The Sun. — London, England, 1849-03-31 00:00:00

MARKET INTELLIGENCE. (From the London New Price Current, March 30.) Stroaia-To-day the market was more freely supplied with Colonial Sugar, still home buyers came forward with' greater freedom, and all sorts realised enhanced rates. West India was in fair request for both the pan and scale; the purchases reached 250 hhds, and at prices 6d par cwt above Friday last. The sales for the week are 1,010 hhds, and the market closes with much firmness. A public sale of 20 tierces crystalized Ber bice went at 42s to 45s 6d per cwt. REFINED.-To-day Refined Sugar sold readily for home trade purposes; brown Lumps at 50s to 50s 6d, and Standard Lumps 51s to 51s-6d. Bonded Crushed Sugar is still dull of sale at 29s to 30s per cwt. MAIIRITIIIS.-This afternoon Mauritius Sugar was dealt in with greater freedom, and 4,428 bags at auction were all sold at firm rates; fine yellow went at 41s, mid dling and good 38s to 39s 6d, low 37s to 37s 6d, ordinary to fine grey 37s to 393 6d, washed and syrupy 35s to 388 6d per cwt. EAST INDIA.-This afternoon the market was better supplied with Bengal Sugar: six parcels were offered at public sale, amounting to 8,672 bags, and sold at firm rates; strong white went at 463 6d to 48s 6d, middling and fine yellow ditto 39s to 44 . 3, low 378 to 38s 6cl, Mau ritius sort, low to fine yellow 38s to 43e, ordinary and middling white Benares 40s 6d to 41s 63, good to fine 42s to 445, and damp 403 to 42s 6d. Madras-97 bags at auction sold at 31s to 32s 6d for brown. FonExosa-To-day Foreign Sugar met with little de mand, and there was no public sale. The private pur chases for the week are 8,000 bags Manilla, of good quality, at 21s t o 21s 6cl, and 1,000 chests ordinary and line yellow Havannah at 22s to 26s per cwt. COFPEE.-This afternoon coffee *as dealt in with more readiness for home trade purposg t, at public sale 647 bags Plantation Ceylon sold at full:fates; fine fine ordi nary bold fetched 45s 6d to 46s 6d;low middling 47s to 48s, good middling 565, and damaged 35s to 435. Sales to a fair extent have been made privately in Native at 333 6d to 34s 6d for good and real good ordinary. MOLASSES.-There has been little passing in West India, still lower rates are not accepted. Deliveries con tinue to extend, and the stock fs small; prices rule at 16s to 19s, and at 19s 6d to 20s for fine. East India Treacle, at auction, 120 pkgs were taken in at 16s per cwt for good quality. 13 ,Cocoa.-Prices are supported for West India; the demand, however, has been less active, and the market will be better supplitd shortly; prices rule from 40s to 445, and at 45s to 475 for fine red. Foreign is, however, wanted at 27s to 28s 6d, and at which there are free sellers. None has again been offered at public sale. TEA.-Black is not to be obtained upon lower terms ; there has been no improvement in the demand this week, and only a limited business has been concluded. With Green the market is plentifully supplied; the sales made have been of little moment, and there are sellers rather under former rates. Pekoe and scented Tea met with little attention, and can be obtained at a slight reduction. The public sales have proceeded with much dulness, and of 14,000 pkgs pressed, the small proportion of only 3,000 actually found buyers. Deliveries for home trade purposes are still satisfactory, notwithstanding the dull state of the market. A public sale of Assam is declared for next week. RICE.-To-day there was not so much demand for East India Rice by private treaty, and 875 bags Bengal at auction sold at barely former rates; good mid white rather broken went at 9s 6d to lOs per cwt. SAGO.-There has been little disposition to make pur chases this week. The value is from 17s to 24s per cwt. Sago Flour met with a brisker sale, and stiffer rates are obtained. At auction 420 bags went 16s 6d to 17s 6d per cwt. Tapioca 3d to 6d per lb is the value. For Arrow root the market is quiet. At public sale 10 barrels Ja maica sold at 54al to 61d per lb. FRUIT.-Really fine Patras Currants continue firm at 39s to 40s, but there is very little briskness in the market. In Valentia, Raisins there is nothing cffering under 40. Denia Raisins for exportation at 295, but for small parcels for home consumption the only price is 30s. Prunes are in better demand, but at prices is per cwt lower than last week. SPICES.-The market for black Pepper is firm, and none has been offered at auction this week. Privately opera tions are upon an enlarged scale; Malabar at 2:13 to 213, superior 3d to 34d, and Sumatra 3/4 to 3/d per lb. White from 4d to Bd,for ord to fine. Pimento at 34d to 33a1. The market Tor Nutmegs is quiet, and prices are on the decline; good and fine brown can be obtained at 2s 103 t) 3s 3d, inferior 2s 9d, and low to fine limed 2s to 25 Bd. Ginger has been dealt in with greater rea diness, and prices are on the decline. Jamaica of fine quality is worth 71 to 11/, inferior 3/ to 6/ 10s; African and Barbadoes 39. s to 425, East India shipping sort 223 to 255, and home trade kinds 35s to 1003 per cwt. Cloves -Bencoolen at is 3d to 15.93, Bourbon and Zanzibar 7d to 71al. Cassia Lignea is still scarce, and high rates aro asked. For Cinnamon lower rates are not accepted. Mace 2s to 2S 9d far ord to fine quality. COCHINEAL.-To-day the public sales of 188 bags of Cochin( al went off at full rates, and the most part sold; Honduras silvers, ord to fine went at 3s 93 to 4s 6i, mid and good black, 4s 10d to 5s 23; Mexican blacks, 3s 10d to 4s 21; and Teneriffe, 3s 8 1 10 4s 63 per lb. SPIRITS.-There has been much activity in the market for East In lia, and higher rates are obtained. Several parcels have been disposed of at is 34d to is 43 proof, and at which holders aro firm. Leeward Island has beeen in excellent request, and prices have advanced to is. 4d to Is si•l proof. Jamaica realised fully former rates, and met with a larger share of attention, both for home use or exportation. Demerara has been in good demand, and stiffer rates are paid; the value of 28 to 33 per cent over proof is 2s to 2s 3d, and of stronger sorts 2s 4d to 2s 61 per gal. Former advanced rates are well kept up for Brandy, and the demand is still active for all purposes. Geneva is not much wanted, and ord export sort is offered at Is 93 to is 103, fine for duty 23 6d to 3s 6d. The prices of British made Spirit is the same as on this day week. INDIGO.-A good demand has been experienced for Spanish this week. At auction 89 serons Guatemala were sold at 2s 103 to 3s 11d. For East India there are not sellers under the rates of the quarterly sale. Deli veries still exceed those of last year. Imports are also less. The market is not expected to remain long in its present quiet state. SALTPETRE.-To-day Rough met with more atten tion; and the public sale of 450 bags went at stiff rates -good grey 6i per cent refraction realised 28s 6d to 295, and damaged 27s 63 to 28s; but 604 barrels 280 bags from Mariedles were nearly all taken in at 27s 6d for low soft, 74 to 71 per cent retraction. Oiesa-To-day the public sale of 100 tuns of Sperm Oil went flatly at 801 to 801 ss; and Headmatter at 82/ los to 821155. Taaaow.-To-day there was little desire evinced to do business in Tallow, and prices were further depressed. At auction 320 cks New South Wales went at 34s 6d to 394 3d for low to fine ; 600 pkgs South American 34s to 385 63. FROM THE LONDON GAZETTE OF FRIDAY. FOREIGN-OFFICE, Marton 29, 1849. The Queen has been pleased to approve of Mr. Christian Bruce Reid, as Consul at Newcastle, and of F. M. Faulkner, as Vice-Consul at Folkestone, for his Majesty the King of the Belgians. WHITEHALL, MARCEf 28. The Queen has been pleased to present the Reverend Archibald Stewart to the church and parish of Glasser ton, in the presbytery and county of Wigtown, the same being vacant by the death of Mr. Samuel Clanahan, late minister thereof. WAR-OFFICE, MARCH 30. sth Dragoon Guard—Cornet Charles Wilton Goad to be Lieutenant, by purchase, vice Sandford, who retires; Charles Augustus Drake Hslford, Gent., to be Cornet, by purchase, vice Goad, March 30. 7th Dragoon Guards—Cornet Nugent Chichester to be Lieutenant, by purchase, vice Cramer, who retires; William Wentworth Lamb, Gent. to be Cornet, by pur chase, vice Chichester, March 30. sth Regiment of Foot—Assistant-Surgeon Edward John' Burton, M.D., from the 25th Foot, to be Surgeon, vic3 Sall, appointed to the 93d Foot, March 30. 6th Foot—Lieut.-General Sir John Gardiner, K.C.8., from. the 50th FoDt, to be Colonel, vice Field-Marshal Sir George Nugent, Bart., G.G.8., deceased, March 28 ; Lieutenant William Albert Stratton to be Captain, by purchase, vice Otway, who retires ; Ensign John Henry F or d Elki ngton to b e L i eutenant by purchase, vice Stratton ; C romwel l Ward Price, Gent. ; to Ensign, by purchase, vice Elkington. March 30. 12:h Foot—Major William B e ll to be Lieutenant- Colonel, by purchase, vice Glover, who retires; Brevet- Major Arthur Horne to be Major, by p urc h ase, v i ce B 41; Lieutenant Richard Atkinson to be Captain, by purcha e, vie Horne; Ensign Henry Albert Norris to , be Lieutenant, by purchase, vice Atkinson; Thomas Edmund Miller, Gent., to be Ensign, by purchase, vice Norris, March 30. 25th Foot—Assistant-Surgeon Frederick Clarke, from the 26th Foot, to b' Assistant Surgeon, vice Burton, promoted in thP sth Foot, March 30. 2611 Foot—Frederick Dougfail, M.D., to be Assistant Surgeon, vice Clarke, appointed to the 25th Foot, March 30. 28th Foot—Ensign William Gordon Shute to be Lieu tenant, by purchase, vice Loinswortb, who retires ; James Graham Turner, Gent., to be Ensign, by pur• chase, vice Shute, March 30. 29th Foot—Ensign William Lancey Davies Smith to be Lieutenant, without purchase, vice Metge, died of his wounds, Jan. 19; William Congreve, Gent., to be En sign, vice Smith, March 30. 48th Foot—Frederick John Castle, Gent., to be En sign, without purchase, vice Tulke, deceased, March 30. 50th Foot—Major-General Sir Dudley St. Leger Hill, K.O 8., to be Colonel, vice Lieutenant-General Sir John Gardiner, K.C.3., appointed to the 6th F oo t, M arc h 28. 51st Foot--Ensign Stewart Alexander Cleeve to be Adjutant, vice Bentley, promoted, March 30. 62d Foot—rgeon William Leslie Langley, M. D, from the 87th Foot, to be Surgeon, vice Wood, who ex changes, it urch 30. 66 th Foot—Li eutenant Tom Benson to be Captain, by purchase, vice Trench, who retires; Ensign Archi bald Hamilton Dunbar to be Lieutenat, by purchase, vice Benson; Milo Valentine Maher, Gent., to be Ensign, by purchase, vies Dunbar, March 30. 72d Foot—Lieutenant Alexander Smith, from the 58th Foot, to be Paymasier, rice Graham, deceased, March 30. 75th Foot—Staff Surgeo n of the Second Class George Willi a mson, M.D., to be Surge on , vice Gray, who ex. changes, March 30. 