The Sun. — London, England, 1830-12-15 00:00:00

-.i.q.VA' .p.)krt')-2avi I C 4 • -r!, • - ) 104 from the Legislature, to follow thise system . . They prayed the Legislature to prOtect them the • d tette to avoid being driven ban this disgraceful , end dishoLour.thle praitire; but they could not sit still and see their capital Meltaway ; and if their fair and hottest exertions were not protected, they must act on the same plan as their neighbenrs. It was too bad that only those men were to he stlecestful who continu a lly violated the law. It would 101 seid,'perhaps, that these great masters might leave the trades bet that was not so easy; they had large quantities of ilia capital, of buildings and machinery, which they could not dispose of—which they were obliged to keep ping, and which they could neither stop nor dispose or ,wit:Mat great injury. The Legislature ought not to suffer such to he ruined for the advantage of , others, who both injured the Workmen and violated the law. It affected another class most seriously, and that was the thopkeepri. As it had been said by a friend of his, this system cut down the shopkeepers as with a two !Aged sword. It cut off their natural customers, and at so impoverished the poor,. that they bad nothing to lay out with the shopkeepers, who, at the same tiros, had additional rates to pay to support the men whom the, truck masters had 'reduced to poverty. The shop iteepers were in many places seriously injured by the truck system. It did not, however, seem very advanta geous to the truck master, or rather, they were a de ticription of persons whom ne advantages could make Politer ; and of twenty in one place, eighteen or nineteen had become bankrupts. The landowners were also much itijitred by this system. The population were in seasons of activity drawn into the manufacturing towns, and When that season was past they were returned to the Country, And because a burden in their own parishes to the bindowner. The system engendered low prices and a iuperibundance of labourers, and injured in every way the unfurtunete workmen. The Hon. Member then rertrred to the lantana in which the land had grown up to its preterit itate. The first Act on the subjpet wal passed in the 4th of Edward IV. in 1465. That was a period of Civil war; battles were fought in the country, and _so ciety was disorganised. The city of London was then in undated with foreign manufactures, and there were not lest than 15,000 foreigners in Lond.m. The natives were in a Manner dr:ien away, and the truck system was intro duced by the foreigners. Tu repress this grievance the law was pelted. It was a sharp, stringent law, and im posed heavy penalties, equal to treble the amount of Lis wages. The law continued unaltered till the reign of Elisabeth, when two Acts were passed of a local nature ; but for 138 years little was heard of truck. The law sontinued so till the reign of Aune, when it was re laxed, and by the Ist of George I. the penalties were lowered to twenty shillings. The result of this was, that great distress ensued in several districts, disturb- Lucre followed, and . a large part of the count!) , was convulsed. The Parliament fur three years—in 1725, 1726, and 1i27---was employed in examining into the state of the country, and one of the results was, that a Dill was passed to regulate the payment of wages and re- Feu the truck .system. The truck masters, however, Utterfered with this enactment, and got inserted in it a clause, that the workmen should receive part of the penalty; and the consequence was, that this Act of Parliament was null, and of no effect. By the 22d of Geo. 11. the law Warn again relaxed, arid the payment of the wages of tworkin e U in goods allowed. The consequence of this was, that great distress again ensued, whole districts were the prey of the truck system, riots again broke out, and the Government was obliged to draw a cordon of troops round the manufacturing districts of the West of England. The fallowing year the Act was wholly repealed. The only Aats be believed, subsequent to that time was the Ist of (home IV., which he bad brought in, and in which he adopted the language of the Statute of Elizabeth, but for Want of power that Statute was not effectual. Such was the present state of the law, and be would proceed to Point out what he meant to do by the Bill he proposed to introduce. Ile proposed, then, first, to prohibit the in direst practice of paying ueiget by goods, or making con tracts !or that purpose. Ile would give the Megistrateta Power to get a ditect proof of the practice, and would enable the workmen to recover their wages by a summary Procne. 11, would submit their case also to Jurors, as better qualified than Magistrates, to give a correct decision ; and allowing the labourers to appeal to a Jury would give publicity to bad casts. Ile meant, also, to take from track-masters tie power of recovetiug inY wages they might advance to their workmen. The compelling the masters to pay wages in money Would operate to make them pay pet itelically and at short period.. lie also proposed to make the :" of stringent nature, for it would be idle . 7 attempt to snake it effectual without imposing eery heavy penalties. To retrieve one objectiou, he would *Wile the Privy Council, on application heing mule to it by the Magistrates of any district, to suspend the tip,r e .. lion o f the Act in that district. Stich were the objects lit contemplated by his present Bill, which did not differ much from the Bill lu hail introduced last Session. Ile knew that the lion. Member for Middlesex would oppose the hill, and he should beg leave to anticipate some of hitt arguments. lie knew that that Hon. Member Would say that the truck-muter was driven to this system'by Corn I .lWs and heavy taxation, but he would tell that Hon. Ressler that any possible reduction which could be made is taxation, or any abolition of monopoly, or the total rleal of the Corn Laws, would not relieve the distress of the people: ,The truck system was the cause of the die ire", aed that would not be touched by auy one of these treasures. The Hon. Member would tray, leave it to eons- Petition ---th at competition Would cure the evil. . He ad- Witted that competition was great, but he did not think that any success or any.defeat could make the truck•mas tent give up the system: In 1824 and 1825, when trade Wall brisk, whets all the nuteufecturers were in a moat Prosperous state, ire had not heard that one of the truck-- 4 tasters had Rivets up his plan. Ile stated that fact as an Imswer to many of the statements of the Hon. Member for 4 litidlesex. With respect to injuring these people by his le.W allure, it would not, most probably, be passed b e f o r e J une,„„and he meant that it should not come into operation 411 three months after it was, passed; so that the truck master would have till September to make new arrange ments. The people wished for this. Bill as a protection.... the great capitalists demanded it as the means of prevent themD from engaging in the same business. The lion. 4 ftber. fur Bliddlosex meant, he believed, to move fur N 4 "notnittee, with a view to have all the laws referred to it *bids related to the subject. He could only repeat that l classes with whew he had had any communication de manded some measure of protection to save them from Nisi. If the practice were good,' why not make it uni versal? Surely that which was good at Paisley must be 11 ° , t1 at Glasgow, and that which was good at Bolton could nut be Injurious at Manchester. Unless the House 1161 die41 to see the systetn becotne universal—opiues it was replied to see money banished from the rnmufacturing ,i s tricts—uniess it wished that all the workmen in the 4l sedous should be pai d their wages in goods of an un certain nature—unlom the House desired to see all these shrugs, it would take treasures to put a stop to the truck "ystent, and it would second him in his efforts to pass !tot •The Hon. Member then referred to is passage i s the works of Adam Smith, which agreed with his view l thi s question, andandobserved that his lamented friend. ir. Iluskisson, hail extracted it, with the intention, if rrovidence had spared his life, of reading in that House 4111buppnt of the motion which' he knew would be made ' 4 the House in connection with the truck system. He t°llelueled by moving for leave to bring in a Bill to con.. volidate and amend the larva relating to the payment of *sera in goods. A lr• EWART (its we were told) seconded the inn- T'or and declared that its the county of Lancaster, with which he was connected, sotne measure of this kind was elholtitely necessary fir the pretectioreof the workmen. 