The Sun. — London, England, 1855-05-01 00:00:00

VIPER [AL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS—(YESTERDAY.) The LORD CHSNCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack at five o'clock. Lord LYNDHURST presented a petition from Shef field, praying for a vigorous prosecution of the war. The Ossett Gas Bill was read a second time. Hill's Estate Bill was read a third time and passed. THE SARDINIAN CONTINGENT. The Earl of ELLENBOROUGH, seeing the noble earl the Minister for War in his place , wished to call his attention to a circumstance that had appeared in the papers of Saturday. A letter appeared, dated the 22d inst., from Genoa, by which it a p peared that, in reference t 6 the Sardinian tr oo p s that had sailed i for the East, the Commissary-Generaln the Crimea had declared himself unab to app lysu those troops with provisions. U n less there was a t tary convention entered into between us and the Sardi nian Government he aid not Barden. at this Governme . nt bound itself to supply the .contmgei . t with commissariat stores. If the British Commissariat had bound itself to supply provisions to the Sardinian troops as well as the Turkish troops, it ~..m ust be prepared at least to meet a demand of at least /0,000 rations a day. He begged to ask the noble earl the Minister of War for information on the subject. Lord YANINIURE had heard with some surprise that the isecessary supplies for the provisioning of the Sar dinian army bad not been sent out with the troops to the Crimea. In the first instance, It was understood that the Sardinian Government was to send a transport w ithone month, s provisions before the sailing of the troops. There was no second convention entered into with the Sardinian .Government, but Commissary-General Filder had received instructions to supply those troops upon the usual regulation prices, and he had no doubt that that officer would find any difficulty in doing so. By the last mail a letter was received from Sir J. M`Neil, who had been sent out by the Governm ent to make special inquiries into the state of the commissariat, and that letter of the gallant officer stated that there was an ample supply of meat and grain to be found in the Crimea to meet the demands of the army, and, therefore, no apprehension need be entertained as to the falling off or scarcity of provisions. MILITIA (IRELAND) BILL. Lord PANMURE moved the third reading of this bill. The Earl of WICKLOW complained of the manner in which this bill was being hurried forward. The noble earl also objected to the manner in which the bill was drawn up, as he thought it most unfair to demand a higher qualification from Irish offi cers in the militia than were required by the English militia. He concluded by mov ing the addition of a provision to one of the clauses, rendering such officers eligible upon the qualification which they possessed at the time the commissions issued, or which they possessed at the present time. Lord PANMURE had no objection to the alteration proposed by the noble and learned lord. After a few words from the Earl of DERBY the amendment was agreed to. Lord PANM URE proposed another amendment, which was also agreed to. The bill was read a third time and passed. TROOPS ON BOARD THE ALMA. The Marquis of SALISBURY put a question to the Secretary for War, relative to the embarkation of troops on board the Alma. The troops were embarked in their old clothing, without any sufficient provision for the summer months, and without the new clothing which at this season should be supplied to them. They were also sent with their old arms, and without that invaluable and indispensable arm, the Minie r;fle. Lord PANMURE said, with respect to the arms, he could not believe it possible that the report to which the noble marquis referred had any foundation, or that any of her Majesty's troops bad left this country for the Crimea armed with the old musket. The noble marquis should know that every regiment in the service now in the Crimea had the rifle. He should, however, make strict inquiry, and he would admit the whole ground of complaint if it should turn out to be true that the troops had left with the old arms. With respect to the sum mer clothing, the Guards always embarked with a suit of clothes partly worn, and not with their new suit ; but the new was sent alter them. THE VIENNA NEGOTIATIONS. The Earl of DERBY rose and said— If I knew what member of her Majesty's Government I could address myself to, I would put a question of considerable im portance, inasmuch as we have arrived at a period in the great struggle in which we are engaged when it is essential for the Government to lay before Parliament the fullest information in their power to afford. We have forborne putting questions which might embarrass her Majesty's Ministers during the progress of the nego tiations which have been going on, but as we have be.en given to understand that these negotiations have alto gether terminated, that all hopes of peace are at an end, and that her Majesty's plenipotentiary has returned and is in this country, I have been in expectation that her Majesty's Government would have felt it to be their duty to make, without any question being asked, a state ment to both houses of Parliament, describing the actual condition of affairs, and informing them of the nature of the propositions made by her Majesty's Government and her allies, and the result of those propositions. (Hear, hear.) Ido not see the noble earl the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in his place. A. Noble Lord—He was here a short time ago. He was sum moned by her Majesty.] Perhaps sonic member of her Majesty's Government will be good enough to acquaint the house whether a statement will be made on the pre sent position of affairs, and detailing what has taken place at Vienna both by the Allied Powers and by Aus tria, and what was the character of the answer given by Russia to the propositions made to her ; likewise, whe ther it is the intention of the Government to lay before Parliament the nature of those propositions, and a state ment of their views as to the actual position of the pre sent critical state and threatening aspect of foreign affairs. (Rear, hear.) The Marquis of LANSDOWNE replied—My noble friend the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs has been in the house till the last ten minutes, when, I have reason to know, he was sent for by her Majesty. Had he been here he would, I am sure, have given an answer to my noble friend. lam confident that it is the inten tion of her Majesty's Government at the earliest period, on a very speedy occasion, to lay before Parliament what has taken place, and I have no doubt that my noble friend will make such a statement, though I am not prepared to name a day. I will, however, consult with my noble friend, and he will be able to state to-morrow or the day after when he will lay whatever information he can communicate before the house. FLOATING BATTERIES. HOUSE OF COMMONS—YESTERDAY. The SPEAKER took the chair at four o'clock. LORD JOHN RUSSELL. IRELAND. The motion was agreed to without discussion. PETITIONS. Earl TALiOT;isrred — te'ask a question respecting the floating batteries. He desired to know who was the designer of these batteries, which he thought would hardly answer the purpose for which they were intended, and what was the contract price for constructing them ? Lord PANMURE said he would answer these ques tions on a future day. Their lordships then adjourned. The noble lord the member for the City of London was led to the table amidst cheers by Sir G. Grey and Mr. Masterman, and took the oaths and his seat on his re-election after having accepted the office of Secretary of State for the Colonies. THIRD READINGS. The following bills were read a third time and passed: —Bristol and Exeter Railway ; Newport Corporation ; Stourbridge Gas ; Surbiton Improvement ; East Indian Railway Madras Railway. The following bills were ordered to be considered :-- Dundee and Perth and Aberdeen Railway ; Maryport and Carlisle Railway; Oldham Gas and Water; Regent's Canal (Hertford Union Canal). The Edinburgh Lands Bill was read a second time. COMMUNICATION BETWEEN ENGLAND AND ----------• Sir W. HEATHCOTE moved that the third report of the Select Committee on Railways (19th April, 1848), and the report of the select committee on the Chester and Holyhead Railway Bili (11th May, 1848), be re ferred to the committee on the bill for Improved Com munication between England and Ireland. Petitions were presented—by Mr. H. W. Wickham, ; from the inhabitants of Hartsheaid-cum-Clifton, in the 1 county of York, against the Maynooth Endowment ; also from the board of guardians, Bradford union, York county, praying that provision may be made by Govern ment for the support of the wives and families of mili tiamen when on duty with their regiments ; also from the licensed victuallers in the borough and parish of Bradford, Yorkshire, to the number of 206, praying for the repeal of the act passed last session in tituled an Act for further regulating the Sale of Beer and other Liquors on the Lord's-day ;by Mr. Pellatt, from Southwark, for improvements in the Management of the Metropolis Bill, and from a place in Kent, for the abolition of church rates ; by Mr. Spooner, from St. Martin's and St.' Thomas's parishes, Birmingham, against the Maynooth grant, and petitions from various parts of the kingdom praying that the Brant may be withdrawn ; by Mr. Hadfield, from bc,d . Manchester Law Association and other similar frolztirn _favour of the Testamentary Jurisdiction Bill ; c L iire Z r J. Pechell from Brighton, for the abolition of f rom the at" ; by Mr. Disraeli, a number of petitions ia favou r of by mr. c u o o w l a th of Ireland, against the Maynooth grant ; ooth against the Mayn ° ti l t !) pe ti tions from various places in Scotland Lord Advocate's Education Bill, and THE BANK grant. asked, with referenceutN-Governor Mr. HlLDym t op ENGLAND, from the Goveroor i) o t f o the f.h e letter Bank of England to the CatinadnegeP V y 16 d oti the wh Nether r e hoof hadth e 14th day of March, 1855, tatf. the Exchequer, dated the I.7leriGhirjhre house the letter house, the Chancellor of the nor of the Bank of r any objection to lay on the ta from the Governor and Deputry,,-ferrvect.„ the 12th Oct., 1554, therein opinions of the standing counsel of the t a ,' k and also the Roundel' Palmer, also therein referred tq n ? - ' and of Mr. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQU ER copy of any such lett er had c ome into his n —said n° and it was impossible fo r h im to p ro duce it. pos session, REPORTED RAISING OF THE SIEGE .1. ... OF SEBASTOPOL. In reply to Mr. WARNER, Sir C. WOOD said the telegraphic line was now com plete from th e T ur ki s h coast, but they were not aware whether •it was complete across the Danube. With re- to vote with his honourable and learned friend op posite (Sir F.Thesiger) in accordance with the opinion he had previously expressed relative to the clause now under consideration. (Hear.) He objected to the Par liament of the year 18,15, undertaking to determine by adopting a particular line of fiscal and commercial policy, the financial policy of Parnament to 10 cr 15 years hence. (Cheers.) He contended that Parliament was going entirely out of its p rovince by so doing. His right hon. friend (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) bad expressed, as one of the reasons for the adoption of the clause, that it afforded a fair and rea sonable prospect of diminishing the capital of the debt progressively. Now, it appeared to him that, under the present circumstances of the law, this reason would prove fallacious, and the clause itself would turn out to be quite inoperative. Suppose, for instance, that peace were proclaimed, and twelve months had elapsed, aa cording to the provisions of the clause, the next year there might be a surplus or there might not. But it there were a surplus of a million the clause would be inoperative, if the law was in force, as was proposed, because the Chancellor of the Exchequer would be bound to apply it to the extinction of the debt just incurred, instead of applying it, as would be done under the present financial law of the country, to the reduction of the pub lic debt in the most advisable and expedient manner according to the circumstances of the times. (Hear, hear, and cheers.) Thus the clause would not only prove innopez ative but a positive mischief. He therefore hoped that the opinion which had been so strongly ex pressed by the house against the clause would in duce his right honourable friend to withdraw ft from the bill without the alternative of taking the sense of the house more emphatically on the point by going to a division. (Hear, hear.) Mr. HENLEY also said a few words against the im policy and injustice of the clause. Mr. LABOUCHERE remarked that if this measure went to a division he should feel himself obliged to vote with the honourable and learned gentleman oppo site. At the same time, he was bound to say that he approved most highly of the finan cial scheme which his right hon. friend had brought for ward with the exception onis of the clause now before the house ; and he, therefore, trusted that the right hon. gentleman would take into consideration whether it was worth his while to press the clause to a divi sion after the very forcible opinions uttered by different hon. gentlemen in that house. It was his own firm conviction that it was not expedient to vote a million per annum for the purpose implied by the clause ; and he moreover feared that a question might be raised as to whether the Government could pledge succeeding Par liaments to adopt the course it involved. (Hear.) The question generally had been so well argued by the hon. member fur the University of Oxford, that he should only he wasting the time of the house if he went over the same ground ; and be would only express a hope that the Chancellor of the Exchequer would not press the house to a division on the subject. (Hear, hear.) Mr. T. BARING rose to express a contrary hope to that of the right hon. gentleman (Mr. Labouchere). He hoped that when a clause had been proposed, which bore upon it the stamp of honesty, the Government which was bold enough to bring it forward would be equally bold in supporting, it. (Hear, hear.) To reject the clause would be tantamount to saying " we do not wish or expect you to ever reduce the debt." Mr. RICARDO hoped the clause would not be pressed, especially as be understood the Chancellor of the Exchequer to say, the other day, that if the feeling of the house were against it, he (lid not intend to press it. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER was under stood to dissent from this. Mr. RICARDO begged the right hon. gentleman's par don if he had misunderstood him. Mr. J. WILSON said, if one opinion had been more generally expressed than another with regard to the prin ciple on which loans should be created it was, that loans should be of a terminable nature. The form of loan which had been most favourably received on all sides of the house was that of terminable annuities ; and the prin ciple of such annuities was involved in the clause under discs scion. Mr. DISRAELI said the hon. gentleman had argued on the assumption that the house had sanctioned the principle of borrowing on terminable annuities, whereas there had been no vote on the subject. He regarded terminable ar nuities as a very questionable means of raising money. The ilea might be popular in that house, but if they went into the City and consulted men of business on the subject, they would be told in what the fallacy of terminable anoui ties consisted—that it was, in fact, borrowing money to create a sinking fund. The 22d clause was neither more nor less than a recurrence to the system of creating an artificial fund, and to his mind nothing could be more ob jectionable than that. He though this clause would inter fere with the action of the present law with regard to the sinking fund, to the principles of which he firmly adhered, believing that it had worked advantageously for the coun try. At a time when they were borrowing money, it ap peared to him very undesirable to infuse into the public mind the notion that it was very easy to get rid of national incumbrances. Ho hoped the clause would not be pressed. Mr. GLYN, while he congratulated the Chancellor of the Exchequer upon the course which he had pursued, re gretted that he had not taken advantage of the recent opportunity to raise a loan of 20,000,0001. Such a course would have prevented the great increase which had taken placed in the unfunded debt, an evil always to be avoided. With regard to the matter immediately under considera tion, he considered that the reasons given by the right hon . gentleman the member for Bucks (Mr. Disraeli) were such as ought to lead the house to vote for, rather than against this clause. Mr. JOHN MACGREGOR agreed with thahon. gentle man who last addressed the house, that it would have been better for the Chancellor of the Exchequer to have gone into the market for a larger loan than the present. Had he done so, ho would have been able to make better terms, and to avoid the complicated system of terminable an nuities in which he had involved himself. He (Mr. Mac gregor) saw no use whatever in the clause under consider ation, believing, as he did, that the idea of a sinking fund was an exploded übsurdity. In fact, be should describe the whole afftir as a fiscal view of a promised land. Mr. CARDWELL said he should be obliged—if the clause were pressed to a division—to vote against it. Lord PALMERSTON—I certainly concur in the wish which has been expressed by hon. members, that this bill should pass without any division of the house, but at the same time I think the principle involved in this clause so important that the Government ought to take the sense of the house upon it. I take the question to be this. When Parliament and the country find themselves pledged to a specific debt, ought we or ought we not to make an effort t. reduce in future years that debt? It is obvious that no country can face a great emergency arising from a war in which great efforts are to be made without providing means over and above the ordinary revenues of the country. In fact, no war of magnitude can be undertaken by any country whatever without a loan upon honest principles or without forced contributions. Now, accordinc , to the ar guments of the right hon. member for Bucks (Mr. Disraeli) or at least, according to some part of those arguments, a country ought never to make an attempt to redeem any por tion of its debt. At the same time, in another part of his speech, the right hon. gentleman praised that system by which the sarplus income of the country is applied to the re demption of its debt. Bnt how does that surplus income arise ? Did it not consist of the surplus of the proceeds of taxation over the expenditure of the year? (Hear, hear.) I think it desirable that this country should lay down, as a principle, that which has already been established to some extent in practice, viz„ that there should be in every year a surplus income applicable to the reduction of the national debt. Much had been said as to the policy of raising money by means of terminable annuities, and undoubtedly had that system been followed in the last war much of the burden weighing upon this country would have ceased to exist. But there are great difficulties in contracting a loan of eny amount upon the principle of terminable annuities, and I admit the statement of the right hon. gentleman opposite (Mr. Disraeli) that it may be doubted whether it is an economical method of providinc , for the reduction of debt. No doubt the most economical mode is to raise a loan in that kind of stock which will yield the largest amount of money in return, and then to apply the surplus revenue to its reduction. That is the principle of the pro position of my right hon. friend. He has negotiated a loan upon the most advantageous terms, and he now proposed by this clause to provide for its gradual reduction. The argu ments by which this clause h4s been met have been directly contradictory. Some hon. members have objected because it was a mere nullity; but, on the other hand, it has been objected to because, it was said, some years hence a Chan cellor of the Exchequer will find himself embarrassed with a pledge from which he will find it impossible to free him self. My opinion is that the act will be, like all other acts of Parliament binding upon Parliament until it is repealed. Hence, so long as it remains unrepealed, it will be the duty of every Chancellor of the Exchequer to frame his esti mates in accordance with its provisions. If unfortunately circumstances should arise which would make it impossible to continue the annual payment in reduction of the debt, it will be for Parliament in its wisdom, to consider the question. (Hear.) I cannot, therefore, admit, either that this is a valueless provision, or that it will be considered as an obligation which ought not to be fulfilled. It is but just in principle, that while on the one hand we are adding 16,00 000/. to the debt, on the other we are providing a bona fide surplus, for the purpose of meeting it. (Hear.) The house then divided — For the clause 2lO Against lll Majority —99 The bill was ordered to be read a third time to-morrow INCOME-TAX BILL. • gard to the reporte d raising of the siege of Sebastopol, a despatch had been received that day from Lord Raglan, and he made no mention of any such intention. (Cheers.) In reply to Mr. GROGAN, Sir C. WOOD said he had no objection to state the whole contents of that despatch. It was simply that Lord Raglan wished to know when the Sardinian con tingent was to sail. (Cheers and laughter.) INCOME TAX—CIVIL SERVICE. Mr. MACARTNEY asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if it was his intention to make any exception with respect to the income tax chargeable upon the salaries of the civil servants, who were subjected to a charge of five per cent. in addition to the present income tax (nearly 6 per cent.), making together about 11 por centum levied on their limited incomes ; also, whether he was prepared to state on what day he would lay on the table of the house the proposed bill for altering and amending the law respecting the Civil Service Super annuation Fund ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said the Income-tax Bill affected all public officers, with certain exceptions. Government were not prepared to make the exception indicated in the question of the hon. mem ber, as that could not be done