The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1835-08-28 00:00:00

Empt eta' Parliament. HOUSE OF LORDS.-MONDAY. A great number of petitions were presented to the house Among them the Marquis of WESTMEATH presented one from the Rev. Sir Harcourt Lees, of Blackrock, in the county of Dublin, calling upon their lordships to appoint a select com mittee:before which be pledin Ireland himself to prove that a papisti cal conspiracy existed lreland against the protestant re ligion. CHURCH OF IRELAND. The house. on the niotion of the Marquis of WESTI4EATII vent into committee on this bill The preamble was postponed, and the first Clause, abolish ing compositions for-tithes, with certain exceptions, was agreed On the second clause, charging lands subject to tithe compo sitions with a rent-charge equal to seven-tenths of such compo sitions payable by the_party having the first estate of inheritance, The Marquis of WESTMEATH said that although he could not sanction the principle of this clause, he would not move an amendment. The ad, 4en, sth, and-Gth clauses were agreed to. On the 7th clause, which places the rent charges under the management of the cot missioners of land revenues, The Duke 6f NITELI, IN GTON objected to the clause, on the ground that it deprived the clergy of the rent-charges, and handed them over to commissioners to be managed by the woods and forests. These commissioners were to pay the amount on receiving orders from the ecclesiastical commission- era. He disapproved of this plau—he saw every reason to ob ject to the disappropriation of the rent-charges from the hands of the clergy, and the appropriation of their property to his majesty, because the effect of such a proceeding must be to snake the clergy stipendiary on the crown. (Hear, hear.) He thOught it a great advantage that the clergy should be quite in dependent of the crown in their enjoyment of this species of property. (Hear, hear.) The object of the amendment which he meant to propose in the clause was to leave the collection of the rent charges in the bands of the ecclesiastical commission ers, and to avoid appropriating the property, as at present, in his majesty, for the purpose of having it collected by the com missioners of woods and forests, and by them finally handed over to the ecclesiastical commissioners. He was fully aware that in consequence of this arrangement the clergy would suffer vat ions and considerable, disadvantages, but he preferred those disadvantages to the inconvenience attendant on the plan °fallowing their revenues to go into the hands of the woods and forests. -In saying this he spoke not only his'own opinion, but what he believed to be-the sentiment of the entire body of the clergy at large, more particularly in Ireland. He moved to omit in the second line the words," his majesty," for the pur pose of inserting these words, " the ecclesiastical commission ers of Ireland." The clause, as amended, would run thus,— " And be it enacted, that the said rent-charges shall be vested is and payable to the ecclesiastical commissioners of Ireland," &e. After a short discussion the amendment was withdrawn. The Bth clause, empowering the commissioners of land re venue, with consent of the treasury, to snake regulations for the collection of rent-charges, was agreed to. On the 9th clause, ich admits the revision of composition .for tithes, Lord ELLENBOROUGH, thinking this clause indefensible in point of principle, called upon their lordships to discard it altogether. This clause ~vas discussed and rejected. Clauses.ll to 21 inclusive, referring to and consequent upon the provisions of the preceding clause, 10, struck oat, were put and negatived without a division. Clauses 22 up to , 39 inclusive were, after several verbal amendments proposed by Lord PLUNKETT and Lord PITi- GERALD, agreed to, and, as amended, ordered to stand part of the bill. On clause 40, providing that the compositions should be in creased or diminished according to the price of corn during . the last seven years, as compared with the prices stated in the cer tificate thereof, and the amount of the rent-charges calculated accordingly, and a little variation according to the price of corn should take place every year in the amount of rent-charges being put, Lord ELLENBOROUGH proposed to omit this clause, on the ground that it would operate in direct violation of the contracts entered into under the tithe acts respectively introduced by Mr. Goulburn and by Lord Stanley. The contracts made for com position under the bill, and the amended bill of Mr. Goulburn, had been respected iu the measure of Lord Stanley ; and; with respect to those compositions, he trusted the government would now be as honest as it was when the 'latter bill passed. He should, under this feeling; move that the clause be struck out. ' On this motion the house divided—content, 126; not content, 35. Majority against the clause, 91. Upon clause 61 being read, which enacts that upon the next vacancy of the church of any parish in which there are not more than 50 members of the established church, such church may be sequestered, and no appointment of a clergyman to such church shall be made until the Lind-Lieutenant in council shall think fit so to direct; and that during such period of sequestration the rents, profits, and emoluments-thereof from time to time accruing due, and all arrears which may have accrued, shall withotit any writ or process whatsoever be vested in and received by the ecclesiastical commissioners, who shall have all the remedies for the recovery thereof that bad belonged to the incumbent, The Earl of lIADDINGTON said he rose to call the attention of their lordships to this clause, and to those which followed it, to clause 88 inclusive, as parts of this bill by which a most deadly blow was aimed at th e p rotes t an t religion in Ireland. It was his intention to move, a s a n amendment,- that-clauses 61 to 88, both inclusiVe, should be struck out of the bill; and, first, he would state briefly to the house the substance. The noble lord then read clause 61, as already given. He went on to say, that by clause 62 it was provided that where there were no mem bers vi' the established church, in such parish the occasional duty should be committed to a neighbouring minister. The next clauses provided, that where there were any resident mi nister and a church or chapel, the duty might be committed either to the neighbouring minister or to a resident curate ; bui the next clause enacted that where there were some protestant inhabitant,, members of the established church, but less than the magical number of fifty, the incumbent or officiating minister of the neighbouring parish who should perform occasional duty in it, should receive such sum not less than £lO, and not ex ceeding £5O, as - the commissioners by consent of the Lord- Lieutenant in council-should determine; but if there were no resideut protestants, the remuneration for the occasional duty by the neighbouring clergyman was fixed at the small sum of £5 in the year. NV as that a fit remuneration to be offered for the services of a gentleman and a christian minister? The next clause was .worthy.of the serious attention of their lordships. It provided that if ire any such parish with a less number of resi dent members of the established church than fifty, and where a curate might be appointed, and where there might be no conse crated place of worship, a sum not exceeding £lOO should be granted fig the erection of a place of worship, or a sum not ex ceeding.