11r. HUME said, no laws, which the Legislature 4 f, the ti me • h a d b een a bl e to d ev i se , cou ld step the Kim il4; nor no l aws w hi r l s the Legislature could devise now * Put art end to the system of bargain between the 'taster and the workmen, 4 it suited their convenience to t y,, d i a P t it; an d as to the distress among the wotktnen, of the [tail leer told it was the cause, he was con& ;:nt he should be able to prove that the distress n o m ore ;rt es the wor ki ng of the truck system than the high k r. '" of provisions was to be taken formerly as is cow r°re of the system of forest tiling and regrating. In t : °Pinion, the workmen a nd the masters should be left ithemselves, and to the bargains which their wan ts or 4 1 'lles allowed them to enter into, just in the same tnan. er 44 trade was now left unshackled by the laws against f ws against The Legislature, by : its interference, would 6 6 41 ee1Y add t o th e evils which it intended to cure; and he h ut t'eli therefore, that no such measures as those cont ain. 1 ,3 1 1 ' 44 by hie Hon. Friend would receive tire assent of the a ute, until a Committee of Inquiry had established heir necessity. :That itiquity he detnrsndttd from the h t:usel and lie was confident, if g .anted him, be should t v , i rde to dispro ve neat ly the whole of the statemen t s o n 1 L 4 ,0! hie lion. Friend supported his motion for leav e . bring in the Bill. The Honourable Member s a id thin Bill was required by all the great capitalists.— ittdrd not believe it to he so. Ile knew many capitalists, who did not reqsl;ee a-Dill of this ~_or who had expressed no o pi n i on about it; but t:it he knew well, that without the truck system, it 1 11 ; 6 1!Itl Le linpessible for rho small capit a li s t s to carry on qr business, rind be was convinced, that if the Bill was , three partiof thesis would be compelled to abandon 'their !ctiles, and to tb rq r the workmm out of emphty mint. bid the Hon. Member, in point of fact, consider the nature of his own Bill ? According to the provisions of it, workmen, in coal, stone, salt, and several other com modities, were exceptvd ; so that the Hon. Gentleman would allow the cabinet-maker, or the iron-muter, or any other trade of that kind, to Tommy it to any extent over his workmen, while he refuses the same privilete. to the atone or the salt-master. He (Mr. flume) had visited many places where the truck system was in full operation ; he had conversed. with the workmen and their employers, and he had come to the conclusion that the system was beneficial to the labourer, and that in almost every case where goods were delivered to the workmen they were of aro' bolt quality, and sold at a fair market price, In most cases the stores were indeed, set on foot bemuse the work. men were placed in such a situation that they could nut he readily supplied with good articles is any other place., In the petition he presented on this subject to the House, it was distinctly stated that the workmen had obtained great advantage by the stores ; that theirwegeiWent much farther than when they were compelled to give a much higher price for bad articles at the same shops in the neighbourhood; and that the establishments where the : system was at work were in many cues so far removed. from any town, and the small shops were so ill supplied. with the goods required by the families of the workmen, : that they were in reality great gainers by the est Nish ntent of stores at the manufactories.. In the case of Lanark, for instance, which pie had visited in the course. the summer, and where there was, as every one knew, a large establishment, what was the condition of the work men ? There were about 1,900 persons at present em ployed in the manufactory ; but at the time when the buildings were first erected there were no buildings in the vicinity occupied as shops, and there were therefore no means by which the wants of the workmen could he sup plied, unless they went'to Lanark „itself.- Now, however, that there was a store established; there was scarcely an article which they could not procure pin tea silk gown, from a pound of oatmeal to a straw hat, sr a handkerchief, and that too at a price lower than: they bad been in the habit of paying for inferior articles elsewhere. The lion. Alembericemed to consider that the; taking of goods at these stores was compulsory; but no compulsion was used, nor was it necessary.. Each workman, when engaged at the factory, received a book from the store, and if his wages were 12s. a week, he received credit for ea. or 10s., which he might take out in one purchase, or in many, as it suited hip wants or his desires ; but after he had been is employment fur some time, he might receive a ticket on the store for the whole of his wages, if he de sired it. Ile bad seen the books, and the whole of the system ; for there was no attempt at,concealment. Every article was was purchased at the lowest price, and the pro. fits were ab-ut 10 per cent. What, however, did the es tablishment do with these profits ? Why they were ap plied to the support of four schools, at which the chil dren of the workmen, male and female, were, up to the age of It or 14 years (when they received employment in the factory,) taught to read and write, and all that know ledge which was fit to render them mural and useful mem bers of society. This was a specimen of the working of the truck system in Scotland; and could the Chancellor of the Exchequer, after hearing such a statement, agree without inquiry to the motion of the Hon. Member? Among the other assertions of the Hon. Member which he, with all respect, must say required proof, it was con tended that the desire for the abolition of the truck sys tbm was general. lie (Mr. Hume) denied that it was so; A4(l he also denied a statement put forth with great confi dence in the la , t discussion, that the truck system was ge neral among the masters of Glasgow. He bad, since that period, visited Glasgow, and Mr. K. Finlay, a man who employed himself upwards of 900 'workmen, had at once assured him there was not a single instance of a payment of wages in goods in the city of Glasgow, nor had he heard of any, except at an establishment of Mr. Dunlop, a few miles from the town, and in a place where the work men could not be readily supplied with their necessaries elsewhere. It should be recollected too that Glasgow con tained a population of 160,000 inhabitants, of whom more than 40,000 were workmen. Ile did not deny, however, that the Truck System did prevail to great ex tent ; and that, perhaps, in Bolton and some parts of Lan. casbire, it might be productive of evils, but he contended that it was not in the power of the Legislature by inter ference to remove them ' • and that all the acts already passed on such, subjects ha d aggravated the evils they were intended to remedy. The Hon. Member had declared that all the great capitalists were adveist to the system. Now, he knew that Bolton and Watt were not ; and that Mr. liolton had, on the contrary, expressed no opinion on the subject. But, supposing that the great capitalists were united on this point—and