5700 a, from th e 62 d Foot 87 th Foot—Surgeon R obert who exchanges March 30. , from the sth to be Surgeon, vice La n g le y , 93L1 Foot—Surgeon William Sa l l , M.D. Foot, to be Surgeon, vice John Campbell, M.D.P Who re tires upon half-pay, March 30. Rifle Brigade—Second Lieutenant Herbert Somerset Hamilton Cornewall to be First Lieutenant, by pur chase, vice Pennington, who retires ; Daniel Sidney fiancliortl, Gent., to be Second Lieutenant, by purchase, rice Cornewall, March 80 ; Henry Trafford Trafford, Gent., to be Second Lieutenant, without purchase, 'doe Bolt, deceased, march Lit West India Regiment—Ensign William John Coen, from the Royal Newfoundland Companies to be Lieutenant, without purchase, vice Miller, appointed to the 80th Foot, March 33. _ _ Royal Newfoundland Companies—Lieutenant Wil liam John Coen, from the Ist West India Regiment, to be Lieutenant, vice Menzies, promoted, March 31; George Priestley, Gent., to be Ensign, without purchase, vice Coen, promoted in the Ist West India Regiment, March 30. UNATTACHED.—Lieutenant Theodore M. Haultain, from the 39th Foot, to be Captain, without purchate, March 30. HOSPITAL STAFF.—Surgeon Edward William Gray, M.D., from the 75th Foot, to be Staff Surgeon of the Second Class, vice Williamson, who exchanges, March 30. WAR-OFFICE, MARCH 30. _ . List of non-commissioned Officers and Privates killed in the actions before Moultan, between the 27th Decem ber, 1848, and the 27th January, 1849, pr who sub sequently died of wounds received in those actious. 10th Foot. Killed—Privates Thomas Alle'n, Ebenezer M'Lean, Cornelius Moriarty, Richard Prendiville. Died of Wounds—Private John Horan. 32d Foot. Killed—Sergeant William Forsyth, Corporal Henry Grainger, Privates George Pearson, Thomas Pottinger, Connor Phelan. Died of Wounds—Sergeant William Hatt, Private Francis WNabourg, Drummer George H. Gresham. Ist Battalion 60th Foot. Killed—Sergeant Charles Theobald ; Privates Henry Aylesbury, George Carter, George Clarke, 2d, Martin Delahanty, Peter Gulliver, George Porter, John Smith, 3d, Bartholomew Sullivan, Thomas Watt. A List of Non-commissioned Officers and Privates killed in action at Chilianwalla, on 13th January, 1849, or who subsequently died of their wounds; also a List of those missing. 3d Light Dragoons. Killed—Sergeant Daniel Thompson; Privates Henry Barry, Nathan Brett, James Collins, James Coomber, West D. Digges, Robert Griffiths, John Hart, John S. Hamilton, Henry Hale, James Hunt, Emanuel John son, William Langston, John Markey, Edward Mar shall, Richard M'Enermy, George Milligan, Edward Norton, William Pilbeam, Richard Reed, Owen Regan, James Slade, William Swan, James Thyer. 9th Lancers. Killed—Lance Sergeant Richard Calcutt; Privates Robert Dalton, John Cunniam, Abraham Mathews. 14th Light Dragoons. Killed—Privates George Atkins, David Evans, George Tookey. 24th Foot. gilled—Sergeant-Major John Coffee; Colour-Ser geant William Davies ; Sergeants, Thomas Lear, John Webster ; Corporals, George Eames, James Sherriff; Privates William Allswortb, John Amos, James Bow man, John Burgess, James Butcher, Thomas Byrne, Thomas Carpenter, Samuel Carter, William Cuthbert, Geo. Dean, Philip Fowlk, G9O. George, Geo. Hardman, John Henshaw, John Horsfall, Thomas Hughes, John Intin, Thomas Joblin, William Lakin, Charles Lander, Peter M'Coley, John M‘Reary, Thomas Merchant„ Thomas Pocock, Robert Porter, William Selby, Joseph Sharp, Peter Westneat, Daniel Wheeler, William Willis, Ist, Stephen Andrews, John Bailey, George Bird, Joseph Byers, Robert Campbell, Daniel Clifford Richard John Coates, Robert Ccckerton, Win. Coult Tim. John O'Donoghue, Garrott Egan, John Fergusson, William Fletcher, George Harrison, William Hobson, Daniel Houlston, Edward Indle, Thomas Mackay, Ben jamin Magill, Charles Mayo, Charles Mitchell, James O'Connor, Nathaniel Fulling, Thomas Regan, Christo pher Rochford, William Ryder, George Saunders, John Wakefield, James Warren, 2d, William Welton, James Williams, Richard Windle, Joseph Arniett, Wil liam Henry Bailey, William Barnett, . Edward Barr, Charles Barnes, Richard Burchett, Wil liam Bone, James Brewer, Henry Cork, Edward Everest, Michael Green, James Hanlon, James Haston, Samuel Smith, William Sladen, John Tebble, James Slattery, William Walsh, Henry Wrightman ; Corpo rals William Pattenden, William Runchey ; Privates Patrick Daley, James Deltnage, Thomas Ellice, Wil liam Giles, James Goodchild, Thomas Grandy, Richard Harding, William Hopkins, James Kelly, Joseph McMullin, John Mohan, Michael Moore, Thomas Morrish, Joseph Newman, William Oakley, Thomas Osborne, Thomas Parker, Patrick Quirk, Joseph Roxberry, James Saunders, Walter Seirs, John Somersgill, James Townend, Charles Whitehead, Thomas Biddle, Samuel Bingham, James Connelly, James Dudley, John Kenning, Oliver Lloyd, Thomas List, Joseph Walker, Francis Batlestone, Joseph Egin ton, James Elliott, Samuel English, Henry Earner, Charles Green, William Gardner, Thomas Ilanscombe, Charles Lawrence, William Pearson, Thomas Priest, Wm. Rampling, Thos. Robinson, Thos. Savage, Joseph Morton, John Lake, Thomas Roster, Edmund Shea, George Smith, John Tyers; Corporal John Wilkes; Drummer Edward Doughty; Privates Thomas Atkinson, James Burton, John McCulloch, Henry Needs, John Pratt, John Terry, James Talley ; Corporal Henry Webb ; Privates William Saunders Diain, James Edwards, William Francis, George Harris, James Hicks, William Jervis, Edward Johnson, Thomas Kelson, Jame s Ki ng , James Pittman, Daniel Shea, Charles Simson, Joshua Twigg, William Smith, John Welch, Ambrose Whit tell, William Tobyn ; Corporal Francis Howell ; Pri vates Robert Edmonds, William Eheniely, John En right, James Flinn, Patrick Flinn, George Gibson, John Hill, Thomas Smith Hall, William Ilucker, Benjamin Johnson, John Lamb, John Murphy, John Overton, James Patience, Robert Pratt, James Riddle, James Shaw, William Grover Simmonds, Wil liam Thompson. Died of Wounds—Corporal William Bugden; Privates Joseph Hawkins, James Morris, J o h an Attwell. Missing—Privates George Barrington, John Barry, John Bradbrook, George Evans, Ed ward Fry, Charles Lancaster, William Henry Median), Michael Whealan, Richard Sandford, John Wood, Thomas Chapple, Wil liam Nevard, William Nicols, John Carrier, James Clarke, Wm. Cross, Bartholomew Henry, Francis Lang, Robert Lang, Edwin Meade, James Phillips, John So vatian, George Worley, James Bentley, Michael Betson, Thomas Cleenen, Patrick Devaney, James Killeen, Phillip Murphy, Richard Smith, Thomas Cresswell, Patrick Managan, 'rude Murphy, Alfred Weldon, John Hunter, Thomas Lancaster. 29th Regiment. Killed—Sergeants Patrick Carey, Robert Long; Pri vates Thomas Bunting, Richard Beech, Charles Buckley, James Campbell, Edmund Cooney, Pierce Cotter, Patrick Dempsey, Bernard Dailey, John Donovan, Joseph Darmon, Henry Dawkins, Job Fidler, John Farnol, Frederick Guest, John GO3- tiler, William Giles, Michael Hopkins, John Hussey, Georgo Haggitt, William Jenkins, Thomas Mar riott, Dominick Mc Dermott, Charles Mc Glaugh lin, Thomas Mullin, James Mayo, William Naylor, William Pratt, James Shenton, James Twamblay, Jonas Taylor, Thomas Walsh, James Wildbore, Thomas Walker. Died of Wounds—Corporal George Taylor; Privates Andrew Brown, George Cathey, Alexander Dunn, Robert Hodder, John Hooper, Michael Hadfield, Thomas Kennell, Henry Souter, Henry Smart. Missing—Privates Thomas Taylor, Thomas Vornem. Gist Foot. Killed—Corporal George Handlon ; Privates William Foster, James Mason, Ralph Sherwood, Thos. Tuckwell, John White, James flumes, Wm. Jones, Win. Gray, David Tuckley, Henry Johnson. Died of wounds—Private Edmund Egan. Commission by the Lord-Lieutenant of Hertfordshire. Sir henry Lytton Bulwer to be Deputy Lieutenant, March 10. Commissioned by the Lord-Lieutenant of Gloucestershire Royal North Gloucester Regiment of Militia—John William Dutton, Gent. to he Lieutenant, March 26. BANKRUPTCY SUPERSEDED. Henry Charles Robinson, surgeon, Breeknock -crescent, Camden- to D. BANKRUPTS. William Bolton Girdlestone, lodging-house keeper, Southampton, to surrender April 14, and May 17, at eleven, at the Court of Bankruptcy. Whitmore, official assignee, Basinghall-street; Trehern and White, Barge yard Chambers, Bucklerabury. John Charretie, steel and iron manufacturer, Trinity square, Southwark, April 11, at one, and May 11, at twelve, at the Court of Bankruptcy. Pennell, official assignee; Lawrance and Plows, Old Jewry-chambers. Henry James Tyrer, watchmaker, ,Newcastle-place, Clef kenwell-close, April 9, at halt-past eleven, and May 14, at one, at the Court of Bankruptcy. Turquand, offi cial assignee, Guildhall-chambers; Moss, Queen-street, Cheapside. James Williams, tsilor, St. George's-place, Back-road, St. George's East, April 9, at one, and May 21, at eleven, at the Court of Bankruptcy. Graham, official assignee, Coleman -street; Wilde, Union -court, Old Broad -street. Charles Cushing, carver, Norwich, April 9, at two, and May 21, at half-past eleven, at the Court of Bank ruptcy. Graham, official assignee, Coleman-street; Sto rey, Featherstone-buildings ; Tillett, Coleman, and Co-. Norwich. William Welton, timber merchant, Rotherhithe, April 10, at two, and May 15, at eleven, at the Court of Bankruptcy. Edwards, official assignee, Frederick's place, Old Jewry; Nixon, Warwick -court, Holborn. William Lloyd, linen-draper, Madeley and Wryne Hill, Staffordshire, April 11 and May 2, at twelve, at the Birmingham District Court. . Christie, official as signee,Birmingham ; Jones, Size-lane; Motteram, Knight, and Emmet, Birmingham. William Cotton, timber merchant, Moseley, Worces tershire, April 17 and May 8, at ten, at the Birmingham District Court. Whitmore, official assignee, Birming ham; Harrison, Birmingham. Abel Williams, licensed victualler, Iron Acton, Glou cestersbire, April 12 and May 10, at eleven, at the Bristol District Court. Acraman, official assignee, Bristol; Tre hern and Waite, Barge-yard Chambers; Sabine, Bristol. Edwin Burt, boot maker, Bristol, April 10 and May 12, at eleven, at the Bristol District Court. Hutton, official assignee; Boykett, Chancery-lane; Ayre, Bristol. William Chaffer, ironmonger, Barton-upon-Humber, Lincolnshire, April 18, and May 2, at ten, at the Leeds District Court. Carrick, official assignee, Hull; Fiddoy, Temple; Fretson, Sheffield. Richard Smithies, timber dealer, Turner-fold, Lan cashire, April 11 and May 2, at twelve, at the Man chester District Court. Fraser, official assignee, Man chester; Smith, Lincoln's Inn-fields; Traps, Clitheroe; Atkinson, Saunders, and Atkinson, Manchester. Cuthbert Rippon, limeburner, Stanhope, Durham, April 13, at half-past elev e n, an d May 22, at one, at the Newcastle upon-Tyne District Court. Baker, official assignee, Newcastle-upon-Tyne; Hall and Ridley, New castle-upon-Tyne; Rymer, Chancery-lane. PRICE OF SUGAR. The average price of Brown or Muscovado Sugar, com mted from the returns made in the week ending March 27, 1849, is 265. B%d. per cwt. Charles Lushington, Esq., M.P., the president of the institution, takes the chair at tho Whittington Club diaut t9-der. . - THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING MARCH 31, 1840. IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS, March 30. The Mutny Bill, the Marine Mutiny Bill, and the In demnity Bill were respectively read a second time. The Earl of ST. GERMANS presented a petition praying for an alteration in the Irish poor-law. THE POLISH REFUGEES. The Earl of HARROWBY asked whether the insinu ations which had been thrown out against the character of the refugee Poles by the Noble Earl (Eglinton) had been justified by the inquiries which had in conse quence been instituted by the Government. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE was happy to state that the result of the inquiry which he had instituted had been to prove that the suspicions entertained had been most erroneus, and that the returns afforded no founda tion for the insinuation which had been cast upon the character of the Polish refukees. INSOLVENT MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. Lord BROUGHAM had hoped that the Bill which had been introduced into the other House, to de prive Insolvent Members of their seats, would have been made a Government measure; but seeing that the Bill which had been brought into the other House had been dealt with in a manner which pre cluded all hopes of its passing, for, instead of a Bill to take away the privileges of Parliament from in solvents, it was a Bill to enable debts to be more easily recovered from Members of Parliament, he would, if the measure were not taken out of his hands, intro duce a Bill simply to extend the provisions of the 52d George 111., from bankrupt Members of the House of Commons to insolvent Members of the House. The Bill did not extend to the House of Peers, the Members of which House stood in a totally different position to Members of the House of Commons. The only alteration he proposed to make was to take away the power given to bankrupt Members to retain their seats for twelve months. Thus he hoped this great scandal and abuse of the privileges of Parliament would soon be brought to an end. He moved that the Bill which he now laid on the table should be read a first time, and would postpone the second reading for the present. The Bill was then read a first time. ADJOURNMENT OF THE HOUSE. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE gave notice that on Tuesday he should move that their Lordships do ad journ for a fortnight;, but if any Bills should come from the other House on Monday, which required dispatch, it was possible that the motion for adjournment might be postponed until Thursday. ARMISTICE IN PIEDMONT. The NOBLE MARQUIS explained that the papers re lating to the north of Italy would be laid on the table as soon as the state of the negotiations would permit. He had also to state that information had that afternoon reached her Majesty's Government, that the new King of Sardinia had concluded an armistice with the Austrian commander, by which the Austrian troops were to evacuate the duchy, the frontier fortresses to be occupied jointly by Piedmontese and Austrian troops during the continuance of the armistice, and the Pleni potentiaries had been already appointed to negotiate a peace. The Earl of ABERDEEN considered that no delay need take place in presenting the papers, in consequence of the negotiations going on between Sardinia and Austria. He was rejoiced to hear the communication which the Noble Marquis had made, and which he con sidered as an additional proof of the moderation of Austria. After a few words from the Marquis of SALISBURY and Lord BROUGHAM the subject dropped, and their Lordships adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS, March 30. The SPEAKER took the Chair at Four o'clock. INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION. Mr. BROTHERTON presented petitions from vari ous places in England, praying for the settlement of all disputes by arbritration. A great many petitions were presented on the same subject by other Hon. Members. THE SCOTTISH REGISTRATION AND MARRIAGE BILLS, &c. Mr. DUNCAN presented petitions from various places in Scotland against the Registration, the Marriage, and Lunacy Bills. Mr. ANDERSON presented petitions from Orkney to the same effect. Sir THOMAS BIRCH presented petitions from Liverpool in favour of the Jewish Disabilities Bill. Mr. REYNOLDS presented a petition from the snuff manufacturers of Dublin complaining of the scarcity of tobacco in the manufacture of snuff, and also that the process of straining in America enabled the tobacco to bear a larger quantity of water, which greatly deterio rated the article. Mr. PATTISON presented a petition from London in favour of the Clergy Relief Bill. Mr. T. BARING presented a petition praying for a loan of 500,0001. for the purpose of relieving the colo nists of British Guiana, by means of drainage, &c. He would move that the petition be referred to a Commit tee at present sitting up stairs on the subject of British Guiana. Mr. BRAMSTON presented a petition from Essex, signed by 150 clergymen, against the Marriage Bill. Mr. DISRAELI presented a petition from a gentle• man named Wright, involving a plan for the improve ment of waste lands in Ireland, under the supervision of the military, and subject to the control of the Lord- Lieutenant of Ireland. Mr. B. DENISON presented a petition from Don caster, praying that measures might be taken for the suppression of vagrancy. Mr. HAsTrE and Lord LINCOLN presented petitions from Falkirk and other places, praying for some legis lative measure to enforce the discontinuance of trains on Sunday. Mr. KERSHAW presented petitions from Stockport and other places, in favour of the repeal of the navigation laws. Mr. HUME presented a petition from Norfolk, pray ing for relief to clergymen where they conscientiously felt compelled to dissent from their ordination vows. Mr. FORBES presented petitions from Falkirk against running trains on Sunday. Mr. HUME presented a petition from Newcastle in favour of a more stringent inspection of mines. RAILWAY TRAVELLING ON SUNDAYS. Lord ASHLEY presented several petitions against the system of railway travelling on Sundays. THE REV. MR. SHORE. Various petitions were presented, praying for the liberation of the Rev. Mr. Shore. EXTENSION OF THE SUFFRAGE. Lord DUDLEY STUART presented a petition from certain inhabitants of Marylebone, praying for an ex tension of the Parliamentary suffrage. SMITHFIELD MARKET. Mr. MACKINNON gave notice of bis intention, on Monday next, to move for a Select Committee on the subject of the removal of Smithfield-market. THE PETITION OF MR. HOLDS WORTH. Sir JOHN YARDE BULLER moved that the peti tion of A. H. Holdsworth, Esq., presented on the 28th of March, be printed with the votes.—Agreed to. THE NEW HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT. Mr. HOPE adverted to a complaint that had been made to him that the stone of which the new Houses of Parliament was constructed gave signs of decay i n places. He hi mse lf was convinced there was no foun dation for that complaint; but still, he would beg to ask the Hon. Member (Mr. Greene) if there was any foun dation for that complaint. Mr. GREENE could give a very decided contradiction to the statement that there was anything like general decay in the atone of which the new Houses of Parliament was built, though some few stones had given indications of decay. Mr. OSBORNE would ask Mr. Greene another ques tion, viz., whether there was any foundation for the report that Hen. Members were to hold their delibera tions in the New House of Commons soon after Easter. —(Loud laughter.) Mr. GREENE bad heard of no report of that kind, and there was not the least foundation for it. CHEESEMAN HEAD. Captain HARRIS asked the First Lord of the Trea sury, whether the works in the course of construction off Cheeseman Head were undertaken with a view of forming a harbour of refuge at Dover, and if so, whether there was any objection to lay the plan and estimate on the table. The Right Hon. Baronet was probably aware that his Hon. Friend Sir Howard Douglas, than whom there:was not a more able engineer in the whole country, and Sir W. Symonds, who whatever the opinions might be that were entertained of his ability as a ship builder, did hold, and had always held, a very high reputation in the navy as an officer, had both declared against the construction of any such work as a portion of the harbour of refuge at Dover. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that the best answer he could give to that question would be quoting the reply which he had given to the Select Committee last year upon the same subject, and which he would quote from their report. He had said, that whether the smaller plan, which involved the ex penditure of 2,000,0001., or of the larger one of 2,500,0001. were adopted, the execution of this work would in no wav affect the general object of the harbour of re fuge. It was intended to run out a quay of about 800 feet long, and that work would be complete in itself, or it might form a part of a larger work, but whether it was one or the other it would be . productive of one great advantage, by preventing the injury that was likely to accrue from the silting up of Dover Harbour. Captain HARRIS trusted that not a shilling would be spent upon the work before coming to Parliament for its consideration and sanction. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that the Hon. and Gallant Member might be quite as sured that he should not spend his own money. Mr. HUME said, he trusted that regular reports of the progress of the works, and of the moneys expended, would be laid before the House. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that he had already stated before the Committee that these reports would be given. REFUSAL TO TAKE OATHS. In reply to a question from Mr. OSBORNE, Sir G. GREY replied that Mrs. Watson had been im prisoned for refusing to take an oath as a witness. Appli cation had been made to Lord Denman and another jildge to obtain her release, but they had replied that they had no power to interfere. She had, however, since been liberated. There was a Bill now passing through the _ House to remedy that evil. WORKS OF ART FROM ROME. Mr. JOHN O'CONNELL wished to ask if her Ma jesty's Government would permit tho importation into this country, for the purposes of sale or delivery to purchasers, of works of art, sold or about to bo sold by the Provisional Goverment of Rome. lie said the Provisional Government of Rome was recognised by no European Power, and had no legal authority to dispose of the public works of art in Rome—(Cries of " Order, order")—and wished fur ther to know whether the Government of this country would purchase any of them? Lord J. RUSSELL said be supposed that, if imported, such works of art would enter under the regular Cus toms' duties; but certainly the Government did not in tend to purchase any of them. SUPPLY. On the order of the day for proceeding with the con sideration of the postponed resolutions, Mr. HUME moved, in pursuance of notice given— That it appears by the report of the Board of Audit, that the expenditure for naval services for the year 1847- 48, per Act of 10 and 11 Victoria, c. 107, exceeded the grants (including appropriations in aid) voted by Parliament, to the amount of 323,787/. That the sum voted by Parliament for the formation of the dockyard battalions, in the year 1847-48, was 20,0001., and. the actual expenditure amounted to 72,3991. 