£ls a-year shouldhe paid for the rental or hiring of some suitable building fur that purpose, —upon that clause he would not offer one word of comment. By the next (the 68th) clause, the bishop'of the diocese was to be associated with the commissioners in providing for the spiritual wants of parishes coming riuder.the operation of the bill ; and here he must say that the bishop was very little mixed up with the regulations of the bill, though it would be but natural to expect that be should have a direct interference in all matters connected With the spi ritual wants of his diocese. The 69th clause authorized the commissioners to let or demise the whole or any portion of glebe-houses or lands of parishes coming under the operation of the act, except such portion as aul resident curat e m i g h t d es i re to occupy. The 70th, 71st, and 1211, empowered the commis sioners to pay off charges on, and recover - sums due to, such suppreeseu benefices, and, in case the sequestration should be removed, to charge a portion of such charges paid off ore the succeeding incumbent. The next clause authorised the coin- missioners to disunite a parish having less than fifty protestont inhabitants from, any union in which tt had been joined, and to deal with it as a single parish, and by the next clause it was enacted, that if the union should be maintained, the income of the neit incumbent should be subject to such reduction its the Lord-Lieutenant should direct with respect to the extent of duty in those parishes of the union not containing more than fifty Protestants., The neat clauses provided, that where perishes were united to other parishes not contiguous they should be disunited next vacancy; that charges on unions should be pro vided for, that glebe-h ouses or c hu rc h es i n di sun it e d parishes should nevertheless be used for purposes of union, and that no episcopal union- should be made without notice to the ecclesias• tics! commissioners. The 78th clause provided that incomes derived from benefices in which divine service had not been performed fur three years, and which were therefore sup pressed under the church temporalities act, should be ap plied to the purposes, not of that act, but of the present bill. The next clauses provided fur the reduction of benefices of which the revenues should be proportioned to the ecclesiastical duty, so that no benefice should be reduced below 4 '300. The noble turd then stated the substance of the other clauses, which were for the most part a following out in detail of the principles of the previous clauses. The next clause to which he came was the 8-Ith, which provided that the ecclesiastical commissioners should pay all the moneys vested in them under the act into the Bank of Ireland, to be th ere carr i e d t o a se p arate account, called the " reserve fund account," out of which the various sums and eliarieel to be paid by them under the bill were to be defrayed, and the overplus to be paid into the consolidated fund. thezies.toilaiiestbahluMletvitescloirgeil with tine payment of .00,000 for the mural and religious education of the people without , dietitrotiou. of religion. The remaining clauses pro vided that-the Loots Commissioners of the Treasury might lend and advance out of the produce of the consolidated fund such sum or sums of money as might be required for the purposes of the bill on the credit of the reserve fund. The 88th clause re quired the commissioners to make an annual report of their proceedings to parliament. Now he thought that in this ab stract of the clauses which he should propose to strike out their lordships would agree with hint that there was ample matter for serious consideration. Here were the matters of two distinct billie and he was sure that, even if their lordships were disposed to concur in the clauses he had just read, Which he did not be lieve, they would admit et least that the present bill was not that in which they should be introduced. Those clauses went to encumber a bill on the general principles of which, after what had .passed that evening, it was seen that there we:every little difference of opinion amongst their lordships, by the introduc tion of h. principle on which insuperable objections. were raised, and to which he was sure the majority of that house would not assent. He should have thought that noble lords opposite would have rested content with the abstract principle which hail had such an effect iu ousting their opponents from office, and placing thensselVes in the government, and that they „would have embodied it in a separate measure. However, he would not then cuter into that question, but lie would call on their lord ship to make their stand and resist this first legislative attempt to divert the poverty of the church to other than ecclesiastical and protestant uses. Ile would not enter into the question of the right of parliament. to dive r t property, sacre d ur o th er wise, from the particular purpose for which it lead been bestowed; but be must say that the assertion of such a right in the case of church property involved a principle fraught with great danger to the security of property in geneial. When he spoke of the church, let it not be supposed that he steed there as the sup porter of any of its abuses—that he -stood as the supporter of pluralities and other abuses which had crept in by time, and - which, by the adiniSsion of the must sincere advocates of the Church, ought to be remedied; but that was one of the reasons 'why he obi ectmlto this bill as it now stood. If noble lords oppo site would insist on having. a resident clergy, and each with only one cure of souls, then it would be necessary that they should provide a decent maintenance for those clergymen on whose constant attendance to that cure of souls they insiSted. In that case there would be little left after such decent piovision was made ; but thatlittle would he made less by the other payments which they would- have to make out of the durch revenues under the bill. This, he repeated, .was one ground of his objection. Now ' lie did not object so much to the principle of seque s t ra ti on as to the principle ou which it was made. Pro lute vice, there was a little limitation to the principle as to 'place and numbers; hut that limitation slid not tend to lessen the dangerous opera tion of the measure. At present the place in which the principle was to operate was confined to Ireland; hut if they adopted that principle, the time might come when It would be considered that it should be applied, to England also. lu the majority of parishes in England the members or the established church composed the greater number of the inhabitants, but there were others in which they might and did now form the small minority. Here then was a precedent ready made to their hands, to be acted upon on a future occasion. The principle was limited pro has vice, as he had said, to 50 protestants; but what was there magical in that number that it should he always adhered to ? Suppose the number of protestants and catholics should be taken comparatively, and that there should be lit) protestants and some 4010 or 5000 catholiesi the principle • would be as applicable in that case as it would at present. But then the bill carried with it a temptation. It promised a sur plus revenue to be applied to other than protestant ecclesiastical purposes, and just the same arguments which were now used for the operation of the bill on parishes where there were not 50 protestants, might hereafter be used to extend its operation to cases where there were less than Ili. He understood that there we<re, in Ireland, 2505. A noble lord here observed thlt the number was 2105. The Earl of HA RDINGTON said he had got the numbers 2505, and of that number this bill wouid strike at the existence of 850, that being the number of parishes which had less than 50 resident ptotestants_ It would then leave 1645 with more than 50, but there were 9: - .;0 parishes with more than 100 protestants, and 800 with between 50 and 100. These latter would probably 'be the next to be dealt with on the principle of the bill, in order to satisfy those who were clamouring against the established church. (Hear, hear.) No wonder that the success of this measure had been received with shouts in another place—no wonderthat it should haie been opposed by a majority of the county members of England and Wales, and that at length its principle should have been carried by a small majority of the whole house, and that the number of that majority was not much more than the numbers of the catholic members of that house under the influence of the hon. and learned member for Dublin. Well might a measure so carried have the effect of striking' terror into the protestants of Ireland, and of inspiring► their op ponents with triumph., The noble lord, at the end of his speech, moved that these clauses be omitted. On the question being put as to the omission of the 61st clause, Lord GLENELG, on rising, said that he was deeply impressed with the importance of the question—he did nut ask their lord ships to support the clauses on the ground of any co:nparison in the numbers of catholics and protesrants ; he did not ask it on the ground of the constitution of the church of Ireland. for he would readily admit that a material improvement had taken