he believed it was true that they had no objection to see the system put an end to—what would be the consequence to the small capitalists, who, in times when trade was dull could not command the same supply of ready money ? Why, the consequence would be, that all the smell capitalists must close their factories and blow out their (mimicries, and their trade be com pletely a enupoliaed by these who bad money at command. The workman would thus be forced to accept of employment in any place where it would be offered, instead of leaving him at liberty to choose his own master, The whole of the principle connected with questions of this description had as his lino. Friend well knew, received a thorough discussion it tits Committee which sat to inquire into the at.te of the combination laws. On that occasion it would be recollected, that the Committee sat fifty days to inquire into the state of the workman in relation to his employer, and that, after a hard struggle, the friends of the ebandonoaent of injurious restrictions were enabled to sweep away upwards of sixty Acts from the Statute Book, and to put an effectual termination to that state of bicker ing which had so long prevailed between the worlanan and his employer. " It was expressly declared that the workmen and their employer were in future allowed to make any bargain they thought fit, and to concert any measures they conceived most likely to benefit their inte rests, provided only that they abstainedfrom violence or intimidation. This was, he thought, the principle which should govern the whole of their conduct towards the workmen. He had always thought there was much too strong a passion for interfering with the workmen on such occasions. The lion. Member wiatuol to treat the work men as children, and talked of their inability to guard themselves against the power of their trowels ;.but he (Mr. Hume) thought they were us well „Able to judge of their interest_as any other portion of.the community ; and he was satisfied their moral character was raised by in creasing their sense of independence, mid suffering them to delved on the resource* of their own minds, or the con. tract: with their 'nesters, rather titan by placing them un der the protection of Acts of Parliament. If the lion. Mem, her granted him an inquiry, he should be • able to prove that the workmen were fitted to, go without leading atrium and that they were not children, as the Hon. Member supposed. The ques tion now was, whether or not the Legislature was pre pared to improe those restrictions with regard to wages which it had removed With respect to labour, and that, too, at a time when the Act of George IV., chap. 84— he meant the Act with regard to the.enforcement of con tracts—provided a remedy for every complaint of a breach on either side by an immediate appeal to the nearest Ma gistrate? The Hon. Member seemed to think the work men were oppressed ; but the fact was that tl:e musters were the oppressed ; and it was a fact that in a small town near Sts kport Sixteen prosecutions had been coin menced against masters for doing acts of charity by giving employment on the terms required by the workmen them. selves. These prosecutions wire carried on at the instiga tion of the Committees of the workmen, and contrary to the &Sire of those emplUyed ; but yet the Magistrates hail been compelled to inflict the penalty of ten pounds, for each udrenee. His' lion. 'F' iced haul explained the law on this subject ; but, - in his opinion, I is lion. Friend did not fully comprehend its provisions, fly the pteseot law, if master gave a iallon Of finer, or ten pounds of beef to a man, as a part of his wages, lie was liable to be stun mooed +dere' a Magi.ttate, and fined. By. Lis Hon. Friend's Bill thst tine was greatly increased an the second offence, and on the third the roaster might be tranapot tell. A principle more hostih , to the freedom of trade than the principle of the measure could not be conceived. A single labomer was empowered by it to call fur the production of the books of m merchant or tradesman, for the purrrose of their being examined. To legislate by means of such machinery was most unadvisuble, Mr. LITTLETON denied that such Machinery existed in his Bill. Mr. HUME said, that the Bill had been three times printed, and that, perhaps, it hat undergone alterathim Such a measure was calculated to increase those rancorous feelings which at present existed ; and which stimulated committees of workmen in every town to bring masters before Magistrates, and subject them fine and other pn. nishment. In Many cases, where the Magistrates were quite satisfied that the toaster had been influenced by a Clutritible feeling,, and a wish to relieve his workmen,: they were, nevertheless, much against their own feeling,ohliged to punish them. With respect to contracts, it was well known that whatever engagements were made between..the master and the man, there were easy modes of enforcing. The terror under which his lion. Frien►l laboured whs, that the truck system occasioned the distress, insteSd of being occasioned by it. Be (Mr. Hume) was exceed►ngly desirous to avoid the evils which he thought would result from the adoption of hie lion. Friend's Bill ; but, above , . . all, lee was anxious - that the Legislature might not he led away by feeling or passion to take any step without; giving a fair anti full opportunity for inquiry. When he bad argued against the. Comleination 'Laws be ha been charged with seeking popularity. Then, as new, he never adverted to popularity ; he proceeded on prin.: ciple. He cared not for this party or that ; for the - inside • or the outside of the House. •He was:confident that leis view of the subject was the right one. If the men though rj differently, he would tell them frankly they were in error. ' Every Member lead his nostrum for the present distress His Honourable Friend the Member for Staffordshire had his nostrum. He (Mr. Hume) had his ; and it was the abolition of the Corn Laws ; the abolition of the law., which prevented the manufacturers of this country from being enabled to send the produce of their industry int.,: the foreign market. He had been accused of holding strange ideas respecting taxation. Pie certainly had the . strange idea that taxation took money out of the pockets of: the people. Other Hon. Gentlemen might, perhaps think that it put money into the - pockets of the people.--: But taxatiun was only one cause of the distress. There were twenty other cauaes. He attributed the distress tee concurrent causer!. operating both at 'home and abroad. He was convinced that the proposed measure would be injurious) both to the master and the men. He would ask his Hon. Friend the Vice-President of the Board of Trade whether he thought industry of any kind could be pro moted by putting fetters upon it? The present Bill would he an iron fetter that would go to the bone, He really was at a less to conceive, since the Bill was not to operate until October, why an inquiry into the fact, of the case might not be instituted in the interim. He had seen some gentlemen from Bolton ; and if lee bad time he would go down to that place, and argue the people who were unfavourable to the truck system out of their pre judices.—(A laugh.)—Yes, if the Chancellor of the Ex chequer would grant him a committer, he would pledge himself to go down to Bolton, and there argue the ques tion. He knew the good sense of the working classes of this country ; the Government was mistaken if it supposed that the_ anufacturing classes of the country were not, in intelligence, fir, before it.—(Laughter from both sides of the House.)