19s. 3d., being in excess of the vote 52,3991. 193. 3d., and forms part of the excess. That this House concurs in the opinion expressed by the Lords of her Majesty's Treasury, " That with regard to this large excess (for the dockyard battalions) the expenditure was entirely within the control of the Board of Admi ralty ;" and, " that the proper course would have been to have postponed the enrolment of men beyond the num bers provided for by Parliament." That " when a certain amount of expenditure for a particular service has been determined upon: by Parliament, it is the bounden duty of the department which has that service under its charge and control, to'lake care that the expenditure does not exceed the amount placed at its disposal for that pur pose." The Hon. Member proceeded at length to ana lyse the proceedings of the Board of Admiralty in em ploying a greater number of men than sanctioned by Parliament, and he called upon the House to ratify the opinion expressed by her Majesty's Ministers.—(Hear.) All he therefore wanted was, to strengthen the hands of Government; and ho would strongly recommend Hon. Members to look to the report of the Finance Commit tee of 1828, in which it was recommended therein no extra expense should be incurred without the sanction of the First Lord of the Treasury. There was, unfortunately, a disposition in every department to keep the amount of the expenditure up to the highest point; and it was with the view of checking this extravagance that the Com mittee sat and reported. He asked the House to concur in the opinion expressed by the Ministers of the country. He begged, therefore, to move the resolution as it appeared upon the paper. Sir W. MOLESWORTH seconded the resolution. Mr. WARD said that his Hon. Friend the Member for Montrose had discharged what was no doubt a public duty with admirable taste and good feeling, and he had administered, but in the mildest pos sible way, to the Lords of the Admiralty the censure which he thought they deserved. In most of the observations of his Hon. Friend he en tirely concurred. lie admitted the justice of those ob servations as a general rule; but, at the same time, he was bound to state that the Admiralty would have pro bably acted otherwise had they known that so large a number of men would have enrolled themselves voluntarily is those battalions. The enrolment of those battalions was determined upon hastily, perhaps, and in the conviction that the most vulnerable parts of the kingdom were left completely defenceless, it was thought desirable to organize a suitable force :for the defence of the coantry in case of aggression of any kind. He (Mr. Ward) did not defend that policy. His Hon. Friend had said they ought to postpone the enrolment of additional men another year; but in that case they would have a less efficient corps, and a deal of unnecessary expen diture. Itwas found afterwards that it would bo better to keep t.O a double uniform, which would last five years from the present time. In Copenhagen and many other foreign parts, where the services of those artizans from the dockyards had ben called in requisition they were found to be most formidable =egotists. The expenditure, no doubt, in the first year Ind been large, but it would nut recur for some time, is the men were pr ov id e d w ith un if orm w hi ch would last fur five years ; they were exceedingly well trilled, and their discipline had elicited the enco tniumof Sir Harry Smith. Sirll. WILLOUGHBY said the question was, whether there existed in this country any effective control over the expenditure.—(Hear, hear.) And he had come to the oonclusion that there did not; because it could be shown that this expenditure took place in direct defiance of the vote of that House, and without the knowledge of the superior department of the Lords of the Treasury. He put it to the Noble Lord, the First Lord of the Tree ,. ury, whether any circumstance was more likely to cast dkredit on his Administration than this case, which time out a year and a half after the occur rence, because, it was a fact that the Treasury knew no more of that expenditure '.haa he (Sir H. Willoughby) did. The Appropriation Act said that if they made application to the Treasury, aed that there was a surplus to be spent on any branch of the service, that the Treasury had the power to ap propriate that surplus to any given service. But in this particular case there was neither an application to the Treasury nor was there a surplus, because all the sur plus was gone. He was ready to admit, where a Go vernment could not help itself; such as a sudden war arising, or provisions became dearer, that that might alter the case. That might form grounds for a jus tification of the increase of the expenditure, but he stated that the department in London for a whole service, without the slightest hesitation, ex ceeded the vote of that House by 52,0001., and actually did that without application to the Treasury, and when it was well known that there was no surplus. His argu ment was this, that whit the Admiralty had done in this case might be done b: any other department.—(Hear.) He should cordially support the amendment of his Hon. Friend the Member for Montrose. Sir F. BARING sail, though this was a most impor tant point, yet there vas no defect in the principle on which the Admiralty acted on the occasion in question. He hoped that he wa; only expressing the opinion of his Hon. Colleagues abort him. This was not a question of principle at all; iewas simply a question as to whe ther they should depart out of the usual course of busi ness for the sake of exwessing an opinion.—(Hear, hear.) When this subject 'was first', stated it was at a time of considerable pubic alarm. There was no disagree ment whatever as rtspected principle between himself and his Hon. Friend it was only a matter of money. Sir G. CLERK sad that he saw no reason why they should depart out of the usual course of business. It bad always been thecustom to vote the supplies with out any reference tothe peculiar plans in which they were to be expendd, and so long as the Right Honourable Barone held the position of First Lord of the Admialty he had every confidence that the money could be rightly applied ; but there was one topic to which he begged to call their parti cular attention. If i was a convenience to refrain from laying before the Muse the plans on which they intended to proceed, Parliarrent had at least a right to insist that when they had ones voted the money the amount should not be exceeded, tut yet that seemed to have been most lamentably the case during the last year. Mr. WARD slid that he had distinctly stated the other evening that an excess would accrue this year on Nos. 1,2, and 1 7 . But in one of these cases the Board of Admiralty oval not properly accountable, as it was only the agent o f other parties. Sir W. MOLESWORTH said that the object of his Hon. Friend's resolution was not to give power to indi viduals, but to expree upon record the opinion of the House that the systemhitherto pursued was wrong, with parties aga i nst a s i m ii nr course. a view of warning ()the. Mr. HERRIES said that there had been a studied courtesy observed on the part of the Honourable Mem bers who brought forward the accusation, and of the members of the Governkent who had spoken on the question, but he (Mr. Heries) thought this forbearance was not too well timed, old he would not hesitate to ex press his opinion that theAd miraity had in this case ex ceeded the power confered upon them by Parliament. He admitted that sometiees it was necessary that an excess should be incured, but that night he had not once heard a reasoc to justify the increased ex penditure. He knew no case on which the House might more fairly express its opinion than the present; and if the Honourable Member would not press his motion to a division he saw no object in his bringing forward his motion at all. For his own part he would support the notion of the Hon. Member. Lord J. RUSSELL sail that, with respect to the merits of the question, there could be only one opinion; and that there was no difference of opinion between the members of the Government and the Honourable Mem ber for Montrose, the fact of the Honourable Member quoting the very words of the Lords of the Treasury, was sufficient to prove. Therefore, although he could not differ from the opinion or the language of the Right Hon. Gentleman woo had just sat down, he deprecated tho pressing the Home to a division, because such a di vision would, in his (pinion, be a reflection on the memory of the late First Ler( of the Admiralty. Captain HARRU and Mr. HENLEY thought that the House ought to ee to a division. Mr. R. PALMEI suggested that the Hon. Member for Montrose shoull withdraw his resolution, on the understanding that lo objection would be made by the Noble Lord to its beng placed on record. Mr. HUME could not have any hesitation in acceding to such a proposifen. If her Majesty's Government would state that ttey would agree to this resolution being put unanimously on the books, he would have no hesitation in withdrawing it at that time. Lord JOHN RUSSELL said that with regard to the resolution itself it only contained an opinion expressed by the Lords of the Treasury themselves. His own objection arose simply from a matter of feeling, and out of respect to the late Lord Auckland, but he was in the hands of the House, and would leave that entirely:to them. Mr. HERRIES, for his own part, although anxious o have this resolution recorded, would have drawn no inference derogatory t) the memory of the late Lord Auckland. Mr. HUME then withdrew his resolution, and the original vote was then agreed to. RATE IN AID (IRELAND BILL.—SECOND RE ADING.—ADJOUR NED DEBATE. Mr. NAPIER had come to the conclusion of giving his vote against the stem' reading of this Bill. Whether the House regarded the principle of this measure, or the feeling which it had excited amongt the most intelligent past of the Irish people, it was a measure equally deserving their disapprobation He Wished to consider this question in the first instance as a question of principle. Ile meant to divide the ergs'. meet into two parts ; the irst was the question of rating, and the second was the question of taxation. With re gard to the question of rating, the principle involved in this Bill was precisely this, whether a trate should be imposed on the rateable property of any union in aid of the rate of any other union, however distant or disconnected. He would remind the En glish Members that this principle might be one day applied to themselves. Now, he con ceived that ouch a pritiOiplO ae th§l into a system of poor-laws was one which de manded the greatest consideration before it was introduced, because if he examined it sightly, it in cluded every system of poor-law that had yet been introduced into either England or Ireland.