place so it within the last thirty years; for he would add that it would be impossible to find atnong the clergy of any church more zeal, piety, and sincerity in the discharge of their duties than among that of the church of Ireland at the present day. He would admit that the appropriation of a sum of money for the particular purposes of general education was not necessarily connected' with the arrangement as to tithes, but the general object of both principles was the same; it was to promote the tranquillity of Ireland—it was to rescue the church of Ireland from the great danger with which she was now threatened. .To secure that object h. would extend the benefits of education throughout Irelanti, and in that respect the two measures, as his noble friend called them, were the same. His noble friend had admitted that there were anomalies in the church. He (Lord Glenelg) would correct them, and improve the character of the church in the estimation of the country. This would be a lasting benefit to the church itself as well as to the country, for he would admit with his noble friend, that all who desired to continue the connexion of the two countries ought to support the protestant established church, and it was iu the firm con viction that he should be doing the best for its support that he would give his cordial.assent to the present bill. It was a fact, which he did not think could be disputed, that the established church hail never until within a few years been presented to the people of Ireland in an -odious light. It was first introduced, not so much, for the promotion of true religion, which neverthe less it was well calculated to do untlera most judicious instruc tion, as to forward secular objects. It was for a long time changed into a political engine, and was thus exposed to the distrust and odium of those whom under more favourable 61.7 cumstances she might have bouud to her byties of affection and gratitude. The consequences of — this mistaken policy, and of the invidious position in which the church had been placed, were not easily to be removed. The first great step, however, had been already taken in the improvement of the clergy; the next to be taken would be to transfer the payment of tithe from the tenant to the landlord, and this he considered would go tar towards conciliation. The cetirse which was proposed by go vernment would tend not only to conciliate the goodwill of the Roman catholics, but would give greater efficiency to the pro testant church. He denied that it was intended to strike any blow at the Irish church by the mode in which it was proposed to deal with certain of the parishes. Lord Gtenelg concluded by saying that however auspicious our prospects might be else where, so long as Ireland continued in its present state this great empire never could enjoy perfect security. The Bishop of Lore DON had supported the measure of 1833, because he understood at that time that it was to have been a final measure as affecting the church of Ireland. To the pre sent bill he would give his most unqualified opposition. If there was not au overwhelming necessity for it, the thing was not required. lie was prepared to sheer that the condition of Ireland was not essentially changed since Nal The noble lord had said that it was necessary to pacity the people of lrkand. Was the measure proposed to their lordships one fit for that purpose ? The seeds of discord in Ireland were religious differ ences.. Was the extirpation of the protestant 'population the mode to be adopted for appeasing them ?- General education for the poor had been adverted to. He admitted the necessity of a general system of education ; but he much doubted the po licy of supplying it entirely gratis. In this opinion, especially as it related to Ireland, he was sustained by the concurrent opinions of Mr. Leslie Foster, Mr. Grant, and the other gen tlemen who composed the education commission in that coun try. But if it were a boon necessary to be bestowed on the people of Ireland, why' make the church alone liable for its ex penses? Why not make the landlords—the people themselves —both classes more immediately interested in it—contribute to .it ? It' gratuitous education were deemed absolutely necessary, why did not the proposers of the bill rather try an experiment already tried with some success—the appropriation of a sum of the public money . for a certain perion ? They would then be enabled to test their theory without destroying or impairing the established iestitutions of the country? What e v er th e y might do in that respect would he far wiser, as well as more becoming, than to put their hands into the pocket of the church, and 'de fray, as they proposal to do, the entire at her expense. The noble lord had said that it was necessary the Roman catholics of Ireland should be pacified. • Pacified ! The noble lord had certainly had sufficient- experience, within his own personal knowledge, to be convinced that such a thing was impossible. Had not every plan propokd.for that purpose signally and la mentably failed ? Had not every effort to restore the golden age in that country been eminently unsuccessful? The mis fortune was, that nothing haying Ireland for its object was final —nothing appertaining to that country possessed finality. He mistook. The bill before their lordships contained a principle of finality, but it was of a nature destructive anti annihilating to the established church. He would make no pretensions to the gift of Cassandra, but he would say to the house "pass this bill, and you may add to it. Front the year 1810, or an era not more remote, the church of Ireland ceases and determines for ever." Pacify :lonian catholics! those who from the time ofGandolphe to Doyle —no, he would not mention Doyle, because he was gone to his account—but from Gandolphe to Mil-late—to .M‘HaJe who far out-Heroded Herod, described the protestant church as the idol of Juggernaut, as a vampire, as a blood thirsty monster! as a badge of conquest, and as a token of servitude! Pacify them! Would it not be the same in their eyes after the bill should have passed as before ? Would it not be equally obnoxious and equally to be got rid of? Would it not still be a badge of conquest or token of servitude ? Would the extinc tion of seven or eight hundred parishes, and the starvation of their clergy, 'change its character in their eyes? Or, rather. would it nut naturally excite them to get rid of the remainder ? Was the goodly tree of protestantism to be stripped of its branches first and then cut down and cast into the tire, to ap pease them? Was the pacification of the catholics to be effected by offering up the protestant church as a holocaust? He was satisfied that the poor of Ireland would be much injured by the bill—for it would deprive theta of the advantage of the only re sident gentry they ever enjoyed. [ln proof of this the learned prelate read extracts from the postscript to the second pamphlet of Mr. EneasM‘Donnell on the catholic oath ; and from a visi tation sermon of the late pious and exemplary' Bishop of Limer ick, Dr. Jebb.j The rev. prelate, in conclusion, said, my lords, I trust I have shown, by more than one action of mine; that I am not indisposed to adopt salutary and well-considered reforms. But never can I consent to measures of direct spoliation, to , measures endangering the best interests of the whole protestant' church. lam not in the habit of using language stronger than the nature of the subject requires. But if terms more expres sive and emphatic than others could be used on the occasion, I would avail myself of them, and implore you, my lords, by the gratitude which you ow e t o th at esta bli s h ment under which you imbibed your christian principles and knowledge, whose conso lation you delight to receive, and whose efficacy you will expe rience at the partin g h our o f your existence-1 implore you all non to give your consent oe a measure which must destroy the protestant church without satisfying the poor Roman catholics; which strikes at the ministers of God's truth without adding to the comforts or the real advantages of those who are engaged in the diffusion of religious instructiou of another kind ; in a word, which it is not too much to say commences with spoliation and sacrilege, and will end in ruin and confusion. (Loud cheering:) The Marquis of Ceereettce it et; thought their lordships would destroy the church if the