—Yee, the higher classes had been reced ing for years in information, and during all that time the lower classes lead been going forward,--for, to use a common phrase, the schoolmaster had been indeed abroad. He would take a' committee of 60 manufacturers from Glasgow,-,.a place with which he was better acquainted than with any part of Eugland,—and he could go into the other HouM of Parliament and take a committee of 60 peers—(Hear, and laughter)—and lee would stake his life that the 60 manufacturers would be found the most sensible beings by far.—(Much laughter.) Sete lee was that they might look a long while among the manufactu rers before they would find one who would talk so much nonsense as a Noble Lord talked the other eight un that never-trobe-fergotten statement about the distress of the country, particularly with regard to machinery..-(Hear, and laughter.) , Instead of adding to the number of sta. tutes regulating labour, be would, if he could, clear the Statute Book of all fetters upon both mattera and men. Let them be removed, and the common law would be found qUite enough for the purpose of enforcing contracts. There were the Hawkers' and Pedlars' Acts; for instance. Why should they not be repealed ? Why was the hawker and pedlar to be prevented from carrying his wares to the door of a poor man, who probably had not leisure to repair to any neighbouring town ? it was allowed on all hands that it would be a good thing to carry justice to every man's door ; why not to carry goods ?—(A laugh.) Why had fairs been eatablished ? Because shops did not exist in every village, and thee inhabitants were, therefore, obliged to go to the neighbouring town to buy what they wanted. Such laws were so loamy fines and penalties to prevent the great mass of the population from obtaining easily what they required. Ile would again appeal to his Hon. Friend, the Vice-President of the Board eel Trade, whether it was not true that the less they legislated with r, ference to com mercial matters the better?--(Hear.) Who could make a bargain for another man better than he could retake it him self ? Individuals in society generally conceived that they were the best able to make contracts advantageous to themselves. If they tied their own legs they could not run. Why tie the legs of other people?--(A laugh.) If the opposers of the truck system persisted that there were inconveniences attending it, let those inconveniences be in quired into. The retail dealers, who were at the bottom of all this outcry, he could prove gut the labourers into their debt, mach more than the masters did ; and that the labourers were much creole at the mercy of the formerihan of the latter. He knew one master who every week had to retain the greater part of the wiles of ninety-five of his labourers for the purpose of satisfying the demander of the retail dealer. .Be should propose as an mneudnienta to omit all the words in the original motion after the word " that," for the purpose of inserting the following : "a Select Committee be appointed to inquire what lead been the operation and effect of the Acts prohibiting the payment of wages in goods; anti to report to the House else evidence thereon, and their opinion as to the propriety of repealing or amending those Am., or to bring in a new Act on the subject " Mr. SADLER gave his warm support to the motion of the lion. Member for Staffoni.hire. He had some know. ledge of the evils occasioned by the truck system ; and although he admitted that there :night be exceptions, he maintained that in general those evils were of the greatest magnitude ; and operated upon immense maims of the community. The Hon. Member for Middlesex was a bad judge of the situation of English artisans; but those who knew that situation knew the evils which the system im posed upon them. The clamours to which the Hon. Member for Middlesex alluded were occasioned by the sufferings of the people. Those sufferings especially affected the hewer dames ; those whose interests Paley said, it was the first duty of a Legislature to demur The truck system had long been a crying grievance, is had been so four hundred years ago ; and was one of those usages which haml:chiefly impeded the progress of m oiety. The lion. Member fur Aliddlesex could see the ex pediency of keeping the circulating medium in a sound state, as it respected the higher demur ; why was not the circulating medium between master and nom in the lower classes to be kept in a state as sound ? If a master owed bis labourer twenty shillings, why was be to have the power to compel him to take twenty pounds of rancid lumen in part payment? When a master hail the power of' fixing his own price on a commodity, the wages e ptreo s i ected by the Le gislature. There was Another class of persons ahretrbed iu of the labourer could never be certain. Whatever might be the nominal wages ea labourer under such a ma s t e r, his real wages were merely what the sweater might choose to - make them. The lion. Member for Middlesex 'poke of the retail dealers as being at the bottom of cite clatnour on the auhject. That he denied; but at the Fame time, he maintained that des interests of that class of persons-- and contributed A lar e ge lalys which W the revenu e —.ought rates, time vertex of this system, from which they could not ex tricate themselvee, although fully aware of all the evil at tendant upon it. He meant those masters who had signed pe itiens in favour of the order!), from feelings ref selfole fence—who, while they deplored the evils of the system,. knew that unless they retorted to it they could not main tain a competition with the other masters. It had been that if the truck system were abolished, above fifteen thousand !menthe would be immerii.rteiv thrown out of em- Phlment. Why ? Employment follawed demand. Did the power of the master to pay leis labourers` wages in adulterated flour or decayed bacon occasion any increase of denund ? If the employer had credit to obtain flour and bacon, lee must have credit to obtain tnoney with which to pay his labour.r. He exholted the House to proceed en the abolition of the aystem, and to proceed without delay. It was said, that the labourer might at present refuse to receive his wages in the shape of commodities. That , W 43 true. Beet might . smut the master any, "If you hoist on my giving you money, it with be the last you shall re coiee?"—.(Hear, t ear.)—What must i g , lice co.e q uencd That a, man would never dare to refuse the , deacon and arm that his eurpheyer offered him. Ile knew many ewes ire which a labourer had received from his employer, in payment el hie wages, cheese, which lee immediately afterwards sold at a loss of 60 per cent. Why altoulti any mars he compelled tee suffer:pelt a diminution of the well earned reward of his industry? Mr. ROBINSON said two propositions had been sub mitted to them. The one' for leave to bring in a Bill at onee to abolish mime evil complained of; the other for the appointment of a Select Committee, to inquire and report these opinion on the circumstances of time case. Such bring o.e alternative ; the latter proposition was decidedly that w hi c h s h ou ld rece i ve his support. H e b e li e ved the truck system was very prejudicial to the labourers anti to the retail dealers throughout the country. Last year lee was not aware that it existed in the city which lee had the honour to represeut. lie lead since found that it did sta exit, and that there Wall a strong feeling against it ; and he lead horsy m110;464:44 called upon by his constituents to assist in its Abolition. Under them circtunstancee e lee roes n o t to epitome the Bill moved fur by time Hen. Member foe Steffordthire ; but merely to call the otteretion of tho Meese ,to tire calm coavideration of which of the two propositions before Them was entitled to the preference. Let not the House deceive themseleti by suppoming, that to put an and to time truck syitem, would be to put an end to the existing evils in the country. Thee truck system was rather time effect than the cause of those evils. Those evils, as time lion. Member for liliddl , :sex bad justly served, arose out of a cronplication of moles, If