to oue part of the public service, and not to others. SALARIES OF COUNTY COURT JUDGES. In reply to Mr. LOWE, Mr. WILSON said the Government, in respect of the great duties some of the County Court judges had to discharge, had decided on raising the salaries of some of them to the maximum rate of 1,5001. a year. THE VIENNA CONFERENCES. Mr. DISRA.ELI—Seeir g the noble !ord the Secretary for the Colonial Department once more among us= (laughter)—l take the liberty of inquiring whether it is the intention of the noble lord to lay any papers upon the table with respect to his late mission, or to make any statement to the house with regard to it, and, if so, when ? And whether it is his intention, by any other means, to afford the house any inform ation as to the proceedings of the last two months at Vienna? (Hear, hear.) I should be glad to hear from the Government what their intentions are on this subject. Lord PALMERSTON—Before my noble friend re plies to the question, I wish to correct an answer I gave to the hon. member for Manchester the other evening in reply to his question whether the Russian Plenipoten tiaries had made any counter-proposals to the Conference after the rejection of the proposals made by the English and French Plenipotentiaries. I then answered from a telegraphic message, and such messages are generally rather short— (a laugh)—but from despatches subse quently received it appears that crinter-proposals were made by the Russian Plenipotentiaries, those counter proposals, however, not being deemed either by the British, the French, the Austrian, or the Turkish Pleni potentiaries as calculated to produce a satisfactory con• elusion. Lord J. RUSSELL then rose, and was received with some cheering. The noble lord said—ln reply to the questions which have been put to me by the right hon. gentleman, I have to state, in ,the first place, that I do not think it is for me to decide what papers shall be laid upon the table of the house. I may say, however, that I believe her Majesty's Government intend very shortly to lay upon the table the pro tocols of the Conterences which have taken place at Vienna. Those protocols will convey to the house in formation of the substance of the negotiations that have taken place. Perhaps I may say a few words more, without intending to go into any detail as to the nego tiations. The first meeting of the conference was on the 15th of March. The negotiations with respect to the first two of the four points with which the house is acquainted lasted until the 26th of March. On the 26th of March the third point came under consideration. It was suggested by the plenipotentiaries of Austria that the plenipotentiaries of Russia should themselves make a proposal calculated to satisfy the exigencies of the case. The plenipotentiaries of Russia replied that they had no instructions to do so, but they asked for time to refer to their Government. The consequence was that the conference was then adjourned, and that no meeting fur the transaction of business took place until the an swer was received from St. Petersburg. On the 17th of April another conference was held, when the pleni potentiaries of Russia informed the conference that they had received instructions from their Go vernment not to take the initiative of any proposi tions, but that they were ready to hear and discuss any proposal which might be submitted to the confer ence. The representatives of the allied Powers then re quested 48 hours to consider the fnrin in which they should make their proposal, and on the 19th of April the plenipotentiaries of France and of Great Britain, sup ported by the plenipotentiaries of Austria, laid their proposition before the conference. The Russian pleni potentiaries, on their side, asked for 48 hours in order to prepare their answer to this proposition. Accordingly, on the 21st they gave their answer totally rejecting the propositions which had been made to the conference. They stated to us, however, that they had propositions to make on the part of their Government which they conceived would be in accordance with the demand that Turkey should he united more closely with the mainte nance of the balance of power in Europe, and that some restriction should be placed upon the preponderance of Russia in the Black Sea. The plenipotentiaries of Aus tria, France, and Great Britain found those proposals of Russia entirely unacceptable, and refused to consider them in detail. The plenipotentiary of Austria then said, although these propositions had been rejected, he trusted that all the means of reconciling the belli gerent parties by peace were not yet exhausted. To this the plenipotentiaries of France and of Great Britain replied that their instructions were exhausted, and that they had no powers to consider any further propositions. 1 then considered that the best way of performing my duty would be to re pair to my own Government, and to lay before them the whole state of the case with respect to the negotia tions at Vienna, and the manner in which the confer ences had been suspended. Two or three days after wards the Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, having requested the orders of tue Emperor, came to a similar determination. I believe he was expected to arrive in Paris last night, and I have no doubt he will lay before his Government his account of the occurrences that have taken place in the course of those negotiations. Mr. DISRAELI—I wish to inquire whether, before the protocols of the conference are laid upon the table — and I trust they will be produced with all possible de spatch—her Majesty's Government have any objection to give us some preliminary papers—for instance, de spatches of our ambassador or plenipotentiary at Vienna, which will afford us an authentic and official description of what the four points are ? The noble lord wilt per haps recollect that at the present moment we have not the four points on the table of the house in au official form. I think, therefore, it would be very much for the convenience of the house if, without loss of time, we were put in possessiou of these preliminary papers, so that, before the protocols of the conferences are in our hands, we may understand what were the data and the bases upon which those conferences toek place, and why they were brought to an end. Lord PA LM.ERSTON—I think the protocols them selves will pretty clearly explain what the four points were, but if the protocols do not afford sufficient infor mation there can be no objection to laying some paper on the table that will give the requisite explanation. With regard to papers belonging to the lc:ng course of negotiation that preceded the conferences, I think there might be great objection to their production ; but I will take care that the house shah be in full possession of a knowledge of the four points that were brought under the consideration of the conferences. Mr., DISRAELI—Perhaps I did not make my ques tion sufficiently clear to the noble lord. I have no doubt that when the protocols are in our possession we shall clearly understand the nature of the four points — (a laugh)—but, as the Government have only given a vague promise to produce the protocols, and have not fixed any time when th6y will be placed on the table, what I wished to know was, whether the noble lord would have any objection to afford the house at once some authentic knowledge of what the four points of which we have heard so much consist ? I should not, of course, press the Government for any private des patches ; but if they would lay upon the table the single despatch in which the nature of the four points was communicated to her Majesty's Government, so that the house may at once be placed in possession of teat information, I think such a course would be highly satisfactory to hon. members generally, and could not be attended with any inconvenience. Lord PALMERSTON— Whatever papers can be produced will be laid before the house as soon as pos sible, and I do not think their production will be de layed so long as the right hon. gentleman supposes. (Laughter., Mr. DISRAELI—I wish only for complete and sa tisfactory information. The noble lord repeats that he will lay before the house as soon as possible the protocols of the conferences, but does he mean at the same time to produce the correspondence which took place between our plenipotentiaries at Vienna and her Majesty's Go vernment in pursuance of the treaty of December 2 ! That is the information the house would be desirous of having. Lord PALMERSTON—I cannot at present say what papers beyond the protocols will be laid upon the table, but the Govercment will consider the subject. Mr. T. DUNCOMBE understood news had been re ceived from Vienna that negotiations had been opened between Russia and some of the gentlemen who had been left behind by the (plenipotentiaries. (A. laugh.) He wished to ask whether any negotiations of any sort or kind had been resumed at Vienna since the departure of the noble lord opposite ? Lord PALMERSTON said that since his noble friend left Vienna some proposal had been made by Russia, which was not deemed likely by any of the re presentatives of the other Powers to lead to satisfactory results. Mr. BASS inquired what part Turkey bad taken in the conferences ? (A laugh.) Lord J. RUSSELL—I cannot go into details, but the Turkish plenipotentiaries were of the same mind as the plenipotentiaries of Great Britain, France, and Austria. (Hear, hear, and laughter.) LOAN BILL. On the order eff the day for the Loan Bill, as amended, to be consider.,e, Sir F. KE'LLY rose to move that clause 22 be omitted. In . loing so, he alluded to the anomalous and impolitic course which it involved in pledging future P arliaments t o adopt a particular course of commercial Policy- (Ile: tr, hear,) e pi n ' 9EtA ELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, after t l rod a ue n e in t f.b , riefiy the grounds which had led him to in fair pros.7.clause into the bill, said that it afforded a re cently „ I ' ea lt::1 diminishing the capital of the debt re- Mr. GL 2 , a division A: S " r °NE said that if the question went to should fool it a duty incumbent upon him Iar.HILDYARD moved, after the word "respectively," in the Bret clause, to insert "if such annual value or amount shall reach or exceed 1501., and an additional rate and duty of lid. for every 20s. of the annual value or Lmount of all such property, profits, and gains respec tively, if such an annual value or amount shall reach or exceed 1001. and not reach 1001. This would limit the in crease of taxation upon incomes under 1501. to lid. in the pound. The sum which the Chancellor of t e Exchequer would lose by this would be but small, and in a case like the present he thought the right hon. gentleman would not upon olild that argument as an answer t o t his motion. memberru eorely the nelw SIBTHORP supported the amendment. The CHANCELLOR o f th e EXCHEQUER said it was t exemptionmake very pro little difference p b ythe hon t . andthe Crownlearne d but it would also make very little difference to the tax payer, not more than six shillings a year. He did not wish, however, in any way to pledge himself against the ( r i state teer,dei p r i nciplenit of a nthcaaotrninteeh,aenhtea;discriminating (the an d as the d hon. e . r and sPe ea% incomes learned of member end c m h e a n n t e e substantially x interested of shouldli not think it duty to oppose it. (Rear, hear.), The amendment was agreed to. The remaini:lg clauses and the preamble were agreed to, and the house resumed. NEWS PAPER STAMP DUTIES BILL. The house then went into committee on this bill. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said—The committee will remember that when this bill was last be fore us a question was raised on clauses 4,5, 0, and 7, relative to registration and securities. A discussion took place on the structure of those clauses, and it was pointed out that corta in inconveniences would arise under their operation ; th.at, in certain cases, a sort of publication not emning , within the range of the original acts would be in cluded, and th::t, in certain other cases, particular publi cations that di l come within the operation of th 3 original acts would be f .xcluded. I felt that these remarks had in them some fon ndation ; a nd, though the clauses referred to I were framed n n the principle of removing penalties and :securing the obligation of registration and goanritios SUrsi„ LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, MAY 1, 1855, merely by de operation of seeking stamps, I thought it was better to reconsider the matter, and accordingly asked the committee to postpone the clauses and report progress. Ihave since reconsidered the matter, and, after the best consideration I can give cm the subject, I have come to the conclusion that, on the whole, it will ho the safer course for me not to interfere with the existing law, but simply to leave it as it now stands with respect both to registration and securities. These will be applicable to all newspapers, according to the terms of the act ; and, though we shall certainly leave in operation the difficulty which the Board of Inland Revenue has found as to the interpre tation of the word " newspaper." that difficulty will be considerably diminished when the operation of the com pulsory stamp is removed. Ido not think the state of the law will be altogether satisfactory ; but, on the whole, I am disposed to stand on the existing law, and allow it to be enforced by penalties. I therefore propose to omit clauses 4,5, and 7, and, with regard to clause 6, which shall remain, I shall propose some verbal alterations re quired by the omissions that are to take place. On the question that the 4th clause be omitted, Mr. G. BUTT said, he understood the Chancellor of the Exchequer to mean that he intended the law as to regis tration and giving security to remain applicable to all ne wspapers. By the bill as it stood before the Govern ment intended to confine the obligation of registering and giving security to those particular publications that chose to avail themselves of the postal advantages proposed to be given ; but the effect of the omission of this clause, as he understood it, would be to relieve particular publications from that obligation. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER—AII par ticular publications that are not newspapers. The clause was then ordered to be struck out of the bill ; as was also clause 5. Clause 6 was agreed to, with certain verbal alterations. Clause 7 was struck out of the bill. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said, honed now to propose the clause of which he had given notice, limiting the retransmission by post of periodical pub lications. He proposed this clause as being a reasonable limitation in the right of retransmission. In practice it was found that persons in possession of newspapers, and wishing to send them to a distance, transmitted them by post merely to be used as waste paper, and without any view of their being read. The privilege of unlimited trans mission led to large quantities of waste paper being thus sent by post ; the right of transmission was abused, awl additional cost was thrown upon the conveyance of papers. He therefore proposed the reasonable limit of 15 days. Mr. G. BUTT directed attention to some confusion which he feared would arise under the act as it was now proposed to stand, owing to the adoption in different clauses of the terms " periodical publication" and " news paper," when the same thing was meant. He did not oppose the clause, but he thought that it would be neces sary slightly to alter the language, in order to make the different parts of the bill harmonise. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that it would no doubt be necessary carefully to examine and compare all the clauses of the bill. He did not think that there was any error in the present clause, but he was much obliged to the hon. and learned gentleman fur drawing his attention to the subject. Mr. SPOONER inquired whether it was intended to give the right of transmission and retransmission through the post as frequently as one chose within the 15 days ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER replied that it was; but beyond 15 days from the date of publication no newspaper would be entitled to the pritilege of trans mission through the post. If the period of 15 days were thought too limited it might be extended. The clause was then read a second time, and was or dered to be added to the bill. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER next pro posed clause B, for determining how questions as to pe riodical publications should be decided. It provided that, so far as referred to their transmission through the post, the question should. be referred to the determination of the Postmaster-General, whose decision, with the consent of the Treasury, should be final. The clause was agreed to. Clause C, relating to the manner in which warrants and consents of Treasury were to be given, was abandoned. Upon clause 1), which providd that actions or suits might be carried on in the name of the registered pro prietors of newspapers on behalf of themselves and co proprietors, Mr. G, BUTT said he thought, if the right hon. gentle man the Chancellor of the Exchequer would consider the laws which were applicable to this class of subjects generally, that he would come to the conclusion that this was a clause which ought not to be adopted. It contained a provision which was perfectly new to the law of the country, and if it were adopted it would apply to no other publication except a newspaper, because no other publication was required to be registered. The effect of the clause was to enable the registered pro prietors of newspapers to sue in their own mattes, with out joining all the parties in the concern as plaintiffs in the action. But upon what principle was this to be done? If there were a firm of booksellers they must all be joined, and what reason was there for taking the proprietors of newspapers out of the operation of the law as it stood? The proposition which was now before the committee wes not properly analogous to that contained in the Joint Stock Act, which enabled proprietors in com panies where there were many partners, upon registering themselves and continuing to register any alteration in the firm as it arose, to sue in the name of the registered officer. That act also provided, if the registered officer failed in his suit and judgment went against him, that it would be a judgment against all the partners in the concern ; so that if the registered officer were a pauper all the p artners would be, as thy ought to be, amenable for the judgment obtained against them in the name of their registered officer. In the present case, however, there was no such provision, and the clause standing therefore in the isolated position in which it did was clearly contrary to every principle of existing law, and to every act of Parliament which had ever been passed for giving facilities to parties for seeing and being sued. Suppose that a newspaper were the property of six proprietors, what reason could there be for exempting them from the responsibility of their ownership? Of course he spoke not of the respectable newspapers in the metropolis and throughout the country, the registe? cd proprietors of which would, no doubt, be answerable for any judgment which might go against them ; but he would take the case of smaller publications, in which it might be convenient to register as the proprietors persons who had no funds whatever, while there were other partners in the concern who might he capable of answering any judgment which !night be obtained against them ; and he said That, under the clause as it was proposed, there were no means of meet ing such a case. The General Joint Stock Act, ith and Bth of Victoria, chap. 110, contained proper provisions for doing justice, and rendered it necessary for every change in the firm, the addition of every new partner, and the ceasing of a man to be a partner to be registered ; and the public officer was obliged once a-year to make a return of every and all such alterations. Ho must give in a list of the whole of the proprietors, and should any alteration be made in the period which elapsed between the times of making the generel returns it was duly noted. It was provided, too, by the Joint Stock Act that a suit should not abate by reason of the death of the plaintiff, for the reason that he was merely the nominal plaintiff, and a judgment was in effect a judgment against the whole of the pat ties concerned, so that a sufficient re medy was given. But here there was a palpable omission. The right hon. gentleman could not have known the state of the law ; for if he had intended to adopt the law to be found in the Bank Act, or the Joint Stock Act, he had so worded the clause as to render it entirely ineffective, and would enable a paper which was stetted for the purposes of piracy, or as a vehicle for slander, to register a nominal man, who would sue and be sued, and the consequende would be that the defendant would be without remedy. There was no principle of law which, if a debt were duo, for instance, on a bill of exchange to newspaper proprie tors, would enable one party to sue, when if a respect able firm, composed of six persons, had a debt due from a newspaper proprietary, they would all be obliged to join in the slit. The clause was not so worded as to do justice between parties who might be plaintiffs and de fendants in a suit, and any hon. gentleman conversant with the law would tell the right hon. gentleman that such a principle was totally unknown to it, and was now for the first time imported into the house. At present proprietors of newspapers were registered for the purpose of giving facilities to the pursuer in fixing the parties in cases of libel ; but the registration of a portion of them did not hinder him from joining the whole of the proprietors in the suit if he pleased. On these grounds he submitted that the clause was not a proper one, and moved its rejection. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that at present the registered proprietors were subject to legal pro ceedings, and might be made defendants to any civil action. Mr. G. BUTT.—Not to civil actions. It relates to actions for libel, and not for debt. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER. —At all events they were subject to criminal proceedings, and it had been represented to him as a hardship that, while they were thus subject, individually, to be made defendants, no relative right was given them of seeing. Any two regis tered proprietors were subject to a judgment in an action. He apprehended that the principal persons registered would be the printer and publisher, and no doubt they would have sufficient funds to give security for costs. The object of this clause was to place them in the same position with regard to slicing as that in which they were when they were being sued. Mr. G. BUTT again explained that the provision of re gistration did not limit the right of parties to sue the re gistered proprietors only, in cases of contract. They might if they pleased, sue all the proprietors. It was, therefore, impossible that this clause could be supported on any prin ciple of law, and he trusted that the right hon. gentleman would not press it. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that it was a clause in which the Governmenthad no interest what ever, but it had been suggested with a view of doing away with a hardship existing under the present law. He had no objection to postpone its further consideration till the third reading. The clause was then postponed. Mr. WHITESIDE inquired whether any determination had been come to with respect to the registration ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER—Those clauses have been withdrawn for the present. I now beg to move the clause which proposes to give the protection of a copyright of 24 hours on certain articles in newspapers. The present copyright in its interpretation clause includes newspapers, and it certainly appears to have been the in tention of the Legislature in passing that act t o ivee full b e nefit of copyrigh t to newspapers as well as g to all other classes of printed publications. But the clauses introduced into that act seem to have been formed principally with re ference to encyclopaedias, reviews, magazines, periodicals, and works of larger bulk and less frequent publication than daily or weekly newspapers, and imposed certain conditions with respect to copyright which cculd scarcely have been ful filled in the case of newspapers, and therefore practically nullified the benefits which the act appeared to concede to them. Inasmuch, however, as it has been imputed to the Government that in introducing this measure, which affects large daily newspapers, conferring upon the public great good by collecting and diffusing intelligence at great ex pense through all parts of the world, it gives facilities for pirating the information they contained, and disseminating it without any cost—inasmuch as it has been charged upon the Government that they wished to encourage a dishonest course of that sort, and having had no such intention,they feel it incumbent to lay before the house a clause like the present, in which a copyright is given to the articles in news papers,and is remedy for the infringement of that copyright. The model of this Cheap remedy already exists in the art with respect to the copyright of desigts, which has received the sanction of Parliament. I am free to admit that if this clause should be rigidly or vexatiously enforced by the leading metropolitan newspapers, the rights which have by consent hitherto been exercised by the London evening and weekly newspapers, and by the country newspapers, would be materially abridged. It is undoubtedly true that the intelligence, the reports of the debates in this and the other House of Parliament, the reports of proceedings in courts of justice, the reports of the transactions at public meetings and on other public occasions, which are obtained at a considerable cost by the proprietors of the leading metropolitan journals, are transcribed into other papers pimply by the were process of copying, and without any ----- 0 10 ° ----------------.......,---- n ~ 00 c lilt . _._ expenditure of money. That practice has grown up and proper tribunal for the trial of questions of this kind. If l not those who pursued it bona ficle..l3,9cl3ill7ing ll t , I'; co r l e itrii has been acquiesced in by the principal newspapers for a there were a summary jurisdiction there mast also be a boldly and openly before the 714 se tieles t a s ller e Q , long series of years ; and it certainly would be a consider- power of appeal ; but he supposed no one would wish an arid reputation due to thent for behhel shi ed be P.'l o able detriment to the public at large if any attempt should appeal to be given to the Quarter Sessions. He was not buted, instead of IneanlY skulking tool ce ncl v , s olocr ° o now be-made to abridge the rights thus conceded by prat- sure that the county courts would not be the best tribunate anonymous writing ? The nob tics ; but it is not my belief that the leading London news- for the purpose, as there would be an appeal from them to posing the insertion after the Irr is d o e l ati it n irc' t tb a e : )Pe ce i .ui: papers would seek to exercise the powers which this clause the superior courts, and by those courts the principles upon abridgment of the same," of a Pirs°rvticles, lo r Ved to I t i r , would confer in any harsh and oppressive mariner. (Hear.) which the law was to be administered would be settled. He tion of the clause to such origivae . eod pu b . ea f er e The proprietors of newspapers, like other persons in this regretted that the Chancellor `of the Exchequer had not munications , La, as wer e country, live under the influence of public opinion. Tho h ters with t or P roosed a newsaper code ; but as the house would by the true nemes of the wri , . (); Wholly. Dot newspapers, to a great extent, act as the guides of üblic thisthisactgreat ofopinion,peculiarly hoped, however •t'. bl the ' amenable to the influence of public opinion, and it is not clause, ha imprac lea e. ey . might think this the public policy of such:countres., ,_,,. lor d lota use that they would not reject the principle upon which The CHAIRMAN sale ee lira .it my belief, looking to the manner in which the principal it was founds namely, that some protection ought to be move his proviso until the cones . Jos t metropolitan newapers are conducted, that their pro- given to newspaper proprietors, who expended much money the clause should be read a s eco . n . 4_tig; re a pr a e o e f t ei3 O % ' prietors would seek by a harsh, novel, or oppressive use of and much trouble for the service of the public. The SOLICITOR-GENERA:I-fa , es q ueella i ; bas.,o,, the powers of this clause to prevent that transcription of Mr. J. G. PHILLIMORE agreed with the hon. and considerable difficulties involved l e ta , it aorl la cj ai sc ! ill intelligence from th e i r co l umns w hich practice has hitherto learned member for Enniskillen in thinking that it was paper copyright; sanctioned. My belief is that this clause would merely be impracticable to establish a copyright in news. One argu- very improper if mY right hon. I" t atteniptedl'apoitoo brought into use in cases where a newspaper might be set ment advanced by the hon. and learned member for Bath measure like the present, had 13 0 ., _ d i, e u9Se 6 re se otS g} up with the deliberate intention of pirating the principal in favour of the present clause hed certainly astonished it. The subject is one which shoulders of a isre 4,o a ; ,0 newspapers, and of transferring into its columns intelli- but, at the satne tanhe etal, is ; , t o i tiet „i _r oi him-namely, that they might trust to the moderation of merits, and stiipped of all that shout . l e , n a u lge.,.. T l o , i r o. Bence, articles of original composition, and other cern - the proprietors of newspapers that they would not exercise. in which leen. gentlemen delight "4 t he c a ' ae Je fe b scir rnumeations, ultimo fgrandi -with the deliberate into- the ri g ht th e y m i g ht a cquire by this bill in a rigorous spirit. There is no thing SA all about news bate been 00 , c , J iri 4 which entireil it o e / thl tion of making the profits o f th e news p a per depend on such He knew it was the fashion to praise the press, butt e very these humorous statements ill-gotten gains. Under th ese c i rcums t ances it was desir- much doubted whether, in the exercise of power, e Pro - sent that the chaise is directed able that a cheap, qu i c k, an d cer t a i n reme dy s h o uld be prietors of newspapers displayed 3 spirit which showed whereas it is directed to anothero•niafiltlltallioieerit'itoure,ie,ello afforded to those news p a per proprietors w h ose i n t e lli g ence th e m to be exceptional to their species- But, io additidn to put his finger upon that por!i t r of c ane ' a ea t ee was So taken from them. The r i g ht hon. gentleman con- to the objection to the clause on principle, the house must present day in which, as a n' at ' 4 fto that wl ile t lies a i j 0, eluded by moving that th e f o ll ow i ng e l enee - b o i nser t e d in see th a t it wa s totally objectionable in respect to its prac- take a just pride, he might poor. , f os tee ht es to e the bill :- aced operation. It not only provided against the pirating ephemeral literature of the dayif an i , he . 0 „ 11 , 8 0;0 " The proprietors of every newspaper shall, for the purpose a whole article, but also against " any colourable ahridg- less deserving of encouragement ad see ierl ii ' os , Pr, of -protection against piracy, be entitled to a copyright in ment of the same." Now, it would require the most cri- the greatest labour, expenses e_ e , e desire , pre) ) all! every original article, letter, p ara graph, commun i c ation, and ti e d m i n d to describe what a colourable abridgment of a upon these !retirees of informationu_a any oa, t eta ,,J4 composition which shall be for the first time published in news paper article was. What was a newspaper ? An ephe- to ask themselves this questio _i a a rope sat . , vl „, , A v il' s , r ; such newspaper ire this country ; and if any person shal, meris, an insect of the day, which, having performed all deny that, as soon as the Chafe by i' d,y bY 7j o g t u e r,e, within 24 hours after the first publication of ally original its functions, in a few hours disappeared. It could not effected, he does not expect th n staraP ea ' P Pre sen ed ir article, letter, paragraph, communication, or composition in f or a mo ment be put on the footing of great works-such • publications will issue forth le ___ es 'tee Dot„. fe , ai any such newspaper, print and publish any copy of such origi- as those of poets, orators, and historians. To place on the - whatever, and feeding entiarsetyanigateorcittiol nal article, letter, paragraph, communication, or composition, same level with the writings of the hon. member for Edin- lished newspapers ? I will w hether i .. 3 file r tber o ti ll or alteration of the same, such person shall for every such Berlin would be most preposterous. o r twee - . q 0' ) toO , I offence forfeit a sum of not less than 51., nor exceeding 3ut., Mr. BENTINCK entirely agreed with the hon. and few hours-probably within one., car teial the l 'eo .t , to the proprietors o f th e newspaper aga i ns t w h om suc h offence learned gentleman who had just spoken as to the want of tion of the London nevispaPThtioes which e t i,i3O g there will be established newsPr Ott e lO has been committed ; audit shall be lawful for the printer or force in the argument advanced by the Chancellor of the portent articles and commun!?'t la bour W 3 O O to ae„ publisher of such last-mentioned newspaper, on behalf of the Exchequer-namely, that he was prepared to trust to the press has gathered with in fi n ite aeon air% ba b o i 7 proprietors thereof, to recover such penalty by a summary pro- good feeling of the editors of newspapers in carrying out (Hear. hear.) 