-- (Cries of " Hear, hear.") There was an attempt made to establish an analogy between this case and the statute of Elizabeth; but in his opinion there was no ground for such an analogy. Unless the House were ready to convert the whole of Ireland into one poor law union, it would be impossible to pass this Bill with any consistency. The principle of the Act of Elizabeth was that of local control and local superintendence. But the present Bill said to a union in the extreme north that it should pay for the maintenance of poor in an union in the extreme south, and yet they were told that such a principle was found in the statute of Elizabeth. Nothing was more im portant than to preserve the control of local superintendence both with regard to the amount raised and the manner in which it was disbursed.—(Hear, hear.) The small amount of the money to be raised under the Bill, and the temporary duration of the tax, had nothing to do with the question; if the money were improperly levied it made no difference whether the amount was a penny or thousands of pounds. He warned English Members against assenting to a prece dent for taking away from them that superintendence of their own poor which they had enjoyed since the time of Elizabeth. It would be monstrously unjust to place the property of one part of Ireland at the mercy of individuals who might be guilty of the most extravagant expenditure and whose acts they could not control. He should now come on to the Poor-law Extension Act, a mea sure which introduced a new and a dangerous principle, that of out-door relief. Doubtless that important change was proposed with the best possible intention, but, once car ried out into practical operation, it became an essential con dition of its existence that one part of the country should not be called on to pay for the other. If it were expedient and just, as it unquestionably was both expedient and just, that under the law of 1838 the districts rated to the poor should be of limited extent, a fortiori, that principle became more necessary when out-door relief was engrafted upon the existing poor-law. There was nothing which so pe remptorily forbade going for rates beyond the union or district as the practice of maintaining the able-bodied poor outside the workhouse. Out-door relief might be all very well in a state of high social advancement, and where per fect vigilance could be exercised; but he conceived that they could not, without imminent danger, extend the liabi lity of ratepayers beyond the union or district. He wished most especially to impress upon the House his sense of the great importance of the measure with which they were then called upon to deal—he felt it to be his duty in the most solemn terms to assure the House that much depended upon the manner in which they modified the law then before them, and he hoped that in considering that modification they would remember the number of authorities that were against the Ministerial proposition—the Boundary Report was against them, and the opinions of the best and most impartial minded men in Ireland were - likewise adverse to the plan. Nothing could be more evident than this, that in proportion as the social condition of the community was high so might unions of great extent be tolerated; but, un fortunately, the less advanced portions of Ireland, the west and the south, contained the largest, while the north and east possessed the advantage of smaller unions. With a re markable degree of Irish perversity, they had created large unions where of necessity they must prove most mischievous and permitted small ones to be formed where their existence was the least beneficial.—(Hear, hear.) The effects pro ceeding from the law of 1847 had as yet been only partially developed. It was a law that they well knew had been forced on Ireland, being manifestly a piece of Ministerial policy. Of all the consequences that had already proceeded from this measure, the Archbishop of Dublin had foretold the details with an accuracy more historical than prophetic. But what did the report of 1834 say upon the subject of out door relief; he meant the report matte in England on the condition of the poor in this country, and on the state of the law relating to their relief; That report stated that the funds available for the relief of the poor in England " were applied to purposes opposed to the letter and still more to the spirit of the law, and destructive to the morals of the most numerous class, and the welfare of all; that the great source of abuse was the out-door relief afforded to the able bodied on their account or on that of their families, given either in kind or in money." The measure of 1838 esta blished no out-door relief for the Irish; it was reserved for a subsequent piece of policy to force that evil upon the country. If they forced, as they had done, an imperial law upon the people of ,freland, it was rather too hard that they should compel them' to pay a provincial price for it. He de nied altogether the principle that money should be paid by unions which could exercise no control over its expenditure— it was a policy alike unjust and unwise. The case of the poor law in England and in Ireland differed most widely. Here it was a part (la very old system—every one took his property with the full knowledge that it was subject to such a charge; but for the first time it was superinduced on Ireland in the year 1838; and one of the objects of all legislation in the subject now should be to make every interest bear the bur den according to equitable principles; and Parliament was bound not only to observe such principles, and shape its legislation in accordance with them, but they were also bound to pay due attention to the means of giving employ ment to the poor, as well as improving their condition ; and he was not alone in making that assertion, for he could quote in its support the authority of the Marquis of Lans downe, who expressed himself in the following terms : " If ever there was a solemn pledge given on the part of Government during the discussion which ended in the passing of the Irish Poor-law last session, it was, that their Lordships would, with reference to that law, by every means in their power, encourage the empl o y ment of the labouring poor of Ireland." Then he might advert to another point with regard to Ireland, on which the same Noble Lord ex pressed himself strongly. When it was hinted that money lent in Ireland for public purposes was not usually repaid with much readiness, the Marquis of Lansdowne expressed an opinion favourable to the manner in which repayments had been effected, and gave some striking instances in sup port of the opinions which he entertained on that subject. it was thought. by those best acquainted with Ireland, and who most attentively considered the present state of that country, that the present plans of her Majesty's Ministers were not likely to prove successful ; theories like theirs must be shivered at once in such a place as Ireland ; the land was heavily encumbered, capital was deplorably deficient, the surplus population was excessive, and the cottier system ge nerally prevalent. How, then, could plans applicable to England be made to work in Ireland? But recently a fa mine Came, which gave the opportunity while it pointed out the necessity for comprehensive measures, yet for those they had still to seek; though the dispensations of Provi dence had forced the Government to do something—they " saw the lightning and were afraid, but they had not vet heard the voice." The present measure of the Govern ment afforded no hope—there was no justice in it. The tenant-farmers would derive no advantage from it. It would not benefit the clergy or the landlords. The people might be kept alive by it, but nothing more. By it the people would be more demoralized than ever—not that he meant to say anything to the disparagement of his poorer fellow -countrymen, for he regarded them with feelings of the deepest compassion, and he was not without hope that in England feelings of compassion would be vividly awakened. England ought to have a high ambition with reference to Ireland. He hoped she would soon feel that the state of Ireland ought not to be a matter of money and fi nance, but that, as regarded that country, she had a great mission to fulfil. If by a rate-in-aid they merely kept Ire land from starving, they would shut out all hope of better days, and he must say that if the money spent in relief works had been applied to emigration or other useful pur poses, Ireland would now be in a much better condition than she was. He had received a letter from a Noble Lord in the west of Ireland, who stated that the unions in his district were in a ruined and hopeless state, that they had been brought to insolvency, and rendered a burden upon the rest of the country by the operation of the very Act which - was now to be up held by a rate-in-aid. Many of the landlords in that part of Ireland had discharged their duties in a very praiseworthy manner, and not a few of them had been r educed almost to beggary. He knew one case of a gentleman, formerly pos • sessing considerable property, who solicited and obtained an appointment as poor-law inspector, and who soon afterwards died from fever caught in the performance of his duties. He (Mr. Napier) believed all reasonable men would agree with him that the prosperity of Ireland was in a great measure de pendent on the application of capital and labour to agricul ture.—( Hear. hear.) They had been told upon high autho rity, that Ireland required three things :—first, repose from angry differences and divisions; secondly, capital and labour; and thirdly, private individual exertion. He would ask them to test the present measure with reference to these three points. There was a strong feeling against this measure in a portion of Ireland distinguished for the intelligence and integrity of the popu lation, who was not inclined to shirk any fair liability. He hoped, however, that if this Bill should receive the assent of Parliament, no passive resistance would be offered to its being carried out.