he, thought that tLe Bill moved for by the Hon. Member for Staffordshire would immediately produce the effect of plying the labouring classes in money, and , thereby producing a better positron of t:,,ngs, no man would more cordially Mid willingly support the measure. Indeed he did not by any !mans now oppose the bringing in of the Rill. If the House determined to allow the Hon. Mem ber to bring in the Bid, he (Mr. Robinson) would not only not oppose its progress, but would 'give his humble assistance in rendering it as perfect an instrument as pos.. .ibis for carrying . into effect the benevolent views of its author. But what he was particularly anxieus to impress, upon the House was, that the evils un&r which the ma•. nufacturing districts were at present suffering, were not to be remedied by any one act of legislation. If the Bill should be carried, it would have the effect of producing n diminution of the demand fer labour„ and it was from the want of that demand that so much misery now . existed. He admitted that the man who was obliged to take bad goods, or goody which he did not want, must do it under the operation of some power of compulsion ;, but, on the other hand, what compulsion was it dent obliged him to take these goods except ,that of the want rat employment, which existed independently of this systr m ?, Ile feared that this Bill would not remove that cause. fle should therefore support Mr. flume's amendment for n Select Committee of Inquiry ; but if the House should agree with the measure proposed by Mr. Littleton, and aft,r the disetts?,ion they had had on this subject, should be of opinion that it might be adopted without a Coen- . mittee of Inquiry, he should then do his best to examine the details of the measure. Mr. HYDE VILLIERS really did not think they hail made a sufficiently cleur Case for granting the motion with. out a Committee of Inquiry. He begged the House to' recollect that this was a most important measure—that it must have an undefined effect upon the great interests of the country—and that if they legislated without inquiry, they might find that they had involved themselves in consi derable difficulties. Every one was agreed that in cont..' anon cases no person should pretend to prescribe a remedy . for any evil with the nature of which lie was not tho roughly acquainted. Yet, in this instance, so far were all men gum having agreed upon the nature of the evil to be Jetnedied, that no two men held the same opinions upon it. Some supposed that the whole system was forced, upon the men by the power of the misters ; others doubted that fact, and believed it was a system adopted for the convenience of both. Now it seemed to him most probable that the latter opinion was correct. If one agreed to pay, and the other to receive wages in goods, theta could be no injustice in Such an agreement ; and this Bill was not required fur such a case ; if the same agreement was made, and alter the work had been perfotmed, the master in- Sistsel paying in truck, there would be a manifest injustice in such a case; and if this 1311 was meant to plovide against that injustice, then it hecante a Bill for the better securing the performance of contracts. The House ought surely to know what was the subject, and the exact nature of the measure; but without inquiry it was impossible for the House to he informed on the subject. He believed that the truck system was funded on the mutual and voluntary consent of the master and the workmen, for otherwise he could not understand how it was that the system had been so long and so extensively idol ter!. Even the Hun. Member who introduced the Bill admitted that it bad existed in times when distress was not generally or severely felt. and that admission was sufficient to show that its adoption had been a matter of preference. That it was adopted by the preference of both parties, was proved by the fact that the men who (since the repeal of the Com bination Laws) might legally combine for any purpose of their own, and who had, in fact, combined upon several ether questions, bad never once thought of entering into a combination on the subject of this system. It appeared to him that this measure was not one of ma re regulation of contracts, but that it involved the immensely-imp wtant principle 'of regulating the rate of wages ; anti he must repeat, that any principle of so great and extended an operation ought not to be adopted withont inquiry. He thought' it would he a strong measure for any one to pro pose, that that House should say to the Masters through. out the country, " You shall not give less than a certain rate of wages," and to the labourers, " You shall not re oeive less than a certain rate of wages ;" and perlieps there were few, if any, who would be found to propose such a measure; but he must say, that in principle, a Bill which said to the toasters " You shall not pay," and to the workmen " You shall not receive wages ill truck," differed little from a measure of the sort to which he had alluded. No one in that House would like to he told that lie must keep his servants on board wages ; yet 4 declaration similar in principle was made by this Bill to every master in the kingdom. Ile did not mein to deny that there hail been cases of gross occasional abuse under this system ; but no Mall of judgment would say that a system ought to be abolished because there were oases of abase under it; nor did any man at present know, with any degree of certainty, whether the abuses under the eye tem had been of great extent or not. He must say one word with respect to the petitions on this subject. How was it that when so many individuals, is many classes of individuals, must feel a deep interest in too continuance of the truck system, no petitions lead been presented in its favour,though so many had been laid on the table against t ? That was me of the matter* Iwo which he wished to inquire. He supposed that it would he asserted by some lion. Genthmvn that tho truck system enabled the mastery to effect a_greater . redu6tion of wages than they would be able to effect if the labourer was paid in money. It might, be said, too, that this Ives the cause of the great number of the opponents of the present system, for that die labourer would be more sensibly made to feel the reduction in the scale of the cAnforts of life, and that he would naturally struggle against his own degradttion. That opinion might be well founded, lint he could not venture to legislate on mere speculative opinion ; he there. fore required a Committee of Inquiry, without which he should not be satisfied to proceed.—(llear.)—lt was found, he believed, that though the Igen' worked well in some planes, it might have a contrary tendency in others; but how were the House to know that without or how (Auld they ascertain whether the el, il, of the system were such as to call on them to get rid of it—or that if they did get sill of it, they might not introduce a greater evil in its place.—( Hear, hear.)—There were, upon the present question, distinct is.uts on matters of fact, that could only be well tried' before' a Select Cenn. mittee of that House. He bad two dintiect objects of inquiry on which he wished fur the beat information. The first was, whether the system now existing was spun toneously adopted by the mutual content of both masters and men, or whether it had been &teed upon the latter by the pressure of di•tress? The second, whether the advantages of the system were not greater than any;• thing they could hope to obtain in attempting to sup press it? and to these two points might be added a third ; namely—in what manner the change from the present tqstem was to he effected, if the nuking of that change shined he found to be matter of reeessity? If he felt himself possessed 'of fdll information upon the subject, and if that infintruttion induced him to think that the truck system ought to be aholished, he should most willingly give his support to the present Bill. But h e was so impressed with th e impnitanee'of the measure, that even if it had originated with the Government, and, had been brought lot ward as a Cabinet measure, after inquiry by them, he felt he could not consent to adopt it without an inquiry by a Committee of that Hon , e.....