that leave be given to bring in a Bill which provides for the regulation of Muni cipal Corporations in England and Wales, Sir R. PE EL sa id Si r , a lth oug h I am resolved to avail myself of every advantage in the discussion of this im portant question, which additional time and opportunities, of farther reference to documents already in the possession of the House, and of reference not yet in its possession, will afford me--( Hear, hear, hear)--it is not my in tention to enter at any length at the present time, into a discussion of the important measure which the Noble Lord has this night proposed to the House. Still, on account of its im portance, I am unwilling to permit that motion to be put from the Chair without any person havinc , offered an observation upon it beyond the speech of the Noble Lord. Sir, I shall make no opposition to this motion.—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear, hear.") I shall certainly throw not the slightest impediment in the way of its introduction, and, moreover, I am about to state opinions upon the subject of municipal reform generally, not in imme diate reference to this measure, the details of which are so important, that each is entitled to separate discussion ; but I am about to express opinions upon the subject of Municipal Reform which will not be found inconsistent with those expressed by the Noble Lord. I agree with the Noble Lord, that the time has ar rived when it is necessary, for the well-being of so ciety, to establish a good system of municipal government. I have looked through these Reports, and the impression left on my mind is, that the time has arrived when it is highly necessary for Parliament to interfere, to provide effectual checks upon abuses, and therefore, with out any hesitation, I admit that it is of the utmost importance that a good system of municipal go vernment should be provided for large towns, whether they be Corporate towns or not.---( Hear, hear, and cheers.) After making this admission, it follows, as a matter of course, that Corporations, where they exist, should be made instrumental in effecting those purposes.—(Hear.) I have no hesitation in saying that Parliament has a right to require that the revenues of those Corporations, except where they are applied to special purposes, may very fairly be applied to public purposes—( Great cheering)— connected with good municipal government. If I were a member of a Corporation, so far from objecting to this, I would wish that the Corporation funds should be applied to public purposes, rather than to a system of public feasting, or to party purposes—(Cheers)—l have not the slightest ob jection to any new provision to be made by law which should impose some check on these practices, I am bound at the same time to say, that it is a new principle of law.—( Cheers.) It does not all follow, that in laying it down for the future there is any reflection upon the honesty of the Corporations. The principle of the law heretofore has been, I believe, that these corporate bodies have had a right to apply their funds to other than public municipal purposes : they clearly had a right to apply their funds to corporate purposes ; and I apprehend the principle of the law has been, that excepting so far as the re straining statutes interfered with the ecclesiastical corporations, the civil corporations of this country had a right even to alienate their property, if they thought proper.—(Renewed cheers.) I am bound to say, that I think the Report made by the Com missioners has not sufficiently referred to the principles of law in conformity with which the Corporations have acted. I think also that I have a right to complain of this Report in another respect, namely, that it involves all the Corporations in indis criminate censure, and that it does not sufficiently point out the cases in which Corporations have acted honestly in the per formance of their trust, but that it has thrown a general reflec tion upon all Corporations, in consequence of the misap plication of their funds. I think that the Noble Lord did wisely in laying down the principle that we had much better defer to a future opportunity any attempt to cite particular instances in which Corporations may not have been justly dealt with. I mean singly to refer to the general principle of the measure on this occasion, and avoid entering into any special or individual cases. The Noble Lord laid down one or two important principles in his speech, to which I yielded implicit deference. The Noble Lord said he would not refer to instances of particular Corporations ; but scarcely had the words escaped the Noble Lord's lips, when he re ferred to some eight or ten Corporations—not very impartially selected, I must say—(Loud cheers from the Opposition)— and it is a little singular, that of those eight or ten Corpora tions, the Noble Lord became acquainted with the circum stances of four-fifths of them by having access to a Report which has not yet been laid before the House.—( Renewed cheering.) We have had no report upon Norwich—we have had no report upon Orford—we have had no report upon Ox= s ford—we have had no report upon Cambridge—we have had no report upon Bedford—we have had no report upon Aldbo: rough—we have had no report upon Ipswich—(Loud cheers) and yet these are the cases which the Noble Lord has se lected. How stands the fact ? Why that we, not having access to the particulars collected by the Commission, the Noble Lord, in order to illustrate his argument, first of all se lects cases in respect of which no documents whatever have been laid upon the table ; and, in the second place, has, as I said before, made the selection in no very fair or impartial manner; because it really would appear, from the Noble Lord's speech, as if one party in the State entertaining a par ticular descriptionof opinions, had been disposed to abuse the power which their corporate privileges vested in them.--( Great cheering.) The Noble Lord sent down an antiquarian on an excursion to the east coast of this country, to examine with particular and special care into Aldborough and Orford. Now I hope that antiquarian will go into the interior ; I hope he will not select the smallest boroughs in which to indulge in his antiquarian researches. I hope he will go to Derby.— (Loud cheers and laughter.) I say I hope he will go to Derby —I hope he will go to Portsmouth.—(Renewed cheering. ) I really wish the Noble Lord bad not taken this course; I wish he had adhered to the rule he laid down, because it would have been infinitely better' o discuss general principles, with out reference to particular cases ; and, above all, if there were to be references to particular Reports, it should have been to Reports to which all sides of the House have had access equally. (Renewed cheering.) Why, see to what an objection the Noble Lord lays himself fairly open. If these Reports be im porlant as illustrations of his arguments, why did the Noble Lord press forward this measure until those Reports were com pleted ?