—(Hear, hear.) But still the persons to whom he referred felt that this measure would operate unjustly upon them, and its tendency would be to weaken their affection and attachment to England. Did the House think, then, that the Bill was likely to contribute to the repose of Ireland, when it would give an opening to those who were anxious to sever the connexion between the two countries to encourage that agitation which, as Lord Clarendon stated, had been the means of scaring away capital from Ireland ? Then with regard to the question of capital,—it was considered advisable some years ago to make advances to Ireland by way of loan, but now that such assistance was really required it was denied; and the system of poor-laws would deter men from applying the shattered remnant of capital that remained to the employ ment of labour, and would paralyze that private exertion and enterprise which was so essential to the welfare of the country. He contended, then, that if they adopted this measure in conjunction with the present system of poor-laws the ruin of Ireland was certain.—(Hear, hear.) He would ask the House to reflect what must be the feelings of those persona in Ireland who had done their duty in carrying out the poor-law without any assistance from England, and who had borne up against all difficulties, when they were required to contribute to the outlay of remote districts, where they knew the greatest maladnainistrations of funds had existed. Was it wise to irritate a peaceable and industrious portion of the population by forcing upon th em such a necessity? He might be asked, "Then are the people to be left to starve?" His answer was —they were not. But the question was, not whether money was required, but out of what funds it should be provided?—(Hear.) He would admit, for the purposes of discussion, that money was needed, but they had no right to take it out of any fund that might be most convenient. If he saw a person starving and wished to relieve him, he had no right to pick ano th er man ' s pocket in order to do so. The question was, should this be an imperial grant or an Irish grant? lle was anxious, so far from saying anything to weaken the union between the two countries, to do all in his power to give it strength and efficiency; but he must say that, if Ireland were an integral part of the United Kingdom, this should be an imperial grant. He claimed all the privi leges of the union, feeling that he was bound to submitao all its liabilities; and until he repudiated some of these liabilities they were not at liberty to deprive him of the privileges to which he was entitled by reason of the union. It was said that Ireland did not pay a full proportion of the imperial tax ation. His reply was, that Ireland had paid all she had been asked to pay—(Hear, hear, and a laugh) —and he thought that was a sufficient answer. If the Chancellor of the Ex chequer, when he proposed a grant to Ireland of 50,000/. from the Consolidated Fund a short time since, believed that Ireland did not pay her full proportion of taxation, surely the Right Honourable Gentleman must have been guilty of great injustice to the people of England in granting such a sum from the Imperial Treasury. He believed at that time the Government had not the slightest notion of proposing a rate in aid; that was an afterthought.—(Hear, hear.) When they found there was a determined opposition on the part of the English people to granting money to Ire land, the Government thought, " Oh, but we can get the English Members to go against Ireland. Some of the Irish Members may resist, but we have others who will willingly back us."—(A laugh.) "Rem, si possis recte,si non quocunque modo rem." bet them impose upon Ireland whatever fair liability she ought to bear; but, if they had delayed im posing a sufficient taxation upon Ireland, that was no rea son for visiting the land of that country with the penalty proposed by this Bill. Such a cou rse h a d b een o bj ected to by the Right Honourable Member for Tamworth (Sir liclmt reel), ig hip opee4 via Mr. R90114'11 ;119094 0; -- the extension of the pror erty -tax to Ireland. The Right Hun. Baronet then said that he could not see the justice or equality - of the principle of applying such a tax to land, and to land alone, in Ireland, so that the Lord-Lieutenant would be exempt, while land alone would bear the burden. A similar view was taken by the Noble Secretary for Foreign Affairs (Lord Palmerston) during the same debate. The Noble Lord said that one of the grievances of Ireland was the want of capital for local improvements; and that the imposition of the property-tax would diminish capital, while exoneration from taxes would lead to the introduction of capital. He (Hr. Napier) considered that a strictly similar taxation of the two countries never could be contemplated. They must enable Ireland to bear the charge, they must raise her from her difficulties, and then they might saddle her with a portion of the burden. If they placed upon Ire land a pressure which that country was not able to bear, they might be assured that its effect would recoil upon this coun try. Last year it was said that Ireland was not fit to bear the income tax. Wasaihe, he asked, more fit to bear it now. —(Hear, hear.) He would now direct his attention to the suggestions thrown out by the Right Hon. Baronet the Member for Tamwurth, and to the consideration of what might in future be done for the improvement of Ireland. His humble opinion was, that what was necessary for the present difficulties of the distressed unions ought to come out of the Consolidated Fund. The Right Hon. Baronet seemed to sug gest, particularly with respect to the west of Ireland, which doubtless was in a condition the most ruinous, if it continued long, and therefore required some bold, wise, and compre hensive measures, that the accession of a new class of pro prietors, having means and wealth, would be sufficient to get the country out of its difficulties; of course, he (Mr. Napier) hesitated to express any Opinion which might appear to clash with the views of an individual of so much experience, but he must beg to say that he did not think that that suggested measure would be sufficient to extricate the country from its difficulties. Though many of the present proprietors had been called only nominal owners, and though the mort gagees had been styled the real owners, yet when the poor-law was passed the present proprietors were rated as the real owners, and after they had broken down under that burden it seemed a hard measure of justice to say, though they were treated as respected the poor-law as real owners, and though the mort gagees then escaped, that now they should be turned out of possession, and that the incumbrances on the land should be discharged out of the means of other parties, not in favour of the poor owners, but in favour of capitalists and the moneyed interest. He admitted that the removal of im poverished proprietors would be an important t-tep ; and his comments only referred to the mode of effecting that object. However, he was satisfied that a mere change of proprietors was not the thing which alone would set the country up again. In a union in the south of. Ireland (Kenmare) a large portion of the property belonged to a Noble Lord of high character and great liberality, in the posses sion of opulence and every quality which could make a man personally amiable to his tenantry—he alluded to the Marquis of Lansdowne. On that property there was a tenant right, the middlemen had been removed an abate ment of rent had been made by the Noble Marquis last year to the amount of 12 per cent., and everything had been done to lead to improvement. What had been the result? There were two neighbouring properties there, neither of which had an ablebodled pauper in the union ; and three fourths of the pauperism of the union were supplied from the Marquis of Lansdownes property. What would they do with respect to property of that kind ? Would they change the proprietor and get rid of the Marquis of Lansdowne ? The fact was that the population on the property was exces sive, and though the Noble Marquis had got rid of the middlemen, he had had too much humanity to turn out the population, who, so long as the potato thrived, lived in an extremely low animal state. Thus - it happened that there was one gentleman in the neighbourhood who, though he spent the whole of his income on his pro perty, had nevertheless to pay heavy rates to support the paupers on the Marquis of Lansdowne's estates. This showed that, for the purpose of improving , certain parts of Ireland,- it was necessary to take measures not only as respected insolvent proprietors, but also as re spected insolvent tenants. The work of improvement must be carried on at both ends, and• any measure for raising up Ireland ought to be accompahied by provisions for emigra tion, in order that the country might be relieved from super abundant population. At present the people were leaving the country, but unfortunately it was the man of energy and some means who went out, and it was the destitute that were left behind. Nevertheless, this voluntary emigration ought to teach the Legislature a lesson. The people were taking to emigration as a natural cure, and it ought to give Parliament the hint to work out that cure by proper pre cautions.—(Hear, hear.) This he knew could not be done speedily. It must be a slow process; but if a wise and comprehensive policy t was announced by that House, and if Honourable Members would co-operate with one heart' and spirit to raise up Ireland again, such a course would cheer the population, and might be the means, under God, of saving the country.—( Hear, and cheers.) He thought, also, that many things connected with the amendment ot the poor-law-might be done; and one arrangement appeared to be desired by many intelligent men, namely, the reduction of the area of taxation.