'My attention he '-' T a. nce - , C ,rer C l' o jf ceeding before a stipendiary magistrate who has, or two justices this clause. - Without reverting to the able remarks of the ject from the Personal who have, jurisdiction where the party offending resides, who hon. and learned member for Enniskillen, who, he believed, three years ago there was __,.,,a e rlY „ a s v a or ,e exPestaarted 3 iv"- or j i $t t ra w orolote, i 0 shall issue a summons requiring such party to appear on a had shown that the clause could never be practically car- Politician, which appeared day and at a time and place to be named in such summons t i e d i n t o e ff ec t, h e th ou ght there was another ground of half-past nine o'clock in That va por cu oe ses t 'ile o ,: i s (such time not being less than two days from the date thereof); o bj ec ti on t o th e c l ause . He could not understand on what for the breakfast table. e lor r ung n ed '6ll ,ere ';. and every such summons shall be served on the party offend- ground any man was to claim a copyright in an anonymous the leading articles in • the as i o ck, 6 , 0 pal's ing, either in person or. at his usual place of abode =of, article in a newspaper. The laaeof copyright applied to lished within five and seven a o f We il tes ea e,d bodX _ t ee ' v we s g, P br•rii either upon the appearance or the default to appear the works of durable interest, or, at least, to works on some important articles and stateraen_ _ ti t p r e di lly t,, party offending, such magistrate or juitices may proceed to independent and continuous subject, the authors of which newspapers combined in a hear the complaint ; and upon proof of the offence, by con- were known ; and he thought it impossible to legislate on but from the state of the lave t, 13 4 1 i t c ol on of tt iep fession, or upon the oath of one or more credible witnesses the same principle with respect to such works and to effecting that object, and I think proPe'iteeVetvear (which oath such magistrate and justices are respectively ephemeral and anonymous articles in newspapers. It was complised. Now, what is the two pe r ro e • 00 . 40 hereby authorised to administer), may convict the offender a b sur d t o say th a t th ere was a ny copyright possesied by pr - hon. friend ? It is divided into, thee tt° a 0 0 t 00, in a penalty of not less than 51. or more than 301., as to such my r i ef!, the re* near w"V prietors of newspapers in articles appearing in their journals of coypright which it gives, a nd lion . fon, tlo foli magistrate or, justices may seem fit ; and if the amount of when they all knew that in nine cases out of ten they were applies. I agree with such penalty and the cost of the proceeding, which shall be not written by the proprietors. But while he considered it for Manchester with regard a w so it. rewire, 41 assessed by such magistrate or justices, shall not be forthwith objectionable to attempt to enforce a copyright in deal may be said in oppositio t sso yerea bou t ° 00 ,05 , paid, the same shall be levied by distress and sale of the goods the case of newspapers, when they had no possible means same may be said of every' Pr a T siee d 'i h 'e t Of 0 0 V, and chattels of the offender, and such magistrate or justices of ascertaining in whom such a right existed, he still re- plish that which cannot be Ye . t h e he'e' ea lit e s e shall grant warrants accordingly." tamed a strong opinion against the whole measure. He of much that we have beea it: rorop t, Na t i o n a' ei r ,l, Mr. WHITESIDE was of opinion that the proposed believed the inevitable result of it would be to produce as necessary to justice. Al in p roP ° : i l ig viii t be _,' , clause would not accomplish the object which the right hon. such a revolution in the newspaper press that for the sake mical remedy is desired, sh i t i l of the ct ' a ith e e eslei gentleman had so clearly explained-namely, to protect of the public and for the sake of the respectable portion of this we must give up muc h o f e nu" in the Itit' le ' 6 the rights of the proprietors of the principal newspapers. the newspapers themselves, it wouldbe absolutely necessary we have been accustom a . ~s s ait aiee l s it es c a In that object ho (Mr. Whiteside) entirely concurred, but to make new laws altogether on the subject of the press. ministration of justices a t: var y ofilt aa pot ee e l o it was to the clause to be moved by the hon. member for If this bill passed into a law they ought to require a signs- there shall be a property.ina, od . - ev ery 1 ', 0 0 0 0 ,4$ Pontefract that he should give his support, being of opinion ture to every article in order to determine who were the paragraph, communicatio n , , isbe d 1 0 , _ , rev e ite " , that it was unjust to visit with restriction any journal-he responsible persons, and thereby maintain th,e stability . of shall be for the first time P s ' l 4 sta -tette:tee c r is s 1 e did not care what journal it might be-on account of its the respectable portion of the press, and counteract the in- this country. This clauseer _h Thiel_ 2 .111 0 8 _ , A success. He regarded, therefore, the clause of the hon. undation of mischievous papers which must inevitably it introduces the wora "le w shall wi thi l u e, let t ; ollot r member for Pontefract more as a matter of benefit to the follow Bitches law. He believed, from all the information offence :-'` If any person. i ei e rtie s e l' a tici 6 k community than to any particular paper. But ha l ed cfessed he had been able to acquire, that the effect of this law would first publication of any °Tl s Ci7O, in _itiosi or 01,11 that it appeared to him that the house was now caled on by be to ruin the whole of the respectable portion of the country communication, or comPo su ch er.'lo3, 0 0° 1 0 ,0 the Chancellor of the Exchequer to do what was never Press. Without refereing to the discreet or indiscreet use print and publish any c°PY of er Goo°slo,oo'o fir9ool done before-to limit the blessings of printing, and stifle required from the proprietors of London papers of the power paragraph, communication, .' s ae e o f tb oo e e f i the electric telegraph as far as possible. (Haar, hear.) oe that would be vested in them, he believed that the respect- •terial part thereof, or arlY c°,lli, egad died o ° l 4 this he was satisfied, however, that the clause was wholly able portion of the country press would cease to exist- tion of the same." No'c ' s ' certa i°" rge f 'l 'll ° 4l impracticable. He agreed in the argument used by the a press which in some plicee, in point of talent and circa- with the original is to be a and to lag, sei t o 1 9 ,1 ii right hon. gentleman, and which had been used elsewhere, lation, equalled the press of London, and that in their is now ascertained with reg he i d e ntl If .pi a ori that a newspaper, though it did not invent news,yet some- stead they would have au inundation of small publications publications -namely,, by is is medee o f t1a 5 ,0 1 / 0 ' l'i times he should say otherwise-he laugh)-though it dot not which would beecorne the curse of the country. in which the communication sei t eas ~, t e_ ii i 40 invent the facts which occurred at Vienua, if any facts did Mr. GIBSON did not think that the hon. and learned ' the oriinal communicationnin`so o esi a t :a Ir 1 . / occur there-(laughter)-still it carried the intelligence member for Bath had advanced any great argument in fa- are so d plainly identical s .e u rs i s talseP oo e 'Atte o f,,Ur with great speed and industry, and with his consent it your of the clause now before the committee. He remem- other that it j irepossible.tu the eve ... c 0a1t 10 ,4, 2 0' should be paid, if that were possible, for its extraordinary bored the right hon. gentleman the member q.t. Bucking- mon-sense case criterion had bee: a fr io ,cor ii,, 4 diligence and speed in carrying facts. But, what was the hamshire once made an observation to the hon. and learned as to the fact of piieeY n „,a 105 0 s ill' i lo f 1 4 member thee he liked -his principles and admired his surprised! to find meaning of a copyright in news he could not imagine. News must exist, and halt-a-dozen men migh , carry news speech, but he could not vote for his resolution. So the for Leominster putting Ili i f m 9 1 1', ° 1 era l° o a l ' 4 from Vienna, but one might carry it more rapidly than hon. and learned gentleman now said he liked copyright able abridgment," because, ee wo e eea ie a rreate t ne s , h_ole s e fingor u po 0. 5 , 3 , tio j oe , , ,, another, and the prop &lion should be to pay the parti- in newspapers, and approved the policy of the Chancellor is conversant with the law , tt: 00 , e T ioe ,ll o ),Q 4 .i, cuter journal which, by zeal and activity, got the news of the Exchequer, but that he did not like his plan. But the words which enter into r . The r te bt s o otio,. ;; ; that was the very question the committee had to consider. it now stands on this suecT6 the soonest into this metrophis. He a twitted that origi nal articles of great ability appeared in the principal news- The question before the committee was not a mere ques- right hon. friend (Mr. Mniw fro m an J e tt: j ai% papers, but it was a complement to quote them-(a laugh) then of abstract justice, but of practical policy. A gen- objectao, since it is t ", ke i. ti eb) -I Let e„' too,/ ibsoul sat fr'' O, 'l. -and a testimony to the talent aud ability with which tlenian was examined before the committee who, he be- chester Protectionist -t e ' l l,coerlttiabbe Oa they were written. But it might be said that original lioved, was at that time editor of the Dai'y News. He 'lament brought in to prote _ a soie e esco t ile , f stated that the proprietors of that journal had reason to Yet you have no articles were not so mach the matter of transcriptions as , the striking descriptions of the Battle of Inkerinan and complain that, after they had been at great expense for magistrate or _woo u stices : w hile Y,, o rtti ot oeht other battles inserted in two of the metropolitan journals, the transmission of Indian news, the country papers had tion of copyright deslf th the ° Ai p' l , 0 41 :t written, he was happy to say, by two of his couutrymen taken it from them without any acknowledgment, and he trusting these justices re a solao cia o be c i , 0 and which were pirated ; and in Dublin the clubs received thought that a short copyright would put an end to such what every man of CO i'vetegorteabl telegraphic despatches conveying the substance of any practices ;or that, at any rate, their permission should be of a paragraph or article allows_ ea le s c aoes a de i l e aeticle of interest in an hour or an hour and a half after it obtained. He (Mr. Gibson) recognised a sort of abstract, lowing them to say w hetu o n f r tbe one ib t kc ooo t. was written. But how was that to be stopped ?Of all the justice in this claim, but he was perplexed as to how they or whether the language r tha t i"D ire 'ie" la extraordinary devices which ever entered the head of a were to act upon it. Before Parliament made a law to preach to that of the o tbe laura ele _. c olt at financier for effecting that object this clause