—( Loud cheers.) I seek no delay of this measure ; but I must say, with reference to good government and to the municipal system about to be established, I do hope his Majesty's Government, if they should not find on this side of the House that indisposition which they probably apprehended to discuss this question fairly, without refe rence to its party bearings, but with the single view of' providing a system of good government--I say,' Ido hope his Majesty's Government will feel it to be so important, so much more intimately connected with the peace and hap piness of these towns than even the Reform Bill itself, that they will afford most ample time for the mature deliberation of this Cheers.) I say, therefore, if the Noble Lord deem these Reports, which are not yet laid upon the table, to be important as illustrations of his own arguments, he ought at least to enable us to refer to the whole of those Re ports before we are called upon to decide on the details of the measure. I again repeat, that I wish the Noble Lord had not made a partial speech. I say, that if the Noble Lord looks to the facts of the case, he will find neither in the Corporation of Aldborough nor Orford any particular description of political opinions guiding the whole body. The selection ought to be fairly made. Ido not dispute the conclusion at which you what fortifies th e argument , arrive. lam admitting, perhaps, r t Stnst, LOIstbON, SA'ithIDAY, .1 - el•t 6, 1835. to show that no class of political opinions, whether professedly liberal or conservative, is a guarantee against the patron avail ing himself of his power; but I do protest against an unfair party advantage being taken of a particular class of men. Not to multiply instances, let the Noble Lord look to the corporation of Derby. He will find it was stated that this Corporation, whenever they thought the number of the free men in their interest was "getting low," the Mayor, or some other influential number of the Corporation, applied to the agents of the Cavendish family, and requested a list of the names of persons to be admitted as "honorary freemen." Let us just put the case fairly. The Corporation took this course, because they wished to avail themselves of the interest of the Cavendish family over the freemen so admitted. On the last occasion when honorary freemen were made, almost all of them were tenants of his Grace the Duke of Devonshire. The agent of his Grace paid the fees on the admission of the honorary freemen. Without the creation of such freemen, it was said the Corporation " could not have kept the Tories quiet —(Loud laughter)—they would have been restless." Now we are not so intolerant here, I am sure, as to presume that our own opinions, or our own acts, must be exactly right, and those of every one else wrong ; but if this Corporation Report had stated that a Tory nobleman had nominated all the freemen, and paid for their freedom, and that the excuse was, that without doing so, they could not have kept the Reformers quiet (who were very restless), what a burst of honest indignation would have been raised in this House against such an abuse of corporate privileges.—( Loud cheers and laughter.) I have not the slightest intention of following the Noble Lord's example ; but I certainly wish just to put in a claim, that this question should be considered fairly. I must say for myself and the Corporation with which I am con nected, that they have no reason to shrink from any inquiry, as far as that honourable Corporation is concerned. I will just set one case against the Noble Lord's eight or ten, which bears with singular appropriateness on the question of expend ing Corporation money in public entertainments.—( Hear.) — The other place to which I hope the Noble Lord's antiqua rian will proceed in the course of his excursion into the inte rior, is Portsmouth (Mr. Bonham Carter bowed, which occa sioned much laughter.) "In Portsmouth," say the Commis sioners, " it can hardly be necessary to point out the complete closeness of this system. For a long series of years, it has been exercised with the undisguised purpose of confining the whole municipal and political power to a particular party, and almost to a particular family, and has been found perfectly in efficacious in its operation."—(Cheers.) They add, " That no instances can be traced of municipal corruption, seems attri butable, not to any correcting principle in the system, but merely to the absence of evil intentions in those who have ac cidentally been placed at its head." Now, if I were to choose a Corporation in the neighboarhood of which I, as an indivi dual not interested in the application of Corporate property, and fond of good living, should like to reside, I should cer tainly say that the Corporation of Portsmouth is the one, of all others, which I should select.—(Mr. Bonham Carter expressed his dissent. );The Hon. Gentleman shakes his head—( Laugh ter)—l do not know, lam sure, when the Hon. Gentleman entered the House, but let me beg his attention to the facts stated by the Commissioners, with reference to that Corpora tion. Their revenues are, I think, 600/. or 7001. a-year, of which about 5001. is expended in feasts. Here is the account : " The feasts were rather more expensive this year than in or. dinary 3ears." Now, let me ask the House, in what year they suppose it was that the expense of feasting was particularly heavy ? Why no less than the great era of Reform. "On the occasion of the accession of his present Majesty, 411. 9s. was spent in refreshment for the party attending the Proclamation—( Hear, hear)-1081. 10s. on a dinner given on the election of the Representatives—( Hear, hear)—which was formerly defrayed by the Members themselves.—( Loud laughter.) The annual average expense of feasts from 1824 to 1831 inclusively was 4471. An account was given to us, showing that the average income during that time, accruing from dividends and rents, was 6001."—( Loud cheers.) Now I have proved, I think, beyond a doubt, that in the whole kingdom there is not a more hospitable borough than this— ( Hear, and s laugh)—for out of an income not exceeding. 6001., the annual average expenditure on the rites of hospita lity is no less than 4471.—( Hear.) But mark the attachment of the Members of this Corporation to the great principles upon which the Reform Act were founded. Nothing can more clearly show that attachment than their exceeding in their feasting, and being rather more expensive that year than in ordinary years.—( Hear, hear, and laughter.) And that year, to show their further attachment to Reform, a new item was added to the expenditure of this Corporation which was never heard of before-1081. Bs. was expended upon a dinner given on the election of the Representatives—( Hear, hear) — which was formerly defrayed by the Members themselves. Mr. F. BA RING made a remark, which was inaudible. Sir R. PEEL—Here is the Report in which the whole mat ter is set down. Mr. B. CARTER—It is a very faithful Report. Sir R. PEEL continued-411. 9s. was thought quite suffi cient for a feast on the occasion of his Majesty's accession ; but no less a sum than 108/. was necessary to give a dinner to the Representatives on the occasion of the election. The Hon. Gentleman says that this Report is a faithful Report ; and he, no doubt, has repaid to the Corporation his share of the money. I shall say nothing in regard to the Corporation of Nottingham, or any other Corporation ; nor, indeed, should I have alluded to that of Portsmouth, but for the purpose of showing that neither the Noble Lord, nor any other person, ought to attempt to visit upon any one exclusive party the abuses which have existed in Corporations.