bill were not agreed to, anti if they per sisted in mutilating it. The Earl of WINCHELSEA called upon the house to resist so destructive a measure. The Marquis of Corevreoeiesi said that protestantismehad direillislied in Ireland with wealth ;eel power on itsside. Seveeal clergymen in Ireland were favour able loThe Lord Petnexeere supported the bill and deprecated the lan guage used by the Bishop of London. The Earl of RoDEN spoke in favour of the amendment. After sonie observations front Lords Brougham, Wicklow, and Ilatherton— Lord Mgenounet said that the subject under consideration having been already so fully and so frequently discussed, it was not his intention to take up their lordships' attention on the pre sent occasion for more than a very few moments. Indeed, lie would not have addressed them at all at the hour at which they were then arrived were it net that he thought it right noble lords opposite should clearly understand the situation in which they stood—that their eyes should be open to it, and that they should he aware fully of. the consequences of it; and he further thought it right to ask them to consider that which had been already so ably and so forcibly put before them, tramely, the situation in which they were afiout to leave the clergy of Ireland by the vote to which he was afraid they seemed inclined to come. ( Hear, hear.) He consioered that the two parts of the present bill had been decided liv the resolution of the House of Commons in the early part of ttie present session. They. had both been tested by the reason and common sense of the House of Commons, they belonged entirely to one another, and in his opinion it was utterly impossible to settle the one satisfactorily to the people of Gres[ Britain without at the same time also settling the other. (Cheers.) Such were his opinions, and such he believed were without exception the opinions of the colleagues with whom he had the honour to act. (Cheers from the ministerial benches.) He had now but a rely few words left to address to their lord ships. The noble lord - who began the present debate had been pleased to say that the opposition peers were determined to do as they liked with the present hill—to alter it, to separate it, to curtail it, in short, to treat it in every sense as they pleased; and having done so, he was further pleased to intimate that all the responsibility of its rejection elsewhere would rest with himself and his colleagues. (Cheers from the opposition benches.) To this he answered by stating that if the noble lords opposite should succeed in carrying the approaching vote, and if they left the clauses under consideration out of the bill, he should not be a party to proceeding- , any farther with it , an d t h a t h e s h ou ld feel altogether disinclined to having anything to do with the sending of it back to the House of Commons in such a shape 'as would compel that branch of the legislature, both on the point of form and principle,. to reject it. (Loud and prolonged cheer ing from the ministerial benches.) The Duke of WELLINGTON felt called upon to say one word in comment upon what had just fallen from the noble viscount at the head of the government. Their lordships had heard the noble viscount state his intention, in case those with whom he (elle Duke of Wellington) acted should succeed in carrying the motion for the rejection of the ciati'e under consideration from the bill, and they had also heard from the noble and learned lord opposite a statement—a very exaggerated statement he believed it to be—(hear)—of the consequences of the vote to which he thought they were about ao come upon those unfortunate per sons who were the objects of the bill; but, notwithsta n di ng the menaces of the noble visccunt, and notwithstanding the ex- - THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. aggerated statements of the noble and learned lord, he (the Duke of Wellington) did not hesitate earnestly to entreat, and earnestly to recommend, the house to agree to the motion of his noble friend. (Loud cheers from the opposition benches.) The gable viscount had stated that the two parts of the present bill—as well as the part which their lordships evinced a disposi tion-to consider as the part which they seemed to think it was their dirty to reject—were intimately connected and identified with each other. Now, lie had listened attentively to the course of. argument used upon the present occasion, and with equal attention he had perused the documentary evidence which the government had thought proper to lay upon the table of the house: but, notwithstanding, he must say he was wholly unable to trace the connexion alluded to. (Cheers.) The more he ex amined and considered the more convinced he became that, even taking into. view the frightful degree of spoliation which the bill would perpetrate, and carry to account everything which could be wrung from the unfortunate subjects to whom it referred, the whole amount which could be procured, and to procure it it would be necessary to destroy the funds created un der another bill—would not exceed £10,003 a year. (Hear, hear.) And was it for such a purpose, he asked, that the whole establishment was to be destroyed ? (Loud cheers.) The noble marquis opposite said niu;•11 of the receipts of the Irish clergy. b 4 by, on the average, there was not more than three hundred a year fur the whole of them. (Cheers.) The noble marquis was pleased, on a former occasion, to say that the go vernment was entitled to his support, and to the support of those with whom he acted upon the present occasion, because, although it had announced its intention ofintroducing the mea sure at an early period of the session, it had received their sup port up to the present moment. It was quite true that he and those with whom he acted had,given the government their sup port, and done all in their power to for-Ward public business, but he protested against its being supposed that by that circum stance either lie or they were to be debarred from exercising their judgment upon the pres(it or any other measure to which their attention was called. (Cheers.) He had given his assent ' to many of the measures introduced by the government during the session, but he opposed the noble lords opposite on the pre sent question, and on another still under consideration, because he deemed it his public duty so to do. (Cheers.) He (the Duke of Wellington) could assure the noble viscount he would much regret to find him (Viscount Melbourne) persevere in the resolution he announced of not carrying into effect. the measure before the house should he be defeated upon the approaching division., (Hear, hear.) It was his desire to give the noble viscount every support in his power in the carrying on the kieg's business, but the noble viscount was not to expect from him that, with a view of enabling him to effect that object, he should fail in performing the duts , he owed to his sovereign and his country as a member of their lordships' house of parliament. (Cheers.) In conclusion he must say that, considering the `manner in which the measure had been brought forward in the other house of parliament, aid taking into view all that passed either in parliament or beyond its walls upon the subject, he did think it was not . quite fair that all the responsibility for the failure of the bill in its present shape should be thrown by the noble viscount upon those of their lordships, who, upon the ap proaching division, should vote for the rejection of the clauses now before the committee. (Loud cheers.) Lord BROUGHAM said it would be quite nugatory for the noble viscount at the head of the government to attempt to carry on the bill after the omission of the clauses under consider ation. They were money clauses, and, as_a matter of form their rejectiOn by the Hou . Se of Lords secured the abandonment of the bill in which they were entertained by the House ofrom moos. (Cheers from the ministerial benches.) Lord LYN DHURST.