certainly was meet an evil, it ought to be satisfied that' the evil was of piratic , ' abridgment ° or of t y be peace es eou t ? the most extraordinary. Whether one man had stolen the sufficient magnitude to make a remedy necessary. The think that any justice et er ° e elea l a difficulty o r e tube , oil poiti et osi the P r°P ss wi e e e ideas of another was often a difficult question to determine electric telegraph of which the hon. member for Stoke-upon- duty, and that this is ~_w to pa , 0 ill . Do s i i i, with respect to a literary work ; but when several men had Trent was chairman, was charged that very day in the Times the present state of the I' ven ient . ` f aeort ho tee obtained any particular fact at Vienna, and the editors with acts of a piratical character,by sending news extracted to introduce some imP' . . ° a he hca',a, r , th i e r ot e of newspapers had commented on that fact, then the from the Times tb the local papers in the provinces. Ho the law. I think my .1 .1 ( howe'e s ts 0° e tee question would arise whether one had stolen it from the would leave it to his hon. frier). I. to explain to the house more than his duty. J',.'v e 0 0 '4 eo c ° t , ft other ; and according to this clause the editors of the Era- the proceedings that had taken place under his presidency. rally think that the pl;, - ; 0 donviii ro t lot,. • miner, the Spectator, and the Press-all men of great talent But it appeared to him strange that if this operation was proceed further, he wil" ou t, an` l aer tb se ee'al e -might be pulled up by the neck before a magistrate to of so oppressive a nature the London morning papers suggested the improver% t hat a ost he n. 0 03 ,, find out whether they had stolen their ideas from the eiti- should now come forward for the first time to ask for Lord STANLEY 031 .4 a al° o iot e' ae tte,'er tor of the Times or the editor of the Morning Chronicle. a remedy. He should like to know whether the house Solicitor-General, it W a ° a " o re al P.,„i n el ti l." 0 0 ,11 0 1 / , Then, to try the question, there had been selected through- would have heard anything about it if it had not bsea for tinue the discussion. "'‘,. e edf, o l ls I °, o ll the Newspaper Stamp Bill? If a copyright was proper to distinction between Ina in 'o' ° t or , out the country curious literary tribunals, and he must ex p, bi ers his desire that Ireland should be exempted from the be had the proprietors of newspapers ought to have it had admitted a copyrig he er.). ;03 1 01 %c bill, for much as he respected the stipendiary magistrates, whether there was a stamp duty or not. The provincial anonymOusly. (H e ar, '' - f e rlg lo ill; ,'„ preee papers took as much now from the London papers us they there might be a pirac° of ,„,1 t 3l : 2 f. , ' he should be indisposed to place at their control the of this country. (Hear, hear.) It was impossible to find were ever likely to take; and if it were necessary that they hand, it Was arg uell ' ii i e ll ' - t tlie` - 0 4, men so unfit for the duty proposed to be imposed on them. should be punished for that offence after this bill should be making public of thata:t" su bjec iietla tat' , He was not speaking disrespectfully of theen-(a laugh)- passed, it was equally necessary that they should be pun- subject of copyright. 'l°i e y 0' reela ,•9 for they were never intended to decide questions of copy- ished now. But this clause was in reference to the pirates by a leg'slative enactment!''tbe c oil e d. oied right. It appeared to him that every, provincial editor, who were to come. They were looming in the distance. between the statement anti fova' i be ilO o if unless that merciful and charitable feeling adverted to Let us wait and see whether they came or not, He was the fact upon which it Wa, s , e , ae' li tteid by the Chancellor of the Exchequer should enter one of those who did not believe that there was this great tempt to solve that pron'eas eel%i row e r9 e , ao into the minds of the London editors, might army of pirates approaching against the London press. He absolutely insoluble. It, W e - orig ie s see,' ocl find himself taken before a magistrate, who might was therefore prepared to abide his time, and see whether could be given where , 14. ,. 0 there reef 'tliej easily be satisfied of the Yielation of copyright, and flue the emergency was so imminent as to necessitate this copied wor c d for word. no toi l " star ) press m i g ht • great change in their legislation. He doubted whether, upon, bat if they trusted _ b ee cr ay irhaq him from Si. ta 301., and thus the provincial easily be suppressed Thu copyright of designs had been practically, it would be possible to accomplish the pro- identity of ideas upon l' .. ' re 01PI i i tli" N o ( 4 , adverted to, but he was not aware himself of any analogous tection proposed for a narration of facts. (Hear, hear.) general interest which w ea e ro ds a . . e o tiec'etil , I provision to the one proposed, and the propositions to give It appeared to him from the article in the Times news- meet the minds of hu e ,res t ier de petet up men's minds and ideas to the judgment of police tuagis- p aper of that morning that they had great doubts they might be doing l 'erso es iii -e eil' e °' V trates was intolerable. If this clause were te be enforced, themselves whether the bill would be of any practical be- often it happened that p,_ ilt bO O. O O eg ),,p let it 'be enforced by a more competent tribunal there . nett to them. If it would be of no benefit to them-they as the experience of I: J ... . fa me/l a t est , 1 : 0 19 might not be much objection to the tribunal which was now being the p reties who made the largest expenditure for out the same line of see s? (Il ea 9_ l te; 4; the greatest in the land, he meant a county court. Ques- . news-it was clear that neither they nor any other London much in the same wOr s 'i' se eisb w r rgillal a e tions of copyright might then ba suewitted to juries, w hi c h proprietors cared much about it. Indeed, they as much as could be devised of dise s i s e ao t o co ib otoo l . ,f ; were generally disposed to take a lenient view in such cases, said that if the halfpenny tax were only removed from their what was and what l i v em ial it ~b' a' but it would be out of , the question that two stipendiary second supplements the other newspapers might plunder present appeared to i hi o. As ea ctl v ! magistrates in Ireland, or two county justices in E IgNoti them as much as they pleased. Thus by the by the Morning have supported the '-'." c perfectly icaV ro tb e a vo C rif should be allowed to decide whether a local journal, to the Chronicle, the Daily News, and all the other morning con- Vie clause would be 40 w o A politics of which they might he oPPosed, had invaded the teniperaries, it appeared, might be plundered as well as law. that ", b e ti l la9 copyright of a London journal. The right hon. gentleman themselves, if the cheap postage of ld. for anysizeor weight Mr. MILNES hope the d os ot , tb would not be able, and he ought not, to carry a clause were granted to the Times. Only concede this boon, and Exchequer withdrew ill a (le° i iidad° , to that effect. Did the right hien- gentleman intend to they would bid defiance to piracy. This apprehension of an assurance that he of rec on a c 0 09 09 therefore, could not be very well founded. The edi- to devising include the preys of Ireland ? That was a question which piracy, so me mode 0 .,, e, „ per o f he might call a puzzler. '(A. laugh.) Would it not be ter of the Daily News, in his evidence, stated that nobody this point. There were h era tie e , hard that a London newspaper should not be looked into could complain if a provincial paper announced, as a fact, their hearts that some °'' Was), for 10 or 12 hours after its arrival in Dublin, for fear a ny that a London journal said so awl se. Now, here was a needed. _ii_ to 5 0 4 reat e' Oi l 'OP f one might extract the intelligence it contained ? Evan if copy of the " morning express," which was sent down t o Mr. FOX said, the g los e es , iiel c b ,ii. the Dublin newspapers published intelligence of their own Manchester that day by the hon member for Stoke- omission of some such c a .. p res_ r 00, io.. in the morning, a question would arise whether it heel not upern-Trent's (Mr. Ricardo's) company. and which thelestablishmentof aellea'a 1 . 0 e,, 0 0 4 f O l, been stolen from a London morning paper, and would was described us piratical :-" 9a.m., April 30. The Post existing newspapers, w:_ o e thel:aer, tll'/;s: have to be determined bY a lh=4,lee magistrate. His view ' believes that despatches were received on Friday from Ge- journals, and would destaf f . o .o . o o for, of ii , of , was that it would be right for toe to protect good news neral Canrobert, and , on Saturday from Lord Raglan extensive and aceurate,iii.eriptl°.,oo9:kre and valuable commentary if they could dose-- (hear)-but through the new submarine telegraph, ❑ stating that the bora- talent of the highest uf s a ib b s all 9 ; o iog f a of ‘0);! they could not, and it was useless to make the attempt. hardment of Sebastopol bytheailies had not been atteuded (Hear.) It could not P°' ie ob t _ e er ;,iier eti f Se (Hear.) If this section passed, one body of wen, the law- with such success as tu justify an assault." Was thp state- out large suns of neolieL a i e tee t o , D e 1 i d ; yers, and the country attorneys especially, ought to return ment that the Post thought or believee that such a des- geuce from a censidersoo too ;d o ' 0 , 1) ,,i i . thanks to the house, for every newspaper in the empire patch had been received to be considered as piracy ? Well, to become the proPe r Ve t:erbii°.e,Pe 0,1?,1 1 ' , would be brought into a police-Office. He submitted that this was the form of the announcement generally made by interposing between tov vi , l - 3 ,iy1401 0 0 i ,!,(t if the right hon. gentleman would remove the objection the electric telegraph. They ran thus :-" The Times says publishing it. TheP re o f this,' e rev o teera, , i i ' . as to weight which affected, a particular journal, he so and so-that Sebastopol had been taken," for instance. riorated by the passi n g ec tabl,,,LronWil',: would do well to take the advice given him a few hours (A. laugh.) These were matters, the circulation of which for of course all the re,s . P eir erP o of fo r:v 3 l ei ago, and to l ea v e th e question of copyright as it was. it would be impossible' to stop. The London correspon- prietors eould make t expo t heir if 'icrlY4' The great journals here did not suffer so much as they dent of a country newspaper searched the contents of all papers, who went to t he t i peY 011Pdet," supposed from the grievance which it was now sought to the journals and telegraphed down to the provincial ecli: telligence. They w e ', l , e id he ° „e4ce l d l io redress, and the effect of , the right hon. gentleman's pro- for such portions of the news published in the metropolis so incurred, ands t w ''. ti ttle° "tee ' o ",llriJi posal would be, that all the respectable provincial journals that morning as he thought fit. The provincial editor not pay should gwitetos to of looeseaplai err ei weal perpetually be fined, and the London journals would received his intelligence from his correspondent, but known to the inhaler was oe or d; 4 ,ea„, be worrie iby a law which