—( Hear, hear.) It ought not to be attempted to be shown that the Liberal party was exempt from this more than the Conservative. And I, as one of the Conservative party, strongly advise all mem bers of Corporations readily and willingly to give up all their religious and charitable funds for the purposes contemplated by this Bill, provided that the Noble Lord will, by the provisions of the Bill, guard against the transfer of the syste of abuse from one party to another party—(Cheers)—and that the sincere and real object of all shall be—not to take political in fluence from one party, and give it to another, but to attempt to found a good and sound system of Corporate Reform — (Cheers)—taking security, as far as security upon such a sub ject can be taken, that the really intelligent and respectable portion of the community of the town be called to the ad ministration of the affairs of the Corporation; and guarding against the application of the charitable or religious funds to any other purposes than those for which they were intended. —( Cheers.) I do not say, neither do I think, that the charitable and religious funds have hitherto been so applied— (Loud cheering)—but without saying anything of that kind, it is enough to say, that the power over these funds ought to be relinquished, if the object in view really is that of correct ing the abuses to which they were exposed, and not of trans ferring them to any other party whatever—( Hear, hear) —and if care be taken that the revenues of the different institutions be applied to the purposes for which they were originally esta blished.--( Cheers.) The Right Hon. Baronet went on to say, that he could not help having some doubts as to whether thesetrevenues would be better administered under a popular system of Corporation government, than under the present system—( Hear, hear)—but the consideration of the guards which it would be proper to place upon the administration of those funds, and for the prevention of abuses, did not in the slightest degree interfere with the principle upon which the Noble Lord's Bill was founded. These were matters of de tail, which it was proper should be well considered, and upon which, if he asked some delay, it could not be supposed that he did so for dishonest purposes. It aas easy to give certain powers under a Bill like the present, but it was difficult to recall any powers when once they were given. He hoped, therefore, that there would not be too much haste—the principle being once allowed in going into the details of the measure.—( Hear, hear.) He would upon this occasion touch but lightly upon the details of the measure as explained by the Noble Lord. Each of those details were in itself a matter of importance.—( Hear, hear.) He would give no opinion upon the proposition of the Noble Lord that the suffrage should be given to the rate-payers being householders, and not to the 101. householders. That was a point upon which, as might be supposed, there would be considerable difference of opinion.--( Hear, hear.) The nature of the new Corporate government—how frequent the elections ought to be—what guards should be taken against abuses—what the consequence of having two—or, he might rather say, three constituent bodies in the state, were all important matters of detail upon which he would give no opinion. There would now be three different constituent bodies, namely, that for the election of vestries, select or open, that for the election of the Corporate officers, and that for the election of representatives to serve in Parliament. Here there were three constituencies, each of a different kind from the other. Whether this was wise or not he was not prepared to give an opinion. Indeed, not having known anything of the nature of the proposition until he heard the Noble Lord's speech, he could not be expected all at once to give an opinion regarding it ; but the other details men tioned by the Noble Lord were all matters well-deserving of consideration, and he reserved his opinion upon them. There were three or four subjects which he (Sir Robert Peel) considered of great importance, upon which the Noble Lord had not at all touched. One very important question upon which they had obtained no information was, what were to be the limits of the new Corporations.—( Hear, hear.) At present the limits to which the power of Corp ora ti ons ex t en d e d were, from their great antiquity, in most instances well known ; but there were some cases in which the limits to which the powers of the Corporate body extended differed from the limits of the borough. In many boroughs the limits of the borough were larger than those to which the powers of the corporation ex tended. Nov, it was important to know, when such a discre pancy occurred, by what authority the limits were to be settled. —(Hear, hear.) Another important point upon which the Noble Lord had said nothing was, the presently existing debts and engagements of the Corporation.( Hear, hear.) F or the satisfaction of the creditors there ought to be a distinct en- actment upon that subject, because Corporate bodies had bor. rowed large sums, on the understanding that they had legally the power of doing so; and unless it was distinctly stated that care should be taken, in any changes that might be made, that the existing debts and engagements should first be paid, he had no doubt but the Noble Lord's measure would create a great deal of alarm among those who had lent money on the security of corporate bodies.—( Hear, hear.) The Noble Lord bad said nothing on the subject of the Administration of Church patronage in the power of Corporations. Let it be supposed that a question regarding extensive ecclesiastical pa tronage was to arise in a Corporation, in which the greater number of the Council were Dissenters. It would not be quite consistent with justice that, in such a case, the appoint ment of the clergymen of the Established Church should rest with such a body. He merely mentioned those matters, in order that they might be taken into consideration by the Noble Lord. With regard to the administration of charitable funds, he at once conceded the great importance of their being placed under the control of a body popularly chosen.—( Hear, hear.) He thought that the administration of those funds should be placed in the hands of some persons, who should have no power of exercising their political feelings in the distribution of them. This was in strict conformity with the Reform Bill, for one of the principal arguments in favour of that measure, was the previous perversion of public funds to political pur poses. But this he would at once declare, that he did not be lieve that the administration of a popular party would be purer than any other, if political feelings were allowed to interfere ; for popular bodies were as likely to be corrupt as an oligarchy, when their party feelings were roused.