—No, no; certainly not. (Loud cheers from the opposition benches.) Lord DUNCANNON desired to know if the noble duke was aware of the condition in which this bill would be left by the omission of the clauses? If they were struck out it would be come a bill simply for the collection of tithes, and it would'pro ceed to effect the object in a manner far more severe and op pressive than that at present in force. Ho hoped the noble viscount would persevere in the intention he announced, be cause if he did not he thought he would be acting disrespectfully towards the other branch of the legislature, and insulting towards the people of England and Ireland. (Cheers.) The committee then divided upon the amendment, when the numbers were— Contents.. Non contents Majority against ministers _ —,97 The house Laviiig resumed, adjourned at HaF-past Two o'clock. . _ HOUSE OF COMMONS, MONDAY. The Speaker took the chair at four o'clock. Several petitions wore presented to the house— , some of them from the radicals of Glasgow and other places, praying the house to reject the municipal corporations bill, as altered by the other house of parliament. The customs duty bill, and some other bills were forwarded a stage, KERRY PETITION. Mr. M. J. O'CONNELL rose for the purpose of denying the au thenticity of "The Patriot's Curse", or that it had been used as an instrument of intimidation at the late Kerry election. Colonel PERCEVAL said that however untrue the specific charge with regagd to the "Patriot's Curse" might prove, yet the general allegations with regard to intimidation at the elec.. tion of Kerry were capable of substantiation. As far as the evidence before the committee went, with the exception of the " Patriot's Curse," it, in his opinion, went to prove intimida- tion. Mr. O'CONNELL contended that the Knight of Kerry shrunk from the proof—that he (the Knight of Kerry) ought to know that politics were excluded from the altar—and that the present bishop of Kerry would be the last man on eartli to let such a matter paseover unnoticed. Mr. PRAED defended the conduct of the Knight of Kerry, and contended that - this vas not a case for, an election committee, or into which Mr. Fitzgerald should be called upon to institute an inquiry at his own expense. It was a case which from the facts stated in the petition, required that an inquiry should be entered into at the public expense, as in the case of Great Yar mouth. Mr. O'CONNELL denied that there was any similarity between thi 4 . and the Great Yarmouth case. The petition wag then laid on the table. The marriage act amendment bill passed through committee. The letters patent bill was read a third time and passed. The lectures publication bill was. read a second time. MR. RCCKINGHAM'S COMPENSATION BILL On the order of the day for the second reading of this bill, Mr. V. SMITH said he held in his hand a petition from the pirectors of tbe East India Company,, praying to be heard 'by counsel at the bar of the house both against the principle and the details of this bill. The bill chiefly consisted in a pream ble, in which the claims and grievances of which Mr. Bucking ham complained were set forth at length, which were pretended to he founded upon the report of the select committee which had sat upon this case; and it was against these details that tbe East India Company particularly claimed to be heard. The hon. member concluded by declaring the intention of the East India Company and of the Board of Controul to oppose this bill in every stage. They opposed it, first, upon the principle of giving compensation at all to Mr. Buckingham, and, if they failed in that point, then, as to the amount of compensation which that gentleman was entitled to. The petition was then read at length by the clerk. After a short conversation between Lord Howick, Mr. Tulk, and Mr. V. Smith, Mr. TULK consented to postpone the second reading of the bill till to-morrow (Tuesday). He had no objection to the re quest that counsel be heard at the bar against it. The only question was when they - should attend for that purpose. Mr. ROBINSON said the whole thing was anomalous from the beginninir, and he should like to ask • the Speaker's opinion whether the bill was a private or a public o ne? It was eventually agreed that couns e l should be heard against the bill, as we understood, on the motion for the second reading to-day. MILITIA ESTIMATES. Lord How rex moved that a committee , be appointed to pre pare the militia estimates. After a few words from Colonel SIBTHORPE the motion was a greed to. - The house then adjourned at a quarter past twelve. HOLE OF LORDS.—ToxsnA v. The evidence taken before a select committee of the House of Commons, relative to the weights and measures bill, in 1834, the Dominica relief bill, and the marriage legalising bill were brought up from the commons.' ' The royal assent was given by commission to the militia staff bill, and some other bills. Lord ASHBURTON presented a petition from the Chamber - of Commerce, Manchester, against the imprisoninent for debt bill. Lord JNDHUBST presented a similar petition front the tradesmen of Kingston-on-Thames. The Earl of DEVON moved that the house go into committee on the weights and measures bill. After a short conversation, the bill was referred to a select committee. Several bills were then forwarded a stage. Clh commisStoNEßS The second reading of this bill, which has for i:s object the appointment of thirty commissioners to inquire into the state of Public charities in England and Wales was opposed by Lord Lyndhurst. The order was subsequently discharged, and a message was directed to be sent to the commons requesting a copy of the report on which it was founded. AIUNLCIPAL cUIIPOIZATIQNS BILL. Viscount INIEtt;uOBNE moved the re-commitment of this bill. In.ttiescirntnittee, the Puke, of Wttt.INGIoN, after explain : . ing the extended jurisdiction oYthe cOipiiratiou of Do ve rove r the ancient Cinque Ports, and the effect which the operation of the clause as it now stood would produce upon those places; wishing to preserve to the Cinque Ports their ancient jurisdic tion, proposed three new clauses having especial reference to them. Lord Lvrnuoust was of opinion that, from the complicated nature of the jurisdiction of the Cinque Ports, those ports ought to be excepted from the operation of this bill, and that another bill ought to be introduced at ah early period of the . next session to regulate the corporations contained within them. Such a bill would require great care and consideration iu the details. lie had- reason to believe that the towns of Margate and Muni:gate objected tO being thrown into the jurisdiction of the county, owing to the heavy expense which it wfiuld entail on them. He contended that on, this subject the house was legislating in the dark. Viscount MELBOURNE could not undertake. o say anything about what might be done in the next session of parliament. Perhaps the noble and learned lord knew more about that than he did. Lord LYNDHURST. -" If the noble lord will trust me, I will undertake to bring in such abill." Lord BROUGII A td.—Yes, just as you introduced this bill when you were in power. (" Heat," and laughter.) Viscount MELBOURNE understood that this was the great source of complaint among these divided and subdivided corpo rations. The jurisdiction 'of sonic of them went far beyond their natural limits. They levied rates and exercised jurisdic tion at a considerable distance outside of their natural bounda ries. With respect to the town of Margate, he understood that it i was under the jurisdiction of the corporation of Dover. No inquest could be held in that town except under the authotity of the mayor of Dover. Margate was twenty miles from Dover, and the distance rendered the connexion between the two towns very onerous to the inhabitants of Margate. It there were any inconsistency in the state of these two towns, lie thought this it might be remedied in this bill, and without having recourse t a new bill. He was of opinion that the corporate towns onlo ought to be regulated by this bill, and that the other townY separate from them should be thrown into the jurisdiction of the county. After some further conversation, Lord LyNnnunsT suggest ed that if these clauses were to be adopted, they ought to be in serted, not in this part, but at the end of the bitl. The Duke of 'WELLINGTON concurred in the suggestion, and therefore withdrew the clauses for the present. The Earl of DsvoN, on the 15th clanse, proposed as an amendment, that, in all corporate towns divided into more then four wards, any resident voter possessing property to the amount of £l,OOO in real or personal estate should be placed on the list of persons eligible to serve as town counsellor, and that in ail corporate towns with less than four wards, or without wards, a person possessing 400 of real or personal estate should be placed on the list of persona eligible to serve as town-counsellors in such town. Ile thought that on every ground this was less objectionable than the qualification proposed by his noble and learned friend. Lord BROOGH UT. —lf you are to have a qualification at all I do.not object to this. Lord LYNDHURST.