—(Hear, hear.) He likewise believed that some means might be devised for advancing money on approved security for the improvement of agriculture. He reeretted that some observations of his had been misunder stood on a former occasion, and' that he had been erroneously supposed to argue that Ulster should not contribute towards the support of Connaught, because the former was Protestant and the latter Roman Catholic. It was far from his wish, in coesidering what course of policy would be beneficial to his country, to say anything calculated to divide Irishmen into opposing parties. All men, of whatever political party or religious creed, should unite to effect the prosperity of their common country; and he would conclude by addressing them in the following words:--" Quare videte num dubitan dum sit vobis omni studio ad id opus incumbere, in qua gloria nominis nostri, salus sociorum, vectigalia maxima, tbrtunm plurimorum civium una cum republictt defendantur." (The Hon. Gentleman sat down amid loud cheers from all parts of the House.) Sir R. PEEL—As in the course of the very able and tem perate speech of the Hon. and Learned Gentleman—a speech on which I will pass this eulogium, that it was worthy of his own high character for ability and moderation—(Hear, hear) —he has frequently done rile the honour of referring to opi nions expressed by me, and as I wish to take this opportu nity of making some observations rather with reference to the general social condition of Ireland than to the particular enactments of the measure now under consideration, I can not perhaps rise at a more opportune time than the present to address the House. I gave my vote for the proposal of the Government rather for the purpose of expressing an opinion that we had a fair claim to call upon Ireland for some separate and independent exertion, than for the pur pose of expressing an opinion on the particular merits of that proposal in relation to other proposals that might have been made. I still think, notwithstanding the speech of the Hon. and Learned Gentleman, that we have that claim'on Ireland for separate and independent exertion. ( Hear, hear.) My opinion is founded on a variety of considerations —on the consideration of the'great and noble exertion wil lingly made by this part of the empire for the relief of Ire land, and partly on the consideration that Ireland has not done her duty in respect to the repayment of her pecuniary obligations to the Imperial Treasury on account of certain advances connected with the operation of the Irish Poor law. The Hon. and Learned Gentleman says." that Ireland has paid all she Las been asked for;" but it is because I totally differ from him on that point that I think we have a fair claim upon Ireland on the present occasion for separate exertion. We asked Ireland to pay 1,300,0001. which had been advanced from the Imperial Treasury to enable her to build her workhouses. Money had also been advanced to this part of the empire for the purpose of relieving it from the immediate charge of the workhouses. I have not heard that England declined to pay those advances, but I am afraid that Ireland, generally speaking, has repudiated the debt.—(Hear, hear.) Ido not think the answer of the Hon. and Learned Gentleman on this head at all satisfactory. I' think there was a clear pecuniary obligation, and that ought to have been discharged by Ireland.---( Hear, hear.) I regret she has not discharged it, because I think the refusal ope rates as a discouragement to coneider her case under circum stances when similar aid might be required. I voted also tor the measure before the House, because I entertained a con fident belief that if Ireland made a separate and independent exertion, she would induce Great Britain the more readily to co-operate with her in those efforts which I believe ne cessary for her welfare.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") I did not give my vote for this measure because I considered it I any sufficient remedy for the evils under which Ireland labours; and I think that the House is totally mistaken if it believes that the last 50,000/, or the present 100,0001., or any rate in aid which you may impose on Ireland, are measures at all commensurate with the evils of that country.—(Cheers.) In many parts of the speech of the Hon. and Learned Gentleman I concurred. So far am I from being inclined to raise any prejudices on the part of Great Britain against Ireland, that I concur with him in thinking that injustice has been done to Ireland. With re spect to the operation of this poor-law, I think that Ireland has made a great exertion to meet the obligations imposed on her.—(Hear, hear.) I think that England ought t o b ear in mind that she is circumstanced with respect to the poor law in a manner totally different from Ireland; that that was a new and unexpected imposition with respect to Ire land in 1838, and that the argument used in favour of the continuance of impositions of that kind, namely, that the property was purchased subject to those pecuniary obliga tions which had endured for centuries, did net apply to the case of Ireland, which was called on to bear the expense of a poor-law although t'm engagements as to property had been made under another state of things.—(Cries of "Hear, hear.") In 1838 Ireland was called on to support a charge which she had not before been subject to, and in the midst of unparalleled affliction Ireland bore a burden last year of not less than 1,600,000. e for the support of the poor.—(Hear, hear.) I think that a great exertion.—(Cheers.) I heard it said the other night, by some Hon. Gentleman, " Why should we support the poor of Ireland, since, after having supported them, Ireland rebelled against the supremacy of the Crown ?" I believe that charge to be utterly unfounded.—(Hear, hear.) Ireland did not rebel. The people of Ireland, generally speaking, did not listen to the temptations held out to them ; and we were enabled to suppress the rebellion with such compara tive ease, and without the loss of a single man, either of mi litary or police, because Ireland did not rebel, and because the people of Ireland, suffering, as they were, from severe calamity, did remain, generally speaking, faithful in their allegiance to this country.—(Hear, and cheers.) I state this for the purpose of attempting to propitiate this part of the united kingdom towards that unfortunate country. I speak, I own, almost overwhelmed by a sense of the ca lamity which Ireland has sustained, and of the magnitude of the present crisis. —(Hear, hear.) My appeal to these more favoured portions of the empire is an appeal, not merely on the ground of justice —not merely on the ground of the na tural sympathy which we ought to feel with the miseries and sufferings of our fellow-subjects; I believe those app ea l s o f justice and natural sympathy would prevail with this country when the case of Ireland was well understood—(Hear)—but my appeal to Great Britain is upon a still stronger ground-- upon the manifest consideration of her own true interest.... (Hear) —in attempting to mitigate the affliction under which Ireland is suffering, and to find a remedy for the dreadful evils which are existing there.—(Hear, hear.) With the per mission of the House, I will remind them of the situation in which we stand now in entering upon this discussion. I will remind them that in the course of last year we found it necessary to commence the session by what is called a Coercion Bill, by an Arm s Bill, an d, t o conc l u d e , w i t h the Suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act.—(Hear, !rear.) gave my cordial support to her Majesty's Government in the introduction of those measures.—(Hear, hear.) I believe those measures were forced upon them by a stern necessity. I believe that all the evils of Ireland would have been ag.. gravated if those measures had not been passed. I refer to o to the r passing of them, not for the purpose of reflecting p censuring her Majesty's Government —only for the purpose of reminding the House of the unhappy condition of that part of the United Kingdom. It is in vain for England to think that by indifference or neglect she can relieve herself from the burden (Hear, hear )—t hat burden will press upon her with intense force; the tendency of it will be to reduce districts of this country to the same condi tion with some in Ireland.—( Hear, hear.) At the moment at which I am speaking I believe you h ave not less than 30,000 of the regular army in Ireland ; I think at the close, of last year you had a force of about 32,000 men. In addi tion to that military force, you have, I think, about 5,400 pepAlogrii awl/ ill AgilitiCii PIM Yon 44y9 Rut 0 - - • • -• constabulary of. I believe, 12,000 or 13,000 men, the expense of which is now borne not 'by Ireland —it is not a local charge upon Ireland—it is borne by the Imperial Treasury. The whole of the charge for that military force, therefore—the constabulary, the pensioners, the regular army, a force of not less than 47,000 men—is borne, not locally by Ireland, but by the Imperial Treasury; whatever reducti .n you can make in the amount of that force by the improvement of the social condition of Ireland is a pecuniary- gala to this country.— (Hear, hear)—if, in regard to a question of this kind, any such consideration as that of pecuniary gain could urge you on.—(Hear, hear.) Now, with that force and with these coercive laws, what is the social condition of Ireland? I pre sume that the statement I have here—l read from a news paper—is an accurate aecount of what took place at the last assizes at Clonmel. It is stated : - • " The assizes for one division only of the county of Tip. perary, and that the most quiet one (the southern), com menced this day, at ten o'clock, before Judge Jaeksou ; and your readers may judge of the disorganised state of the country when it is mentioned that there are no less than 279 persons for trial, and of these eighteen are charged with arson, four with attacking a police barracks in arms, eight with burglary, four with conspiracy to murder, and forty. two with treasonable practices; fourteen are charged with highway robbery, twenty-one with the awful crime of murder, and fourteen with &hooting at with intent to murdei. The prison, which has only 225 cells, has in it no less than 668 persons, including twenty persons already under sentence of transportation. No wonder that Judge Jackson desig nated the calendar as one of the most awful he had ever known. I did not hear yet if the treasonable cases will be disposed of, but the murder cases are very heavy, and several men are to be put on trial for the brutal butchery of three bailiffs in one night, merely because they were keep ing some corn distrained for poor-rates." Have I not stated enough earnestly to recommend to the consideration of this portion of the empire the social con dition of Ireland--(Hear)—to lead us to address ourselves to the state of Ireland in that spirit of forbearance and cone ciliation which the Honourable and Learned Gentleman so powerfully and justly recommended?- . (Hear, hear.) The portion of Ireland within which the greatest distress prevails, which chiefly comprises those unions that are generally called "the distressed unions," because they require extrin sic aid, is included mainly in the provinces of Munster and Connaught, but to those provinces I wish to add the county of Donegal, because, from its geographical position, I think it partakes more of the character of Connaught, and of parts of Munster, than it does of the province to which it is imme diately attached. Now, the population of Munster in 1841, when the last census was taken, was 2 ,396,000; the popula tion of Connaught amounted to 1,418,000; that of Donegal to nearly 300,000. The total population of that district —and that would be drawing a line I think from Donegal to near Waterford —exceeded 4,000,000 in 1841. So far, therefore, as numbers are concerned, their interest and their welfare must be objects of the , deepest anxiety. —(Hear, hear.) Now, before I refer to the condition of Ire land as it exists at the present moment, influenced by recent causes, namely, by the failure for four successive years of that species of food upon which the Irish people mainly rely, I wish shortly to advert to the condition in ten years ante cedently, when no such causes were in operation. I will re vert to a period, not only before the influence of famine was felt, but a period—and Ido it purposely--when Ireland was in full possession of that agricultural protection, the, withdrawing of which the Honourable and Learned Gentle-- man seems to think has aggravated her condition. In the full possession of it, what was the condition of the la bourer in Ireland? and What was the condition of landed property? Till very recently, when wheat was, I think, at. 60a. the quarter, the duty upon the impo r t of foreign corn had been not less than 20s. ; it was reduced in 1842, but at the period of which I have been speaking, so far as pro tection conferred benefit on Ireland, the law in force between 1828 and 1842 was the law by which the agricultural state of Ireland was affected. Now, before the influence of famine could be felt, and before protection was removed, what was the condition of—l can hardly call them the labouring poor. of Ireland—rather the destitute and suffering poor?