—( Cheers.) He thought, therefore, that the charitable funds ought to be under the admi nistaation of separate trustees, who had no other public duties beyond attending to the charities themselves. There was another case, not alluded to by the Noble Lord, which de served attention. In some instances estates were left for the purposes of charity, which had been disposed of by the Corpo ration, but the Corporation compensated for the deficiency thus created in the funds of the charity out of other funds be longing to the Corporation. Now, it was necessary that the new governing body should be empowered in such cases to apply as much of the revenue of the Corporation as would make up the deficiency in the charitable estate.—(Hear.) Another important point was the qualification, and upon that, as upon other points of detail, he distinctly reserved to himself the right of hereafter stating his opinion. He would give no opinion as to whether the 101. freeholder or the householder who pays rates should be the elector. He would also reserve his opinion as to the frequency of elections : but in con sidering that point, he hoped that the House would not forget the necessity of attending to the harmony of society. —(Hear, hear)—and the propriety of its not being-disturbed by an over-frequency of elections.—(Hear, hear.) On the subject of the checks to be put upon the new governing body, the question of qualification, and the period of holding offices, he reserved to himself the right of forming his opinion, and of delivering that opinion upon some future occasion. He con tented himself with these remarks for the present ; and he would simply repeat, that in his opinion, with regard to Cor porations in general, the time bad arrived when it was ne cessary that some measure should be taken for the pre servation of order within them—( Hear)—by the establish ment, not only of a good system of government, but also of a stipendiary police.---( Hear, hear.) He believed that this could not be effected without a thorough reform ; and he hoped that those who were interested in Corporations would join in en deavouring to establish this most desirable object, without en tertaining any narrow ideas of their own immediate interests. With respect to the administration of justice, he thought that they were imperatively called upon to do something effectual. He was not, however, prepared to say how far the Local Courts, if established, ought to supersede the Borough courts. Upon that point, as upon others, he reserved his judgment. The point upon which he had the greatest doubt of those upon which the Noble Lord had touched, was that of the power to be given to the Council to license public houses.—( Hear.) Upon this point he had serious doubts. With regard to the division of boroughs into wards, he observed, that out of 183 boroughs which had been mentioned by the Noble Lord, only 20 had been reserved which were to be so divided. That was a matter, however, of detail, which might be easily regulated. He would however say, that whatever mode could be adopted by which the Corporations might be most fairly managed, and whatever mode could be devised by which respectable persons would be induced to undertake office in the new governing bodies, was most important not only to the country in general, but, he would say, to the lower classes themselves.--(Loud cheers.) And to the Noble Lord he would say that the more he insured the introduction of those persons into the govern ing body, whose station, property, and intelligence insured impartiality and good conduct, the more reason he would have to calculate on the good result to be expected from his mea sure.—( Loud cheering.) Mr. STRUTT then rose, but amidst the noise and confu sion consequent on Members leaving the House, it was diffi cult to ascertain the purport of his remarks. He was under stood to say that the Corporation of Derby, which he had the honour to represent, having been alluded to, he could, upon the part of the members of that Corporation, state that none would more sincerely coincide with him in thanking the Noble Lord for having introduced this measure than they would. —( Hear, hear, and cheers.) Mr. HUME hoped that all parties would co-operate in mak ing this measure as perfect as possible. He wished to ask the Noble Lord whether his Bill was intended to apply to any other Corporations but the 183 mentioned by him. Lord JOHN RUSSELL, who answered this question, as well as several others put to him, in so low a tone of voice as to be very imperfectly heard, was understood to say that a se parate measure would be introduced in regard to London. With regard to some of the other Corporations mentioned in the Report, they were so small that he had not determined whether they should be included or not. The Noble Lord then made some explanation regarding the boundaries to which the powers of the Corporations were to extend, but in so in distinct a tone, that we were unable to catch his meaning. The Right Hon. Baronet had complained of his having gone into details of the abuses of some particular boroughs, but that was not the case, as he had only stated of whom the Corpora tion consisted in those boroughs. Sir ROBERT PEEL observed that there were some small Corporations which had ceased to return Members to Parliament ; he would, therefore, suggest that if they wished to resign their Corporate privileges they might be at liberty to do so. He thought that there could be no objection to this, provided it was done with the consent of all the parties in terested. Lord JOHN RUSSELL was aware that there were some small Corporations which did not possess sufficient means of paying their expenses : it might, therefore, be desirable to get rid of them. He saw no objection to the suggestion of the Right Hon. Baronet. Mr. BROT HE RTON, as a Member for one of the new Boroughs, rose to express not only the great gratification with which he had heard the Noble Lord bring forward his plan of Corporation Reform, but also the liberal sentiments expressed by the Right Hon. Baronet opposite. The measure now proposed he was sure would give great satisfaction to the country. His chief object, however, in rising, was to state to the House that the plan proposed by the Noble Lord was not without a precedent. In the borough which he had the honour to re present, the principle of the proposed bill had been acted upon for upwards of three years, and it had been found to be most beneficial. Every rate payer had a vote in the choice of the municipal officers who had the management of the funds of the Corporation, and the members of the Council were elected for three years, one-third going out of office an nually. The Borough was divided into two wards, or dis tricts, and there was not the slightest commotion at elections. He mentioned this fact merely to satisfy the timid, who, not having experience, might suppose that the suffrage proposed was too democratic. But he could assure the House that the payment of parochial rates had such an effect in limiting the franchise, especially in large towns, such as Manchester and Salford, th at i t ma d e very little difference as to the number of electors, wh e th er t en p oun d h ouse h o lders only, or every person paying rates, were entitled to