--It is your own principle. It is - exactly the principle adopted in a- will which had the sanction of the present government, Lord Bitotanam.—Yes; 'but ivhy do you take the only, bad part of our bill? BY a curious Infelicity of selection you have r.elected the only part of that bill which was objectionable. • Lord LYNDHURST said he w ould not re-open the discussion of the qualification, which had been so fully argued at both sides on a former evening. He might however mention that of the 80 local acts of parliament connected with the corporations in this bill, he had examined all but four, which he could not find, and in all those he had read he found the principle of qualifica tion recognized. In many of those acts the qualification was as high as £2,000 or £3,00'0, and in only six acts did he find it lower than £5OO. Many of these acts vested high and import ant trusts, all of which would, under this bill, be vested -in the alderman and town council. How, then, could it bu said that where such powers were to be transferred, there should be no qualification? Lord BROUGHAM repeated several of his former arguments against the qualification as it was proposed by his noble and learned friend. He (lid not object so much to qualification as to the principle that town-counsellors should be chosen only from, the richest class in the town. As, however, a qualification was to be at all, he would not object to that of the noble earl' (Devon,) It mitigated the evil principle, as the Manicheans would say, of his noble and learned friend's amendment. In fact, it was a virtual repeal of that amendment; but the changes which had b een ma d e i n ot h er par t s o f th e bill were such as made it a matter of doubt with him whether it was worth while to j)roCeed with the bill. The Earl of WICKLOW said, that the noble and learned lord had omitted to answer the argument, that theprinciple of quali fication adopted was precisely the same as that introduced two or three years ago in the Irish Grand Jury Cess Bill. Lord IleTuuaroN contended that the principle of qualifica tion was not the same in the two bills. „.., The amendment was put and agreed to. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE asked whether, if the existing mayors and aldermen were to be continued, they should becon tinned without the qualification of town-counsellors, as now proposed? Lord LYNDHURST replied in the negative. The qualification of the mayor and alderman must be continued, or they could not continue to hold those situations. Lord BROUGHAM.—But if those officers were to be appointed for life, as his noble and learned friend proposed, they might be continued without a qualification. He had been informed of one corporation, the mayor of which was insolvent. He had not taken the benefit of the Insolvent Act; but he was quite insolvent, and had not paid his creditors. Of the four alder men, the settler alderman was an uncertificated bankrupt ; the second alderman was, a pauper, and actually receiving parochial relief. There was another, who was also insolvent, and in fact there was only one who was in solvent circumstances. Now, under these circumstances, he 'wanted to know whether such men would be continued without a qualification ? Lord LvNDHVIIST said, that according to the bill, if the town counsellor became bankrupt or insolvent, he lost his appoint ment. The same principle would apply to the mayor and al derman. After a short conversation, in which the Marquis of LANs- DOWNS, Lord BROUGHAM, and Lord WHARNCLIFFE took part, Lord LYNDHURST repeated the loss of his qualification would be followed by the loss of his appointment. He could be re moved by a quo warranto, or, if it met the views of the noble lords opposite, he would not object to have the mayor and al dermen make a declaration as to qualifications in the same way a 4 the town-counsellors. _ _ _ ~The Marquis of LANSDOWNE wished to have them placed in the same situation as to a declaration as those who were elected. The Duke of RICHMOND begged of noble lords to reconsi der the decision as to continuing the old corrupt aldermen .as members of the town council. It would be a source of endless dissension in the several towns, for there could be little doubt that they and the new members of the town council would not agree. - The noble duke also objected to that clause by which the duty of arranging as to wards should devolve on the neigh bouring county magistrates. It would only make the magis trates political partisans. Why not leave this to the King in council, or to the revising barristers under the bill. Lord WH ARNCLIFFB objected to the term " corrupt" as ap plied to the old aldermen, a large portion of whom had dischar ged their duties most conscientiously. Lord LYN DHURST would not object to the duty of arranging the wards being left to the revi s i ng barristers under the bill, but it would be necessary in that case that they should be paid fur their-additional trouble. As they could not propose any money clause in that house, he hoped the noble viscount would not object to undertake to have the necessary remuneration given. If that were done, he would prepare the clause accord ingV is y. count MELnocRNE assented. Lord ELLENBOROUGH read the substance of a clause to the effect, which he would propose on the bringing up of the report. On the 59th clause, Lord Lyr4DHURST proposed as an amend ment, that the town-clerks should hold their offices as heretofore for life, or during good behaviour, which was in practice the same thing. This amendment had been proposed by a noble lord in the other house and rejected, but he believed (heir lord ships would, after the other amendments which had been made in the details, see the expediency andjustice of agreeing to this also. _ _ Lord Baoucliast complained of the course pursued by his noble friend in bringing in this destructive clause. The alder men, whether old. and corrupt, or fresh and young, were nothing but tools in the handsof town-clerks, for them to work withal, and now it. was moved that tha ver y p ersons w h o . had been the life and soul, the guides and directors of the ancient' system, against which the outcry had been so general ? should be re tained in all their pristine power and authority. He knew there was no use in opposing the amendment. It would, let him say or Jo what he might, be cairied against him by the usual majority—by three to one. He regretted, therefore, that so much time had teen lost. If the business of the town-clerks had been done at once, an infinite deal of time and trouble 'would have been sparell. If i tvas in vain for him to argue—in vain to say that this amendiromat utterly destroyed the bill; the worse was, the better they would like it. Many of their lordships had openly declared their disgust at the principle of the bill, aid when he afterwards heard them say' •they were nevertheless willing to go into Committee, his heart sank within him. He said, that if the bill was not destined to be sunk down by a blow. it was determined it should perish by ex haustion ; but new after this process of exhaustion came the "al blow from his noble and learned friend. He repeated, that he !limed, nothing . from offering arguments to their lord: ships. If a man were to speak to them with the silver tongue of an angel, or address them trumpet-tongued, the melody of the oneur the clangour of the other would avail nothing. They would not hear the voice of the charmer charm he never so wisely. Their lordships would still play the part of the deaf adder. In conclusion, he said that he hoped the people of England would know who it was that gave them this bill. and who it was that offered thesis the other. Lord , .WHARNCLIFFE reminded the noble and learned lord, that in his Scotch burgh reform bill town-clerks were per mitted to hold office for life. Lord LYNDHURST regarded the speech of his noble friend more as an attack on town-clerks than an argument against the amendment. In the course of the discussion on this clause, Lord 13:tour:Ham asked why it was to be taken for granted that the mpnabers of the new town-council were to be' less