(Hear.) On this part of the subject be wished to make one observation: he believed that many of the evils now felt by the people arose from the imperfect legislation of that Ilonae on mutters of general interest. When any particular evil existed, indivi dual 4 were allowed to bring in tneosnres which they be. Lend to be likely to prove remedtea to those evile, but which being introthwed without sufficient previous inquiry, and brio:: intended to beeet a particular contingency, often pto-. dueeil un injorions effect on' the general interests of the country. There was not , a Session passed in' which they bird not some meddling with the Poor Laws. When were they to put AO end tcl that Areitli pc'tty awl vexations le. gill,tion? thought the present was pArticularly case in wilier they ought not to indulge their private or Individual feelings, but alkw the thing fairly to go to a Committee. Air. GILBEAT, viewing :01 the circumstances of the cue, thought the Bill, with proper modifications (for he would not pledge himself to appowe of the whole its provisions) ought to receive his support. Some pro vieions ought to he introduced with respect to the mining districts, which were peculi ar ly s itu a ted. :Every person who knew any thing of mining must he aware that work. """gaged iq the mines could not he hired in the ordinary manner that labourers were. He thought, however, that no manager, or captain , of a mine, aboul I he allowed to keep a shop. The CHANCELLOR'of the EXCHEQUER wet un. flout/Wily at first More inclined to t•upport tiw atnendutent then the 11111. But, having heard thegentleuten who came forward, and described the /Atte of the'country, their oh. „ e rmtions had materially altered . his opinion, and he could not help viewing the proposition of the lion. Altunher for iNtiddleecx as one of an extremely daugrrous character. (Hear.) ' Tiny were now placed in tide situation, shoo they must iitl4r repeal all the laws relating to the truck uyatqa # ter they . utust render them perfectly tfattidn4r— (Hear, hear.)—Such was the elternatiets presented to them, and it was for the House to decide as to which coulee was the more eligible. A good deft had been said as to the character of the Thu intended to be brought in, _by gentlemen not acquainted with its provisions, He, however,. bad seen the Bill, which they had not, anti therefore he could speak of it with confidence. Those gentlemen appeared to be arguing with reference to,a Bill formerly before Proliititoeet, whereas, the pre sent ll,h,though its object the same, proposed to ob tain that object by different means.—(Bear, hear.) In one point, this Bill possessed a very great advantage over the Bill of last year, This Bill provided for the repeal of all the former Acts—.(Hear, hear)—sod all the regula tiims with respect to the payment of wages in truck eon • Limited in it were clearly anti specifically pointed out. Same provisions of a harsh nature with respect to that point which were in the measure of last year were ex cluded from this. Therefore the arguments used wire not, in feet, applicable to the Bill then before the ,House. The question now under discussion was, whether, before gentlemen saw this measure, they would insist on having en inquiry, and afterwards decide whether the Bill should be adopted under all the.tircenastances ? lie confessed that he disapproved of that conrse.—(Hear, hear.)—The Hon. Member for Middlesex, in his very able and eloquent ap ech, inveighed against any interference with the wages of labour. That algtuntet, in the truth of which he (the Chanee`lor of the Exchequer) entirely- concurred, was advaeced by the Hon. Member in; a most unanswer able manner.—( Hear, hear.)---But Oren the foundation of that wrgument was, that the transaction between the master and the labourer was free.—Now the fiat, on the contrary, was, that it was not free.--(bear, bear.)—The labourer, under this system, got in debt to his master, and be was no longer a free agent, when that toas ter could forte him to the adoption of that or any other practiee which he pleased. The Hon. Member said that the labourer might get in debt with money as well as with goods. 'fleet was true, but not to the full extent which the Hon. Member had asserted. The Right lion. Baronet opposite last n,ght pointed out how exceedingly important it was to present the manufac uring population fit in imbibing those feeling, which at present showed thentselves in manrof ihe agricultural districts. In that sentiment he entirely concurred; anti, when be found the manufecturing districts petitioning, day after day, for the abolition of this system, he thought that it would be un wise and imprudent to refuse their request, or to post p .ne this Bill until a C munittee of Inquiry had finished its labours. When his Right Hon. Friend near him, and other Hon. Gentlemen, who were advocates for free trade, admitted the necessity of adopting a measure of this kind, it must be at once inferred, that an overwhelming cause led them to take that course. He had seen the measure, and would support its principle, but he did nut pledge himielf to approve of eli its details. There were some districts to which, perhaps, it would not be applicable, and where it was necessary to proceed on another principle. When, however, the Bill went into a Committee, and was altered aid amended, be thought that it ought to he adopted by the House.--(llear, hear.) Sir IL PEEL meant to support the Bill of the Hon. Member for Staffordshire ; but in no stage of it would he consent to a Committee of Inquiry.—(llear, beite.)7-The Bill was perhaps opposed to the rigid rules of political economy. ---(hear, bear.)-7The rules ef that science had reference to the production of wealth in a nation ; but he must inquire what effect the application of them, in a given case, was likely to have on the morals of a country. —(Hear, hear.)—Now, if it were shown to him that the application of those rules added to the stock of wealth, but tended, at the same time, to the destruction of moral, amongst the people, lie certainly, to preserve those morals ' pure, would overlook and throw aside the principles of political economy.—(Hear, hear.)—They had established, amongst the greatest improvetnents in science, a standard of money, by which the value of different commodities Was to be obtained. Now the only commodity over which the poor men had command was hie labour. That being the case, then he (Sir R. Peel) had a tight to inquire, whit e ther, in giving up that labour, the bargain made with the poser man was a free, just, and equitable one.