vote. He therefore, did not en tirely concur with the Noble Lord on one point ; he did not see the expediency of making the payment of rates for three years a necessary qualification for a vote. This would unne cessarily limit the constituency. He thought highly, however, of the measure, taking it altogether, and he had no doubt that it would give general satisfaction to the country. He felt perfectly satisfied that the property intrusted to the control of the corporate bodies to be appointed under the Bill would be managed faithfully, and to the satisfaction of the public. Mr. EWA RT felt bound to observe that he, as the repre sentative of an old Corporate town, was equally satisfied with the Hon. Member who spoke last with the measure of the Noble Lord. He was convinced that the extent of suffrage limited in the way proposed by the Noble Lord would not greatly reduce the number of voters. It was a curious cir cumstance that one of the first countries that adopted a sound system of municipal government to any extent was strictly monarchical. He alluded to Prussia, where, in 1808, an ex tensive measuse of municipal reform, corresponding in many respects with that of the Noble Lord, was proposed by one of the first Ministers of State that ever lived in that country— he meant Stein. There were some principles connected with that plan which he thought might be taken up with advan tage by the Noble Lord, and adopted in his measure. Among other things, he provided that any householder should enjoy the privilege of voting, and that the Suffrage should be taken by Ballot. Thus this mode of voting had been adopted in Prussia—a strict monarchy, and almost a military Government; and although it had in some respects been in operation for upwards of thirty years, no complaints had been made, and no evil had been found to result from it. Approving as he did of the Bill, still he claimed the right of making any objections that occcurred to him, and above all, urging the adoption of vote by Ballot. There was no doubt that the measure of the Noble Lord would meet with the approval of the majority of the House, even if there were not—which he seriously hoped would be the case—a general feeling in its favour, - and he was equally certain that it would receive the general appro bation of the country. Mr. O'CONNELL was anxious to say one word before the question was put to the vote. He thought that there was an essential defect in the title of the Bill. There was a defi ciency of one word which greatly diminished the value of the measure. It was entitled " A Bill for the Better Regulation of Municipal Corporations in England and Wales." The word he wished to see annexed to it was Ireland.--( Hear, hear.) In other respects he did riot think that it was possible to pro duce a measure which was more entitled than the prese n t t o u niversal approbation. From the omission he had allud e d t o , it might appear that, since the Union, Ireland was o nly t o b e treated by measures of coercion ; and while the House had been extending the franchise to other parts of the empire, it had been cutting Ireland short of her share. Th e y h a d al ready experience d the evils of doing injustice t o I re l an d i n many points. The I E Irish Reform Bill was di s ti ngu i s h e d b y its injustice in , this point, namely doing so mnc h l ess f or Ire land than for England. He hoped that they would remedy the injustice they had done, and that they would give a mea sure equally extensive as the present to Ireland.—( Hear. ) They required no more—they would not he satisfied with less, nor ought they to be satisfied. The Right Hon. Member for Tamworth had thrown out an observation respecting leav ing Livings in the hands of Corporations, the greater portion of the members of which were Dissenters. He belonged to a sect in Ireland which preponderated in some towns, and he should not object to an arrangement which, he believed, would be satisfactory. . At present Roman Catholic laym en , a l t h oug h possessed of Liv in g s, could not institute to them, and this had never been complained of. Now he would suggest, that in case the greater number of the members of the Corporation were Ro man Catholics, that i the right of best ow i ng t h e Ch urch patro nage belonging to t should be given to the Bishop, as the proper guardian of the Church.—( Hear.) On this principle he should not hesitate to recommend this alteration, but he hoped that Irel,aid would have all the other parts of the Bill con ceded to her. H e was sure that thi s measure wou ld g i ve t h e greates t satisfaction to all persons not connected With mune} o lies. The Right Hon. Gentleman had taunted the Noble Lord with selecting the ,Grouglis he had a ll u d e d to on l y f rom one side, but it could n ot be said, with respect to Ireland, that partiality could be resorted to in the selection of b orou ghs, for it so happened that the Corporations in Ireland WON all on one side. It was perfectly clear that Catholics were entitled to admission into the Corporations by birth or servitude, and yet by a by-law they had been constantly excluded. One of the wiseacres now on the Bench, Chief Baron Joy, had en deavoured to confirm this regulation of the Corporation of Dublin. Ireland required Corporation Reform more than England ; and he trusted that the Noble Lord and his col leagues would not give less to his countrymen than they had given to the people of England.—( Hear, hear.) Mr. HA WE S asked a question, but in consequence of the noise of Members leaving the House, it was not heard in the gallery. Lord JOHN RUSSELL said, that under this Bill there would be a power of making new Corporations ; but it was not intended to apply this principle to the new metropolitan boroughs. In answer to a question of Lord SAND ON, Lord JOHN RUSSELL stated, that all persons having the right of voting under the Reform Bill would have a vote in Corporations. In answer to another question, The NOBLE Loan stated, that after the present race, there would be no freemen to vote. Mr. B &INE S was sure that the Dissenters of England and Wales would not wish to interfere with the Church patronage belonging to Corporations, even though they should form a majority of their body. All that they sought for was an equa lity of civil rights, and perfect freedom of religious opinion. He agreed fully with the Right Hon. Baronet, the Member for Tamworth, that it would be as improper to exclude Con servatives from their fair share in the honours and privileges of Corporations, as it was to exclude Liberals, and all that was sought for was an equal participation in those immunities.— (Hear, hear.) He sincerely hoped that in future there would be no exclusion on account of religion or politics on either side. The plan announced by the Noble Lord seemed admi rably calculated to guard against this evil—the source of so many complaints, and the foundation of so much party jealousy and discontent. It was a truly liberal and extensive plan, founded upon the ancient constitutional elective municipal franchise, and it would, in his opinion, give general satisfac tion to the country.