capa ble jtulgds of the persons whom it was their interest to ap point town-clerks than the members of the old rotten cor- potations ? Lord LYNDIJUTIST replied that the members of the old cor porations were likely to be more steady than the members of the new toevu-councils. Under the former it was most probable that the town-clerk would hold his office for life, but that was not so probable under the latter. Lord LYNDHURST'S amendment was carried bra majority of 68-404 voting in favour and 36 against it. On the admission of strangers, Lord LYNDA uRsT was found proposing an amendment to the effect, th a t th e power ves ted in corporations with respect to church property should be confined to members of the esta blished church. Lord BROUGHAM observed, that if, as was said, the member. of thiestablished church were nine to one in Estgland, surely there could be no real danger in vesting this power in the inha bitants of towns' generally, without any distinction whatever. The Bishop of LONDON remarked that it was very true that the proportion of members of the established church to the dis senters was as ,the noble and learned lord had stated; but the dissenters. were generally congregated in the towns, and usually belonged to that class of persons, out of whom the members of the corporation would be chosen. If, however, those selected to form a portion of the corporate body were invariably likely to be conscientious and religious dissenters, he should have no objection to their proposed control over this property ; but the case was not an improbable one, that certain persons who might be considered not so much a political as a religious class, be longing to the dissenting . body, would select a clergyman who would not be likely to win respect to the established church. Lord MELBOURNE could not see why, when dissenters were admitted to be members of the corporation, they should not nominate to the benefices under the control of the corporation those who were the best qualified, particularly when it was out of their power to select any other 'than a clergyman of the esta blished church. ( Hear, hear.) The worst choice Which they :kdoltrpteesibly make, as members of a eorpora tion, would- he to . eleeta the person who 'had the greatest leaning towards their opinions in polities. They must appoiut a clergyman whose faith is that of the established church—who is inducted accord irig to the rites and ceremonies of the church; and supposing that they were men of a conscientious character, he did not see why, if the patronage was to be vested in private individuals at all, it might-not be safely vested in such persons. (Hear.) He should be glad to know what course the noble lord would take in the case of a corporation where the whole or the great major ity of its members were dissenters ? It appeared to hins that ' the apprehension of the noble and !earned lord on this head was a shadowy one, without any substantial foundation whatever. (Hear, hear.) Lord PLUNKETT said that the charge of the right hon. prelate against the dissenters was one which, it' well founded, must im ply a degree of baseness and profligacy which would nail warrant them in treading back their steps and re-enacting such larva. as the test and corporation acts. ( Hear, hear.) It filled him with astonishment and regret that the right rev. prelate should apt car to look hack with regret on his support of every liberal measure which had received the sanction of the legislature. Such an imputation as that which he had cast on the body of the dissenters was an unjust, offensive, and odious one. (Hear.) 'l'he Bishop of LONDON observed that he had not raid any thing against the body of the dissenters. What he had stated was that a considerable number of them should be considered rather as a political than a religious body. That assertion he repeated, because every day's experience proved the tact. ( Hear.) The noble and learned lord, who appeared strongly inclined to vent his wrath upon hisn, had stated also that his support of liberal measures was pretended. and that he looked bark with regret and remorse to his support of those measures which bad for their objects the relief of his fellow-subjects from the restraints under which they laboured. All he could say in answer,to that accusation was, that he had given a cordial and sincere support to the measure for the repeal of the test and corporation acts on pulitical as well as on religious grounds: (Hear, hear.) Although the consequences which be bad ex pected to flow from that measure had not resulted from it, yet tie could lay his hand on his heart and say that if the act were now proposed he should urge the same reasons, and give the same vote in its favour. There was no act of his life which was intended to emancipate his fellow-suhjects from thraldom to which he looked back with anything approaching regret or remorse. There was only une measure fur relief from what was termed religious thraidrom, to which he was opposed, and that was catholic emancipation; and he need scarcely say that if that measure was evils brought forward he would oppose it as strenuously and determinedly as he had ever done. (Cheers from the opposition.) Lord HosT,AND did not deny the prevalence of political feel ines among any part, or indeed the whole of the dissenters. Ile believed they were actuated by political feelings, but they were those of all who desired to uphold the free constitution of the country; they entertained the feelings which called the house of Flauoves to the throne of these. ;calms: The imme diate clause which the noble and learned lord moved might be a matter practically of very great importance; but the principle involved in it was abhorrent to the constitution of the country, and he ventured to say, notwithstanding the quarter from which it proceeded, that it was contrary to all the principles and maxims of the lac of England. -(Cheers.) If such amendment were agreed , i7on by their lordships (which was not very likely) it were sanctioned by the Commons of England—the con sequence would inevitably be, that, after the abolition of the test and corporation acts, a test might still he applied to all lay patrons, which would have the effect of depriving them of their lights. (Hear, hear.) In the persecuting acts against the Roman eatholics the right of patronage in their advowsons was abrogated; but in no other instance was that right denied. He recollected a case which came before Lord Elden in which the right of patrpnag‘e was exercised by a Jew amongst other inha• bitunts of a certain place. This right was questioned, and Lord Eldon decided that he had the right to vote, laying it down as a rule that the security of the church was to be guarded only by preventing any man being appointed who did not subscribe to the thirty-nine articles, and who was not inducted by the die cesan. There was slipped into this clause a principle pregnant with every species of intolerance; and ho was sorry to see the right reverend prelate sanction a clause which, if agreed to, would justify an inquisition into the religious creed of every man in the country. (Hear, hear.) Last night he heard, and certainly with astonishment, that; when the members of the es tablished creed were few, a proud and expensive church esta blishment should be kept up. To-night, however, it was held that, when the number of dissenters was extremely small—when they were in the proportion of one to nine as compared with the established church, that was announced as• a strong ground of exclusion against the dissenters, so that all was fish that came to the net of the noble lord opposite. (Laughter.) He would no longer detain their lordships; but he could not sit down without expressing it as his opinion, that the greatest disgrace to and stain on the history of this country were that it kept up laws' of exclusion too long, and he felt it to be the proudest re collection of his life that he had done some little towards the abolition of laws which, like the principle on which the present clause was founded, were the sources whence flowed the bitter waters of exclusion and persecution. (Cheers.) Lord PLUNKET said that the more he reflected on the ten dency of this clause, the more justified he felt in applying to the arguments of the right reverend prelate the observations which he had done. It was an imputation the most flagrant and a flagitious perverson of truth to assert that the dissenters would exercise the trust reposed in the body to which they might be long, foe the benefit of the established church, in such a way as `would overthrow the church. (Hear.) 