—(llear, hear. )—Supposing that the transaction was nut a fair one on the part of the master, he would ask where was the poor m remedy ? If the pour titan were to be paid iu money, then it was easy for the Magistrate to decide if a complaint were made to him. If the poor man had ati. pulated for 25., and Lot only le. lid., it was evident that the Magistrate could grant redress. But if the poor titan agreed to take a certain quantity of goods fur hi. &lAN in that case he has no legal remedy by which he can recover the price of his labour, because it then became a question not of quality, but merely of quantity. On these few simple and tangible grounds he should vote fur the Bill of the Lion. Member for Staffordshire —(heer, hear.) Mr. H. GURNEY was one of those who had opposed the former Bill, and . from all he heel since heard, it ap peared to him, that ifeeer there was a Bill which ehould hive been sent file consider-86.m to a Select Committee, this was one. Without such inquiry be thought that legislation on this subject would not tee found effectual, because inquiry alone by a Select Committee could give the nor:essay information relative to it. Mr. ATI'WOOD bad no doubt that if the Bill sought by his Hon. Friend (the Member for Staffordshire) were allowed to pass, it would not only not relieve, but would greatly add to the difficulties of the country. When the Hoot, fund that the labourer was paid only half the value of his wages by the delusion or contrivance of the manufacturer, as it was represented, why not inquire, why, the workmen could not go to some other employer, or to some other part of the country ? Why, if they did, they would learn that he could not, because the demand for labour in any part was not equal to the supply. The Hon. Member then proceeded to contend, that the caueeof the distress was not to be found in the truck syeterp-7thet the sauna distress existed where the truck was not in ape ration—that this Wes proved by the petition pre*, nted I year from Merthyr Tytivill,77thet it was there towed, that even with lino wages the pica of the iron manufactures dial not pay fir the raw material and the oust of meneraeeuee,..--that these low prieea were caused by a change in the currency, which by raising the value of mone y, oros4urse depressed prices, and with theta depressed wages ; that the truck system by which the manufacturer sought his profit, not in the price of his manufactures, but in what he could obtain on the profit arising front supplying his workmen with common necessaries, Was forced upon him by the Legislature, which made that vie. lent change in the currency, and that this Bill now moved for would cut oft' from the distressed manufacturer the only means that were left him to escape the ruin by which he was threatened. When this system was removed, first the small capitalist would be ruined, and more distantly, hut not less certainly, the seine ruin would come upito mantic hirer who-c larger capital would matte hint to bold out somewhat longer. The last eltsuge in the cur rency had not been productive of sell the evil it was calcu lates! to produce, because' that evil lead been for a time averted by the truck system. The only effectual relief SO the trailer in his present circumstances would be a reduc tion' of taxation to it large extent. Mr. C. I'. THOMSON said, in giving his support to tide motion he violated no principle which he had ever ad , - vented while sitting at the other side of tine House. The principles he had Advocated were to give the greatest pos sible share of happiness to the people. lie did not think. that, if this was a violation of the principles of free trade, shirt he did at admit, it was any violation of the princi pies tif political economy: Political economy was to be taken us a line to guide them, lent it was nil to be approaehed un der all cirtiumeteneee. I le owned he wait not an sanguine as to the result of tide noseetire as pia Item Vriend--(Hear)—but he adopted it becettse he knew of no ether in the present excites! state of people, but to enforce tile . lowa which required that the workman should be paid in money. It wee said, that this system had grown cup beeauee it was liked by the workinest ; !nit wept any one doubt that it had been greatly eloped, and' that the !Ammer was not always able to perform his contract ? When he was told that he should give perfect freedom to the manufacturer, he must claim the same freedom for the workman, and let him have the oetion of laying out his mousy is-here he pleased. It was said the workman you'd remove if he did not like the system ; but there were tied which kept him ter one place. Ile was in a great degree hound lay the laws of settlement, and by the that of kiusirtsl, to ree main in one place, and this wise iaeieesed by. the feelings hnown to exist amongst the masters themselves. It wee said, that if this system were put down, it would deprive the public or the advantage of a large capital, militated in supplying necessaries to the poor, as it ossulti he suppled by such capital much cheaper than by 4 poor retailer; but, as he understood his Hon. Velered's Bill, it would not do. price the public of this advantage, for the menufeettirer might. ; stilli if he pleased, enter into cutopetition with other venders of necessaries, het it should he a rompt, tition of money, and the weeltnian slioul4ll 4o paid i n saucy, with the optiott of dealing where he pleserd, , The AT rOnny-GENERAI, himself presented a petition Niguel! by 8,000 of the lower classes, m fitvour of title Bill, and, so general was a similar feeling on the part of those nit* tamed by the system, that he felt it tight, under such eireurnstences, to support the Hoe, .Member for. Staffordshite. Whatever might he the ohs jeetions ea the measure, in his opinion they entirely related to the 'nine pre it involved, for he could not anticipate the erobat.iiity of outrage or riot, he the deeisi , n or the ;L us e whet it aaight.-41eitt law, if pasted, uppeaxid to him by no means Rely to cum, into active operation, numb he seas on that account the better pleased ; for the demoralisation of society consequent en awing an midi- . . „., ~ , foe-11 openine for int omen ills eirbetuly an ofr otn WOW. (Hear, hear.).....Wlitevor dottlitc . he might personally . ~, ~ entertain-as to the general. policy .of the arrangetneut, be was willing to abstain (tom a:premising them,. oat of de ference to the large classes whose interests were at stake; for masters and men should be et lout illotVed to have a voice in the regulating of their oweeconcerme—(Hear.) (There was here a cry; of ." glotetiett,", which was be. coining general, when Mr. Hums rose to propose au ad journment. The debate was then uttered to proceed.) Mr. TENNANT was opposted to the !lili e s/I }Recoil-. ceived it would hare the e'ff'ect of placing those whom it was intended to serve in a state of actual destitution. A Noble. Lord opOoSite had contented himself with saying that he was afraid to oppose it. . A strange argument this, and the very het which be should hire expected to hear from the lips of that Noble Lord; far it amounted to the admission. that he only acted . on . sompuhisn, .and was swayed by intimidation. The principle of the Bill was one philosophic:in a legislative, point of. - view, besides being a direct departuri from the beet-received opinions ' and soundest doctrines of political ecounnaists.—(Hear.) Mr. I). W. HARVEY - observed, that is was a uniform course with those who opposed the Bill, to recommend an inquiry, its if there could be any doubt eespecting the sub ject of complaint, which was simple enough. The work. men stated, in petition afar petition. that they could not get the doe-reward of their labour in that standard of va lue which obtained as r the circulating medium throughout the country.—(Hear, hear.) It has been sworn that they were anxious to obtain the just peeeniary reward of their labour, but that instead they were obliged to travel weary miles for the put peer of rireivilig at last about fifty per cent. of that to whirl, they were undeniably enticed.