—( Loud cheers.) Mr. ROEBUCK remarked, that in many large towns there were great numbers of persons who had holdings under ten pounds, and were not rated, consequently they would not be entitled to vote in corporations. Lord JOHN RUSSELL replied, that rating, usually depended on an arrangement between the landlord and te nant. A person could generally be rated on an application on his own part. Mr. FINN was most anxious that a measure of equal ex tent with the present should be granted to Ireland. In that country the corporations were infinitely worse, and squandered the money of the people away in a manner which the people of England conld form no conception of. He wished that the Government had some measure ready for Ireland. The CHANCELLOR ofthe EXCHEQUER assured the Hon. Gentleman that it was the intention of his Majesty's Go vernment to bring forward a measure of Corporation Reform for Ireland as extensive in its provisions as that introduced by his Noble Friend.—(Hear, hear.) He could speak of the necessity of reforming the Corporations in Ireland ; he had had experience of the conduct of one of those bodies, and he knew that the conduct pursued by that was not singular to it. There was a circumstance which prevented the present Bill being ap plied to Ireland, namely, the principle of giving votes to rate , payers. Every one connected with that country must be aware the principle could not be applied. He was sure when the measure for Ireland was laid before the House, the Hon. and Learned Gentleman as - well as the Hon. Member who spoke last would do justice to the wishes of the Government. In the course of a few days the Report on Irish Corporations would be laid on the table, a measure founded on it would be shortly afterwards produced, and he trusted that it would give as much satisfaction as the Bill now proposed to be introduced. The ATTORNEY-GENERAL wished to remind Hon. Members that England was not the first country that had had a measure of Corporate Reform conceded to her by the present Government. They had conceded such a measure to Scotland three years ago, and it had been found to operate most benefi cially. The people of England had waited patiently until the inquiry of the Commissioners had been completed, and a mea sure was now produced which appeared to give general satis faction ; and he trusted that in the course of a few days a Bill for Ireland would be introduced, and would meet with a similar reception. He could not sit down without referring to an ob servation—which appeared something like a slight slur—which had fallen from the Right Hon. Baronet. He was sure that when the Right Hon. Baronet had read the whole of the Re port, he would feel that they had acted with the greatest im partiality. Indeed, the case of Derby, referred to by the Right Hon. Baronet, was a proof of this. The motion was then put and agreed to.—(Loud cheers.) Shortly afterwards Lord JonN RussELL appeared at the bar, holding in his hand the Municipal Corporation Reform Bill, and was loudly cheered. The Bill was brought up, read a first time, ordered to be printed, and to be read a second time on Monday se'nnight. OFFENCES AGAINST THE PERSON BILL. Mr. J. JERVIS obtained leave to bring in a Bill to amend the law relating to offences against the person. The Bill was subsequently brought in and read a first t►me. GRAND JURY BILL. Sir RICHARD MUSGRAVE said he rose for the pur pose of asking leave to bring in a Bill, the principal object of which was to consolidate the laws relating to the civil functions of Grand Juries in Ireland, and to promote the extension of Public Works. It was unnecessary for him to say much on the importance of public works. The principal design in in troducing the Bill was to afford employment to the able bodied labourer. He had already brought forward a Bill for the relief of the helpless poor. If, in addition to these measures, a certain control over the et penditure of counties were given to the Board of Public Works in Ireland, a com plete system of employment and relief would be established., The laws relating to the civil duties of Grand Juries were 100 in number. They were so numerous and their provisions so complicated, that even the Judges and Counsel on circuit hardly professed to understand them. By the proposed Bill all these laws would be consolidated, and this, he conceived, would confer a great public benefit. To consolidate these laws, and to frame the other important provisions now pro posed, was a work of great difficulty and of very great labour. It had been undertaken by Mr. Harrison of Lincoln's Inn, and by a relative of his ( Sir Richard's) who had devoted much attention to the state of Ireland. Hon. Members, on reading the Bill, would find that the task had been accom plished with ability. In the present state of the House, he would not detain Hon. Members longer. He therefore moved for leave to bring in a Bill for the administration of certain civil affairs of a local nature in Ireland.---Leave given. IMPRISONMENT FOR DEBT BILL. _ _ Sir J. CAM PBE LL said he had to lay upon the table of the House the Report of the Committee to whom were re ferred for a second time the Bill for the Abolition of Impri sonment for Debt. He trusted that all the difficulties in the way of that measure being passed, would now be removed. One of the amendments agreed to in the Committee was, that book debts were to stand on the same footing as bills of ex change and bonds. After a great deal of deliberation, two clauses were introduced in conformity with the opinion of a large majority of the Committee, the operation of which would be to enable the assets of insolvent persons to be administered by trustees without taking out a fiat of bankruptcy. 1! credi tors choose, they would have the opportunity of winding uP the estates, the intervention of a lawyer ndt• being necessary. It was proposed, that if seven-eighths of the creditors concur red in this arrangement, the one-eighth were to be over-ruled ; and would not possess the power of fraudulently resisting the arrangement. He should move that the Bill, as now amended, should be re-printed, and that the Report should be taken into further consideration on Wednesday se'nnight. Mr. HUME expressed his gratitude to the Honourable and Learned Gentleman for the measure, which would be highly be neficial to both debtors and creditors. Mr. PE/in and Mr. RICIIA RDS said a few words which were inaudible. Mr. WILK S gave notice that on Wednesday he should move for a Select Committee. to inquire into and report on the progress which had been made in the investigation respecting Charities. _ _ _ POST OFFICE. Mr. LABOUCHERE rose to move that the House resolve itself into a Committee, that he might propose certain resolu tions upon which he intended to found a Bill for the extension of the accommodation by the posts to and from foreign parts. The object of the measure was to facilitate the transmission of letters and newspapers between this kingdom and foreign coun tries; and he expressed a sanguine hope that if it were passed it would be impossible to meet the wishes of the French Go vernment upon the subject of that more extended intercourse which was so desirable between this country and France. He added that the Bill was not for the imposition of any ad ditional postage ; on the contrary, it was entirely for the re duction of postage, The House then went into Committee, and the first resolu tion was proposed to the effect that it was expedient to regu late or reduce certain rates of postage. In answer to an observation from Mr. HUME, Mr. LABOUCHERE said that he wished the Bill itself to be in the hands of Members, and that he should then be happy to receive any suggestions from the Hon. Member. Mr. M. PHILIPS called attention to the circumstance of newspapers in which particular paragraphs were scored, being subject to postage. Mr. AGL lONB Y wished it to be understood that such news papers, addressed to Members of Parliament, ought not to be subject to any charge. Mr. LABOUCHERE said, that the subject was entirely new to him. He should take the opportunity of communicat ing with the Post-office upon it. He himself had never paid any charge for newspapers addressed to him in which para graphs were scored, and he did not think that any charge ought to,be made : at the same time he could conceive a sys tem of ingenious scoring which might be used to a very unfair extent. The Resolution was then agreed to, as were also several others in succession relating to the details of the proposed measure. Sir G. GREY obtained leave to bring in a Bill to continue till the 31st of December, 1836, the Act 10th of George IV., ch. 22, for the Government of his Majesty's settlement of Western Australia. The Bill was subsequently brought in and read a first time. THE SPEAKER'S LEVEES. Mr. HUME said, as the House is now about to adjourn, I rise to call its attention to a subject, which, though it relates to a matter of etiquette, is nevertheless of no slight import ance. There is no privilege with which the Members of this House are invested which we sl,oulfl be enabled tc> exercise with less restraint than that which enables us to pay our respects to you, Mr. Speaker, in the usual form.—( Hear, hear.) I can say, of my own knowledge, that many individuals, during the time I have been a Member of Parliament have been pre vented from paying their respects to you, Sir, at the linen which take place about this period of the year, in consequence of its being obligatory upon them to attend in the Court cos tume of bag-wig and sword. _(Laughter, and hear.) Very few, comparatively, have attended these levees of the Speaker in consequence of being prevented by the continuance of an old, and, as I think, unnecessary custom of Members of this House appearing in any but the costume I have mentioned. Now, as I consider that the Members of this House ought to be allowed full opportunity of paying the usual visits of at tention and respect to the Speaker, I am anxious that the House should declare that these visits may be paid in the or- • dinary evening dress, instead of being compelled to appear in court dress, a dress which many Hon. Members have not al ways at hand, and it may be a matter of inconvenience On the part of some, and disinclination on the part of others, to wear.—(Laughter.) I hope it will not, for a moment, be supposed that I intend the slightest disrespect to the Speaker by the proposal which I have made to the House ; on the con trary, it is because I entertain a confident hope that his levees will be more fully attended than any that have taken place for a considerable time that I have suggested the means of accomplishing what I consider an object of very great impor tance.—( Hear, hear.) The SPEAKER rose and said, with reference to the subject which the Hon. Member has brought under the con sideration of the House, I can only say that I shall always cheerfully follow the example of my predecessors in consulting the convenience of the House as to the mode of conducting the customary levees. With respect to the change in dress pro posed by the Hon. Member, I do not feel myself justified in proposing any alteration in it to the House, as I have a pre scribed duty to perform with reference to it—namely to follow the course adopted by may predecessors.—( Hear, hear.) However, if the House should, in a matter which exclusively concerns their own feelings and sense of pre: priety, express any decided opinion on the subject, it will al', ford me the highest gratification to conform to the wishes 0' the House.—( Hear, hear.) Mr. WARBURTON approved of the proposal which bed been made by the Hon. Member for Middlesex. It was not, however, because he had no court dress—(A laugh)—that be was desirous to see the intended change effected, but because he was satisfied that many Hon. Members were restrained from attending on these occasions by being compelled to make Merry Andrews of themselves in court dresses. It appea red to him that it would be much more decorous to appear in the ordinary evening dress, such as that in which the Members of that House would appear in the houses of the first noblemen . From what had fallen from the Speaker, be inferred that be was inclined to approve of the proposed alteration in dress. The SPE AKER—I have expressed no opinion upon the subject. It is a matter in which I feel that I ought not to interfere.—( Hear, hear.) Mr. F. BA RING—I am sure, Sir, that you will be happY to receive the ordinary attentions in any manner which the House may determine ; but, looking to the empty benches of the House, Ido not think this to be proper time for taking s decision upon such a question.—( Hear, hear.) Lord SAND ON thought that an unfavourable time for making any alteration in the mode of paying the customary respects to their Speaker, whose levees he, for one, should be most happy to attend, as a proof of his approval of the manner in which he had performed the duties imposed on him. The House then adjourned at a quarter-past. nine o'clock. CORK ELECTION COMMITTEE. When Mr. Serjeant MEREW;THER concluded his reply, and having declined to produce any witnesses, the Committe e ' room was cleared, and after about an hours' deliberatio n, the Chairman declared it to be the resolution of the Com mittee, that Feargus O'Connor was not duly elected, an d ought not to have been returned as a Knight of the shire tf serve in the present Parliament. That Richard Longfiel,n' Esq. was duly elected, and ought to have been returnen.; and that the petition and opposition thereto were neither fri volous nor vexatious. BIRMINGHAM POLITICAL COUNCIL. On Wednesday evening last, the adjourned meeting of the Council was held at the Public-office. GEORGE EDMONDS having been called to the chair, said that he did not think they could well proceed with any busi ness that evening, as they had not yet received any commu nication from Mr. Attwood. Mr. Muntz had been obliged t e leave Birmingham for London the evening before, and he b e ' lieved his sole business was to consult with Mr. Attwood on the propriety of re-establishing the Union.—( Cheers.) In cone sequnce of the mis-statements which had appeared in soni of the papers, respecting their late meeting, he hoped the gentlemen of the press then present would announce that the meeting of the Wednesday before was intended to be co nfined to the members of the Council. The public had been givers to understand that nobody had felt any intesest in the Union being revived ; such, however, was not the fact.