they did not desire. He should, he did not know whence the latter had obtained it. obtaining intelligence for our best upon these grounds, oppose the clause. (Hear, hear.) • The correspondent was a collector of the news brought original compositions ~,...t t wo be! e oi 0 1 ,r Mr. PHINN said, the thsb question to be decided was, telegraphed by the Times from Vienna or elsewhere ;he considerable oust; " i f he o l'fes i i ; o; o'4 whether it was desirable that there should be a cppyright in what he read and heard ; and, therefore, to cur these heavy exPet rie e s 'sava r s per c estiQi news, when newspapers had gone to great expense and made make a provincial editor penally responsible, merely te- immediately pirated °Lla l' es rlY r be eta great exertions to obtain it? If they thought it was desir- cause he inserted a paragraph communicated by an inde- time ago there was a ' gad; , di ° 0 0 0 able they then came to the second question-whether the pendent source, and which might have appeared in large circulation bY g os f e rrit e VlV 3 ' means proposed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer for some London morning journal, would be perfectly mon- weekly papers, and tr d 'a o uld e .. s ee°4 9 that purpose ought to be adopted? The hon. andlearned strous. Again, the power of evasion would be so great pages. This no doubt we re e ' o liiy, gentleman (11Ir.Whiteside had Put extreme cases ;he would that it would be impossible to enforce the law without, betdaly papers if the stamp t hat I,.' b r 01! ice put a case the other way. The morning papers went to creating all sorts of vexatious litigation-a consideration a great fallingoo '" „, e r 1° rete' p re,'" more expense and made e ereater exerrions in order to collect surely forming a valid argument against any new legisla - expense for intelliger fi ressaa O a t irt` intelligence than any other newspapers in the world.; they tion. Literary newspapers were, no doubt, entitled to a now characterisednootaVe se hi s , . iloe ' f , 4 had agents and correspondents all over the globe, in every couright, if they contained series of letters-" Mrs Cam- balence every ad v tam p a dtot vote great s capital, and in many of the secondary towns, and the dles Curtain Lectures," for a m stance-(laughter)e-or any the repeal of the s fiser y t tt ilit; a oge e English public were supplied with news very often long other, provided the proprietors registered those particular did render it nee , n d 10 4 se t fi ) before her Majesty's Government were prepared to com- compositions, which, being produced from the mind'of amount of cap pw se' t bo ' 0 0 0 4 ;,,,,, municate it to the house. The Times, or the Morning some individual, were entitled to tha same protection as establishment of a 11 ; g eure":;0 0 , i reWe' do ..,a jo ti li 4l,4 c , Chronicle, or the Morning Herald, might be obtained at books. The right,. however, to narrate a fact, when that displayed in its b 0 6in the morning, and by half-past Bor 9 a newspaper fact had been previously narrated by somebody else, was a this, all would be P e AO r :Cr, V o AO ' i f lljO' might be circulated through London, containing all the totally different thing. It was •to be' hoped, there- had been said of th f . :a u rael - ,it'fcet l l l a leading articles, and the chief intelligence, political, Eta. fore, that the Chancellor of the Exchequer, seeing the very sorry to see 0 11 F J ai e oP eig ol o o t o f o ,', i nary, and legal, published in those journals, at about one- difficulties incident to the subject which had occurred to either in news, the ad' oi vl co f li,l 9 ;14 t third of their cost. Was not this a great wrong, and ought the house, and considering that the danger sought to be conduced to the v; ii i i to 0 00 0 0 ,„ it not to be redressed ? (Hear.) Would not the hon. mem- guarded against was altogether prospective, would consent hear.) -With rer% e sire (3° be t ire" !' dl, bi f° rI i i' her for Manchester exclaim against spring patterns in cot- to postpone, for the present at least, the extension of a generally from s e7 a dopt ° 0 0 r fo r ti ti ol i o ton being pirated, and offered to the London houses at half copyright to newspapers. such a system vat s r ogO i „ e tli e rOp it'l' their proper price ?He admitted that the morning papers Lord LOVAINE said that this was the first time in the nience of those sr „ ale tee ot f a ° tie", , might exaggerate the gr i evanc es u nder which they suffered, history of this country when a copyright was asked for were made to o•oP e e ;i e g P forF i eose t' f fe l e ; but the effect of a system of piracy such as he had described articles of the most ephemeral description, which were tor or would be to dinainieh their circulation, to lessen the object written one day and forgotten the next ; and certainly it person. It propriet °r '- o t h e 0,04 ea must haleotienogreoliecleleie for which they incurred expense and made exertions, and the press of our day needed this protection it must have , " Junius were en n y ,, Itt l , 4 „ie P e 1 0 41 060,,, so to diminish the value of the article which they supplied become weaker than it used to be. Recollecting what the as were the haters of c r a b Or_ 0 4 ,1 1 i , , to the public ; h e w a s now, therefore, pleading for daily newspapers assumed to be their functions, how they had also produced w yr u as it g e t Or 0 . P 0 3 4 bi g the public rather than for the proprietors of newspapers. controlled, or attempted to control, Minieaers of State e and more recent tituesa st iinP r eo es e sef/ap All public men sometimes fell under thedash of the press, interfered even ie the operations of the army, affording in- h a d fi rs t c reated a t t u iuc t of t o P a ie v ' e r 1 00 1 ' 0 ,1 0'1 but he believed our newspapers were, on the whole, the formation to the enemy on points which it was of the high- • res p ec t to the c"" a iry I' at e a,i v o u e e' ' best conducted in the world. God torhid that they should est importance should be conceeled from him-in which : compelled thet inci sho uld site , pito p o id i, ever resemble the newspapers of America. ide agreed with reprehensible practice, according to the statement of a late b een f or the pros% ,h e c t igl! 0 0 ° id e l i ~i ~ br o O . A , i the hon. and learned gentleman that the remedy proposed Cabinet Mieister, they could not be restrained-it was unravelling all, i been t ob ° e ns ~1 S . by the right hon. gentleman was not a good one. He , rather curious that they . should come before the house at ,in the Crimea 13 , 1 ( r 0 .0 4 0 oor 50 ,i 0 , 4 thought 24 hours was too long a period for copyright in that particular moment in the . attitude of suitors seekine a country was u p ' : Te ss w e '' t lea t re' h e i° l news to continue, as six or eight hours would produce the copyright as a Protection. It was a question whether, ' ' press, and ita pr , ' 30 j o ,'l c b 1, Al t, r e , c ri same practical effect. Distance as well as time was an according to the law of England, any man hart a rht in man ought to Pri z .,i es wh a ellaile e ' ir e ,r'; elementin the question. The London newspapers would have another's wrong ; for it was notorious that the press siren- gad to the diflie l :, o f Lp i fl, ,f:4o; o f i l. , reason to complain if a newspaper Pirated from themselves lated calumnious accusations and vituperative charges of enforcing the l t w o f t be o . 'oes ea" , yr, 4 were circulated in London, but if the news contained in against individuals, who had no meansof clearing themselves The legal oppon e su e n Fl he, a cb ° , 4 oopiq them were telegraphed to the Dublin or Edinburgh news- in the eyes • of the public. Those charges were reiterat• d though why i t ii n affe e 'b e le 10,/i ti 's r i papers there was no competition, and they would not el a froin day to day-some of them hoe t even been repeated in not see, since raspct3 , o , of ti , ,lo jy ti copy the less in those places. He thought some means that house in the face of the most solemn denial ; and was a large body ef 'lips dl } : :05 1 1'` .4 ,, P IV ' ought tb be adopted to repress the piracy wlaca he knew it fitting that a right of property in articles of that cbarac. Electric Telex eish uo rel t 'ae e sl,„l,' would be committed upon the morning journals. The boo. ter should be createdor protected? Again, magistrates by was sheet to f l eo , hie 00 0 e t vi ro e, b" 1, member for Manchester (Mr. Bright) might shake his head, the law of this country were not allowed to settle the corn- would tell 00 11 0 " or the. si e ajosareleYi but he (Mr. Phien) knew that preparations were at that m onesaquestion of right-such matters must be refereed to it di:oenlinated ter for tn tiolb t e i ,..i i l moment being made in London to publish the principal -ajury ; and yetis a case of this importance, where the news- who collected v l e ° t `„ the le :tec VOeie it t+/ papers exercised enormous and irresponsible powers, it was communicate rte Leap,t gre,l; I 01 if j o leading articles and the most important intellieeoce con posed that they shouldbe permitted to go before such he did not so 3 C!,. 0 cosh 3 ., .'f'/ f! , tame in the morning papers by 10 o'clock. With regard Pr° to the means by which this grievance ought to be redressed, a summary tribunal to enforce their alleged rights. Why fit of this neevar ie o f ti o ce / iee tv ie ll e i t A he admitted that he was not willing to devolve upon police , should not the persons whose characters were assailer] and to take advst_lebis li n o, si d e 0 0 1 19 p magistrates a new a s arduous duty for which they were aspersed_. by the press have an equal right to go before a which ceme n''' . a te nti ra idl 6 00:0 most inadequately paid. The Legislature was every day stipendiary magistrate, and obtain damages against the scribed it, Ire c o wile st ~, e t l ~i r l, o f , heaping upon public functionaries new and unpopular _proppetor of the journal that had injured him ? of the compar'Y Ile e. firer e' l li) 0 . c e ia duties which they had never contemplated when they had But, further, it w as th e p r i n ter or publisher of a newsPa- out the country-aewspePan the ta b° Asa accepted their The Chancellor of the Ex- p er who was to sue for the penalty provided by this clause. of estieblishingaujoi lid sods io i dg chequer was right appointments. saing that they must trust to the hy should it n a ra th er be the editor, the person who would inflict a ti _ t rote ,0/ es, Plot forbearance, moderation a and discretion or the pew t spaper . could prove by whom the articles the right involved in destroy the b .. 7 ..0 7 00 3p.,, n ot too :, fi el i ot proprietors-(cries of "oh! oh r+) -for the h efficien work- a which was assert e d were originally furnished? This bill abolition of , tt e ; D ee coillr`i o f 0 ea v r ing of the clauses. He believed that t . ey wou p. n?t lso proposed to relax the existing law for protecting pri- Mr. RIC 1 / 4 think it worth while to institute proceedings except in , vete character from the anonymous libeller. 1 1 . ,1,tr li t ' o ,l ot 00 Journalism tained in the _ woe the I cases of systematic piracy, continued week after week. in this country required the exercise of as much talent and pass withotat ts t e o t titv , • a I There was considerable difficulty in the choice of a ability as any other profession, and why, therefore, should seemed to oth er • . iii