— (Hear, bear.) The line. Aleutiter fur Callington heti pressed into this debate hie favourite end unfeailine topic of the currency, and he was free to admit that the means ef the country, overhorae as it was by us:equal taxation, with such restricted monetary remover«, -were insiofieient t o Garry it through its noiltifaristue tossifold, aid formidable embarromments. It Was act necessary. cc vane set'. rinsed, to bring about an exteeeirc system of Reform pre vious to entering on the diecussion of subjects essentially interesting to the people. lie wits for ,an. itniiiedi.tte review of taxation, and a repeal of taxes to the amount of 4,000,000/ or t1,000,000f., looking eltiefly to those which were most apple:wive -lo those who were least ale to atiatain them. Let Perliament establish a well-ordered end duly-regulated preperty-Oax, and let the working classes receive in loon', whatever wegis the, shell have earned, Mr. WARBURTON suggested that the lion. Membe r for Coleheeter had not deigned to . point out hew the pro. posed Bill was to rented) the evils complained of. One of the Members of- Government had said h e we' , a f ra id to refuse legislating in coniplietiee with the wishes ex po ased in the petitions, while the other two of his col league. - who had spoken approved-of the measure, with-- out 'Whig how they -expected the alleged remedy to operate. To go, however, Cu the principle of minus in verba, he would merely add,' wish regard to political ems. ninny, that it was a moieties which had experience for it basis, happittemo for its objerit, and relents for he guile. Sir F. BURDETT shoithi net hive rises to express his sentiments on the result weldor, lad be sat. stood in rather a singular predicament, as he eseld not help agree. ing with those who had spoken en both sights of tbe House--(Laughter)--.anti, 41 fast, the queetien ender dis mission wan one of those respecting which much might be said either way. With the Hoe. Member for Cahington he more particularly concurred, Ka ke, in his opittior, took the real, true, statesmetlike view of the subject. He thought with him that the change of currency wee the great substantial rause of the evil sow so deeply afflicting the country, which lie epprehended it might be difficult for it to struggle under much loupe. This he sai.i ed. viseilly, for his daily experience Anil intertwurne with so. ciety confirmed hint snore end wore in the opinion lie bed originally entertained. The ttuivet - sal complaint of mere chant, manufacturer, agticulturiat, ship-owner, shop keeper,—in short, of . every clot of the community, let industry take .what direction it would, was to the same ereect—namely, that they did utit receive priers sufficient to pay taxes, together with the other don:lade made upon them, To this, subject he shouldpot hue alluded, h a d it not, brim inuidentally Istentietird by his lion. Friend, and her was Not iguoreut that his view of it was womewhat unpopular with many influentiel Members of the Nouse, and equally, ta with souls no less infitten• tial out of doors. Not a few of thow who thought dif ferently„ however, ware in tittle own utiods convinced that the measure of a change of curresey was originelly wrong, hut were at the same time of opinion that it would, under all circumstances, .be bolter to fiessavere thou ihr rettacu their cower. They milfht he rigid, s'r they might be wrimg, in arriving at this rotioltaftem ; tut he stevrrtheleas maiuttiord, that a review of the policy 'retail lend to the discovery that thin—,thils alone—was the fuod,sinental origin of all the evil with which the mint" y hail to cot,- tend, and be was equ ally prone tu the persuoion that Eng land would again flourish in all her pristine preeperity, this, capital error in our system once retrieved. Fron t thC observation which had been made by the Member fin. Colehester, relative be our monetary arrangement, he was happy Or perceive Ilea he also, by implicetion, ex prettied a similar opinion. He agreed with the lion. Mem her for Staffordshire that the measure he lint! ;Homed wet likely to benefit the working' population; and felt dis posed to accuse the Zion. Metnher fur Middlesex of a cer tain degree of inconsineutty, when he talked of the spread of mlucaiou old enlightened opinions among the lower classes bring so great as to place them einem int en ine telleotusl level with Years of the realm—while he refused to yield to their owe tamest reinuestrences on a subject oonnected inionedietely with, thesuselots, in reference to which, it must lie eckunwledgeol, that they hail safficierit opportunity of judging. lie deemed it of luiportenee to Colt. Ciliate such a body, sod trusted the wont attempt towards alleviating their toiefortunes would lead so Coe happiest et feet'. Inquiry, iu their aeceptation, wee little butter than delusion, and amounted at lout to a rejection of th e m rea sonable denten& This measure, to Speak negatively, coal(' du no harm, and might act in. soon/ ;limn its, a palliative. The partite in question were, at all events, to the full is good polo' -of their undition.as the political econentiste.--(Laughter.).-teOf politick'. otonottor, eh streeteilly considered, he was far from inclined to speak isliglatinely, nor would he utter a word to. the disparege.. inent of its professors ; but their theories might he pee , fectly correct, while they 'nought the principle to bear prectically us a point, to which -it slid tot legitimately apply. He felt happy to add that a matt of 11It. Ricardo's lucid mind and sound judgment coincided with him in the 'pinions be was -tltus frank to avow, as he had heard the same sentiments more theft once from his own limo in conversation. It- was, however, to be hoped thin the theories of political. economists would he so applied and acted on al In produce imiaterrupsetl eornmerce anti tin. restrained mercantile intereourse with our neighbours' more particularly the French, ae , such an illustration of 'b e sc i ence would operate to the seivautage sit the whole civilized world. Surely the people eonterned in tirade, and connected practically :with the . subject, were more likely to know what methods of relief would be arra ,eintts, than abstract theorists who were practically unite quaioted with the system. As tittle people thought the al tension of the law by the Bill would benefit the in their transactions, their wishes ought to be seceded to. if people found. that the House were willing to do and had dune every thing pessiltle fur their relief, this alums would give them a great atuek of patience to bear the other evil* which were 'unavoidable, anti to endure antrerings which would cooperate them if their prayera were rejected and their views objected to in the teeth of experience, and I upon abstrect rinciples and ,hypothetitial reatotainge. The rejectinu atltiktnntion would add weight to the burdens tooter which the people were lehaering, and would demos 'the patience mid the summits with which they would otherwite hear what they could net see eould be easily re medied. If the niutiou were granted, the Bill would not rbe conontleory ; it would only give one patty the optioit to receive their remuneration is the manner they roost approved of, and thought to be roost to their eilvatitage. Tbs. Noble Lord, the Chancellor of therEzehequer, was in error, and he bad argued the ease 440 th rt error, in sup.. posing, or rather emoting, that the parties Catitt together in these transactions upon equal Willa. Upon thi* every thing depended, and it was becausea the, patties did not eons* together upon equal tetras, thet the Bill !weenie ne cessary. If the geutlittnen of the tuer t efilete e i eg ei,,,e, e , ;agreed with the thousands and, hoot of time's-ids and, he ~ might say, the huntinels or thovawis o f wo t ig i is n sli d others, who prayed for the relief which the Bill wto dee 'ail/tied to afford, he for his pert had sot a au ffi elent re .,., , To %me* upon alotract principle* to r et i es tater gas li n was Lt far a practical Mau, that he go* tip lloserieti end latent% and abstract principles whenever he found that they were et variance with enteriettee and feet*. Ale, D. W. HARVEY exploited. Mr. C. PELHANI would Support the motion, tvithoot the proposed inquiry.. Mr. LITTLE.TON, under the extretne i.ii "e , e po b. at. manifeeted by the House, woold net iod i d e ta i neen it *even' obeervatione which lie should otiterw" k ""' eviehed to have made. Ile *lamb! ilierkiy coOthr, Liooolf, therefore, to reminding the Mau silo they seem tithe upon to vote only upon the questions whether he might have leave to bring in a Bill. The Bill itself, its its details. and principles, would be open to finery ditenuoiints. Thu