—(Cheer s .) He could assert, after having made extensive inquiries among the people, that there was a strong anxiety to re- organisAtt e the woo Union.—( Cheers.) If it was the opinion of Mr , be, and and others that it ought to be set in motion, it would , then the gentlemen who had misrepresented their prb .eee „ d ings would have to give a very different description.-- - ( 1 ' 13- cheers. ) The situation of the country was now different fron3 what it formerly was. There were neither Tories nor Whigs in power, but an intermediate class. But he was quite sure that, if the Tories were again to take office, the people would put them out. The cause which the Union had ever advo cated was the cause of truth, and he was quite certain that, if it was re-organised, it would again command the respect and attention of the nation.—( Cheers.) He felt confident it would be revived in some shape or other. There were many ways in which it could be done, but, as yet, he did not wish to say what were the opinions of the Council, or say what course they would pursue. They would, no doubt, profit by the example of the Tories, whose industry was only to be equalled by a certain gentleman, of whom it was said that he went con stantly about, like a roaring lion, seeking whom he might devour.—( Laughter and cheers.) Now, if the Reformers again started, they would have all the advantages arising from their industry without any of the sting of the gentleman wh° set them in motion. He thought it better to adjourn the meet ing until they heard from Mr. Muntz or Mr. Attwood. Mr. BLAXLAND concurred with Mr. Edmonds. One of the deputies from the sectional rooms here stated, that they had come prepared to lay before the council the lists of the names of those who were willing and determined to or port the Union, but he did not wish to state publicly what or had to say. He was not like the Tories, either ashame d O afraid to make known his proceedings, but when they read to scandalous and lying reports which had been given of thelt former proceedings, by some papers, he thought it better ) to afford the means of again misrepresenting them.—(Ch e ff s i o The deputation, the Chairman, and others, then retir ed a private room, and during , their absence, Mr. SHARMAN addressed . the meeting. He thought it attaching too much importance to the lies of their enernies retire on their account. He would not hold any meeting 1.. private, because, as the deputy had said, they had nothing their proceedings but what they wished to make public. id fact, he rejoiced at the lies of their opponents ; they b,% done good, for they, could not fail to disgust the people Orr the system, which stood in need of such base means to supP° t it.--( Cheers.) Besides, it would work its own cure. them look at that leading renegade, the Times newspPe'i }Vbat was its fate? By its lies and infamy it had sacrifice i tsei 'f, and would go down to posterity as a disgrace to liters; ture.' i such was the fate of the leader, what must be the of all the rtilal l fr y ? In the course of a few minutes Mr. EDMONDS returned, ad . announced that he 1 ad received from the deputation a requ is !: 1: tion signed by 2,000 who had pledged themselves e; support the Council. They were members of thirty section:: rooms, and had for weeks past ;laid up their subscriptions r gularly.—( Cheers.) He was also r.. f o re that if the Councl; would take the lead, there would be a . , that day week.—( Cheers, and cries of D,;:ible that number. / 000 subscribers ben.,, Under these circumstances, he thought the C. 2 until ought to take some speedy and effectual steps to exhibit . i tse lf befq e the Union, and to show to the revilers of the people w here its strength lay. A resolution was then proposed and carried, that the meetin g should adjourn until called together by the Secretary; 41. after an answer had been received from Mr. Attwood. Mr. T. C. SALT next addressed the meeting, and was re ceived with great cheering. It was gratifying to him to gee_ the people of Birmingham again aroused to a sense of the!' condition. No doubt they would be, as before, misreprese nted, and calumnies the most unfounded would be heaped on there' The people, however, should recollect that when the Voice was in power, they were subject to the same lies and ab use d although in the midst of it all the body rose in power a n g strength, and commanded the voice of the nation.—(Gr e „ a t cheering.) Before the Council again came out, they must PIA forth a declaration, to let all know what were the objects, 3 7, the course which they intended to pursue. By so doing, th e Ja would at once see where the strength of the country lay, I'l,l - would also prove to the timid, that there were men at tae head of the Union, who, although determined to obtain just i f for their fellow-men, yet would be alive to the interests of a"' and maintain undisturbed the peace of the country.—( Chee rs for some time.) The Times paper had already got u p an al' tide upon the Union, and bad declared it could not be revii e N The writer only wished it might not, in fact he feared it w ow "' for no man could read that miserable article, and the report t ° , which it referred, without seeing that the Tories and t heir agents were in fear and trembling at its re-organization. -- " ( Cheers.) The proceedings, however, of that night proved t ° him (Mr. Salt) clearly, that the Union must be revived, and ii es now said it would be revived.—( Loud cheering.) Mr. BOULTREE was of opinion that, if ever there was a tine e when the people ought to unite, it was the present. The 1.0,i ries were strong in union and money, the great influence, they used it for their bad purposes, regardless of all cons e ," i quences. Nothing but union, on the part of the people, co ol prevent them from falling under the Tories. Mr. BIDDLE said, if the bodies of men, who had that nigh t returned themselves as supporters of the Council, would ha ve confidence, and rely upon the Council, the calamity alluded to by Mr. Boultbee never could befall them.—( Cheers.) IA Mr. Titow had no doubt that the working classes won come forward. They were aware that the other classes ba d not now the same inducement to action which they formerly had. They had got the franchise, still he did not think they would prove ungrateful, and not assist the non-electors in their struggle to obtain it. t he Mr. HARLOW said a grea t d ea l h a d b een sa id about debts of the Uni o n, an d f rom t h e m i s - statement s which bed, _rot aln it •i"; f'.1,1 Union. (tonser,t,enc,o them, could n ot b e t ev i vc d . N ow lo: asserted, most pOsitivel lea that there wa s no t 1001. d ue b y t h e U n i on --(Cheers) that sum wa s no t t o t h e peop l e one f art hi n g. A gentleman in the meeting here said that, amongst other lies which had been published, respecting their former pr" 4 EINE who have t a Ten Pound ° t---- ---l a - 1 - 1 2_ 4" • EINE t t l . of the Eigh bit Publicatim - _ ._ -1 2 : a \ , , . . . s . s _ _ .- SATUF e all-im e tilted King( w "11rnons by Zlee to say, be entertai tt g e l aws of ti t : t bled w itl a PPOinte( n night. i il ,As we h a to l in anot enter int , e measure qered—to 1 4ti o , nd 140 fessed ob