—( Hear, hear.) The report o f L ord Devon ' s Commission is dated' February 1, 1845; and what does it say? 1 wish to rely not upon observations of my own, but upon the testimony of men. connected with Ireland--men of the highest character—men, conversant with the social condition of Ireland; that com mission included the names of Mr. Redington, Mr. Wynne,' Mr. G. A. Hamilton, and Sir R. Ferguson; and it *mild be impossible to name four gentlemen whoie testimony is more entitled to consideration from their high character, and from. their local knowledge.— (Hear, hear.) - They observe, that although agricultural improvement was rapidly ad vancin,— " We regret, however, to be obliged to add, in most parts of Irelands there seems to be by no means a corresponding ad-. vance in the condition and comforts of the labouring classes. A reference to the evidence of most of the witnesses will. show that the agricultural labourer of Ireland continues to suffer the greatest privations and hardships; that he con-' tinned to depend upon casaul and precarious employment, for subsistence; that he is badly housed, badly fed, badly clothed, and badly paid for his labour." In the second . volume of a very u se f u l di gest of the evidence there is a reference to a very curious docuinent, which was prepared by those who made out the census in 1141,- dividing the houses of Ireland into four different classes, the fourth-class consisting of "mud-cabins, with only one room ." they ascertained what proportion of the in habited houses of Ireland were of that fourth class;— and, observe this account could have no reerence to an thing posterior to the Ist of February, 1813. It is state y d that "it may be assumed that the fourth class houses are generally unfit for human habitation ;" and yet, it would appear, taking the best circumstanced districts in this re spect, in the county of Down, 24 7-10ths per cent., or about one-fourth of the population, lived in houses of this class, whilst in Kerry the proportion is 66 7-10ths, or about two thirds of the whole; and taking the average of the entire population of Ireland, as given by the Census Com missioners, we find in the rural districts • about 43 per cent. of the families, and in the civic districts about 36, inhabiting houses of this fourth class.—(Loud cries' of "Hear.") But I should wish particularly to take the proportion of such houses in those distressed unions that are now depending for the support of a great number of the inhabitant,, upon the pecuniary relief you afford them ; and I find that in Donegal the houses of this class were 47 per cent, of the whole number; in Leitrim 47 per' cent.; in Roscommon, 47; in Sligo, 50; in Galway, 52; in. Limerick, 55 ; in Cork, 56; in Clare, 56; in Mayo, 62 ; and in Kerry, 66. That was the state of affairs before Ireland was visite l with that dreadful calamity, the first appearance of which was in the autumn of 1845.—( Hear, hear.) Now, what was the condition of Ireland with regard to landed property and the tenure of landed property? There was laid upon the table of the House a short time since a return from the Register-office of the Court of Chancery for certain years; lam now speaking of the position of the landed proprietors, the nominal proprietors, and I will not take the years 1845, 1846, or 1847, but again I will go back to a time when there were heavy duties. upon the import of foreign corn, and when Ireland had whatever advantages protection could bestow. What was the condition of the landed proprietors then, or at least of several estates? I will take the year 1844. The number of estates under the management of the Court• of Chancery then was 874, their yearly rental being 748,0004 ; the arrears, when the receivers were first appointed, were 34,500/.? when they had last accounted the arrears had in creased to 380,8001 • the' costs paid by the rece i vers were 17,3401. ; a n d ou t of yearly rental of 748,0001. what do you think was the sum annually expended in improvements upon the estates?-2,5721.—(11ear hear.) With regard to estates under the managem en t of the Court of Exchequer, I am obliged to take the years 1 844-45-46-47, because the returns for those years are given collectively, and not sepa rated ; the number of estates under the management of that court in those four years was 448, their yearly rental being 155,4004 ; the arrears when the receivers were first appointed were 61,700/. ; when they had last accounted the arrears were 171,800/. ; the law costs paid by the receivers were 38,0374, and the amounts expended in improvements r; was absolutely —nothing!—(Hear, hear.) At least, in the di . vision appropriated to the statement of the amount expended in improvements I find no return whatever; every other co lumn is duly filled up, but there is nothing there.—(Hear.) Now, are Gentlemen aware what is the condition of an es; tate managed by th e C ourt of Chancery ?—( " Hear, hear,' and a laugh.) Do you know what the term means? ( Hear.) I had—l can hardly call it good fortune—l had the misfortune to hear an account of the process from a most in telligent Gentleman, given by him when a Member of this House, Mr. Guinness—. (Hear) —and he certainly spoke with the highest authority, for he was himselfa receiver under' the Court of Chancery; but he was not influenced by any parti ality to give testimony unduly favourable to its manage ment. He said he was receiver for an estate in. Cork and Tippe-- rary, the rental of which exceeded 2,000 a-year; it had been under his care for 21 years ; it was partly in that county re ' specting which I have already given a melancholy detail of crime; in the course of the 21 years not one shilling had been expended to i mprove the condition of the tenantry.. He gave an account also of an estate in Mayo; the rental was 4,500/. a-year; the estate had been nine years under, his management, and 1681. was all that had been expended to improve that estate.—(Hear, hear.) There was an other estate in Westmeath, the rental of which was 10,6001., and that estate had been ten years under his management; he had received from it more that 1 0 0,0004, and out of that sum not 600/. had been expended in improvements during• the whole period._(Hear, hear.) But what effect did even • that 6001. produce? Nothing bad been expended till within' the last three years, in each of whi c h t h e i r had been 200 1 laid cut, and that paltry outlay enabled him to recover 2,600/. of old arrears on the estate, 6COL in the flrst ear, I think, and 1,000/. in each of the other two. I have re y ferred . to the state of things before 1844 fer the purpose of suggest ing this inquiry --whether such a condition of landed pro perty can be of any benefit either to the owner, the encum-' brancer, or the country?—(Hear, hear.) To this state of things in Ireland, with regard to the great mass of her popu lation, and with regard to the tenure of landed property, there supervened the greatest calamity which in the history of mankind ever visited a country—l mean the four succes- , sive failures of that species of subsistence on which the great mass of the people of Ireland lived.—(Hear.) What in fluence had that great calamity upon the condition of the,. people? I think wh a t f o ll ows i s a most faithful account of 2 the condition in whi c h t h e first year of famine found the people of Ireland in the west and south : e e only root they had b een Clustered in villages, a p l ot of ground attached to their , cabins, and a portion o f a fi el d h i red by conacre potatoes, w as ash their nt am wretched eans ofli v e i n n e g : , accustomedyainndthwehbeenstthofe f t a im m e in s e th czt ei ' m r e e , x a i n s d telie th be came a mass of rottenness,theyesubsistence factures left without factures to fall back up on , with no e to cultivate: employment , no m enu mplo. for food and without resources, fit objects for the aid provided by the law now in force for the relief of the poor. Such form a bounty of the empire, 'the charity of the benevolent, and the relief." nu merous class of there e c f ip t i h e e nt p s o o o f r That is a description en by this calamity was another who lived in villages. But there class a little higher in the social scale , consisting of those who had small holdings of land, to the extent of t h ree or four acres:— "Another class consists of those who had a small holding of land, two, three, or more acr es, or who, with several others had a small farm in joint tenancy (the rundale system), the allotments being chequered, a Patch here and a patch there without a fence, a slight difference in level being made to distinguish the plots. Holding in common, so all their ope rations were in common; none tilled his land before his neigh blur, and on certain fixed days the work of the seasons began. The tillage was of the rudest description ; green crops were unknown ; a crop of potatoes, then of oats, pota toes again, oats, perhaps barley, and often two or three grain crops in succession, was the course pursued, except near the towns. A cow or two and some pigs formed the stock; the potato produce fed the family, the grain paid the rent; the former was swept away by the blight, but aid by public works and the succeeding measures of relief enabled many of the poorest to struggle on for a time." Now we come to 1848 :—" Some of the potatoes which did not decay were hoarded for seed, and planted; the next failure was partial, the patotoes would grow again. Courage was acquired at the thought; and, in 1848, the most extraordinary efforts were made to put down a crop. Potato-seed was sought for with avidity, and high pric e s p a id f or i t. I t was a last e ff or t In some cases the cow 9nd every available article were sold to put a crop in the ground. Many staked their all on this cherished root, and lost—the blight came, and more wither. • ing ruin than before."—(Hear, hear.) This was the condition of the people of Ireland at the period we are referring to-they staked their all on the cultivation 9f the pogo ; Mos 1491§ 111 1.