'The Bishop of LONDON said that when he alluded to tl e dis senters, not as st religious sect, but as a political, bbciy, he apprehended that it was not unlikely in certain cases, wnere more than two candidates appeared for a living, that the poli tical body, acting upon principle, would choose the least effi cient. The noble and learned lord must be aware that there were in that body persons who could hardly be classed under the denomination of religious and pious dissenters. He was the last man to say anything against the dissenters as a religious body; but when it was proposed to vest them with new powers affecting the church, he felt not only that he was right, but that he was in duty bound to take the course which had given rise to the noble and - learned lord's remarks. After a few words from Lord Ashburton, the Marquis of Clanricarde, the Marquis of Northampton, and the Duke of Richmond, the question was put and the clause inserted, Several amendments of a mere verbal nature having been agreed to, the house resumed. Lord MeLeouatalnoved that the report should be received on Thursday. Lord BROUGHAM suggested that it should be received to morrow, and that they should take the third reading on Thurs day. Lord LYNDHURST thought that Thursday would be the better day for the report. It was necessary that the bill as amended should be printed. Lord BROUGHAM said perhaps there would be no objection to the report being received without discussion on Thursday, the understanding being that the debate should be taken on the third reading on Friday. This arrangement was agreed to, 'and the report was ordered to be received on Thursday.—Adjourned. • HOUSE OF COMMONS.-TUESDAY. The Speaker took the chair at twelve o'clock. Several bills were forwarded a stage, but no discussion of any interest arose on either of them. Mr. Buckingham's compensation bill was read a second time, counsel were heard against the claim, and the further considera tion was postponed to Wednesday. Some petitions were then presented, and the house adjourned. At the second sitting, after the Speaker had been summoned to the House of Lords to hear the royal assent given to certain bills, Lord JOHN RussEr.i. moved an adjournment of the house, and the house adjourned. HOUSE OF LORDS.—AVEDNESDAY. Lord Denman took his seat ou the woolsack at five o'clock. Several bills before the house were forwarded a stage. • AFFAIRS OF SPAIN. The Marquis of LONDONDERRY did not mean to occupy much of their lordships' time, although the subject to which he should call their attention had become important from the lar g e body of their fellow-countrymen engaged in the service of the Queen of Spain, and from the conduct of his Majesty's government, which had embarked this country in a system of dishonourable and disgraceful warfare. (Hear.) He had prepared himself to enter into an examination of the whole question, not only of the propriety of issuing the order in council, 1 but also of the treaty completed by the former government. But he had been informed by those to whom he must bow, that the discussion mould be improper at the present period. When he looked at the accounts that had lately been received from the seat of war —when he saw the uncertainty of the government of Spain— When he saw the uncertainty and incapacity of his Majesty's present government,•which, from the exhibitions that had lately taken place, might be expected soon to take their seats on this (the opposition) side of the house—when he saw the impossi bility of being able to discover what was likely to be the course of the British government, he had been advised by those with whom he was concerned not to go into the'.question, and he very unwillingly bowed to their opinions. He would, however, fur a few moments occupy the time of the house, in proceeding to move for leave to withdraw the motion of which he had given notice, to draw their attention to this subject. He believed that many of our unfortunate countrymen had entered into the service of the Queen of 'Spain from the want of having that intelligence and information which it was the duty of his Ma jesty's ministers to furnish them with. He alluded particularly to two points to which he had called their attention about six weeks ago. The first was—whether those individuals who bad been enlisted in the service of the Queen of Spain were in cluded in the convention signed by Lurd Eliot. The noble viscount said they were included in that convention, and in another place, a noble lord, the S ‘ ecretary for Foreign Affairs, also stated that these troops were positively included in that convention. He thought a greater instance of negligence in the desire to ascertain what was the state of the northern pro vinces did not exist, than that which had been shown by his Majesty's government,: when they stated to the house that it was thei , belief that the decree which bad been issued by Don Carlos was a positive forgery. He considered that his Majes ty's ministers had been totally forgetful of their duty in the course they, had adopted. If they had openly declared war against Don Carlos, they would not have placed this country in the scandalous, disgraceful, and infamous situation, in his opinion, in which it at present stood. (Hear, hear.) He had undertaken the subject with much reluctance, but he had been merely actuated by a wish to discharge his duty honestly and independently, as a peer of parliament, and that he was deter mined to do through evil report and through good report. He merely wished to call the attention of the country to the position in which the unfortunate persons were placed, and were likely to be placed, who had engaged in that warfare. He hoped the question would come before their lordships next session in all its bearings ; and he should conclude by moving that the order be discharged. Viscount MELBOURNE gave the noble marquis credit for the manner in which he had brought forward this question. He would not enter into the question of the claim of the Queen of Spain to the throne, but be believed she was supported by the majority of the weight, influence, and strength of that country. It was the interest of this country that Spain should be united, prosperous, and independent of foreign influence. The noble lord had charged him with having deceived the persons who had joined the Spanish expedition. This charge rested upon the validity of the decree, which was undoubtedly believed to be a forgery. (Heal.) It was believed in Paris and in many other parts of Ehrope. All that was required by the treaties entered into he was ready to defend. The h Earf of CA RNA avoN then addressed the house, and was followld by Lord it aova HAM, who was left speaking. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—WEDNESDA Y. The Speaker took the chair at four o'clock, but as only 38 • members were present the house was adjourned: A YANKEE HURRICANE.—During the late hurricane in Can ton, Illinois,. the wrecks of houses, furniture, fences &c., were hurled about iiithe air. In one instance, a fence-rail was driven through an ox! Torrents of rain fell, which soon turned to hail Some of the' hailstones are said to have been as large as a, goose-egg! The Sangannon river overflowed in some places to the width of four miles.—American paper. THE YITCA GLQRIoSA.—There is a present in flower, in the garden of A. C. B. Crawford, Esq. of - ArcliniTran, •Ilie finest specimen we have ever seen of the largest plant of the Yucca species. called the Yucca Gloriosa. The perpendicular height of this plant, from the stem to the top of the flower, is about thirteen or fourteen feet; and its root is about twice that length, extending along the wall of the garden, in serpentine coils, the circumference of which is about eighteen inchess. The flower is nearly six feet long, consisting of bell-formed blossoms of a rich greenish or yellowish white colour, broadest in the middle, and tapering off at the extremities, where, as yet, the flower is not in full bloom. As a whole, the plant has a magnificent ap pearance, and excites additional interest from its gigantic size and the circumstance of its species being seldom seen in flower. The Yucca was originally introduced from N. America in 1596. An erroneous idea prevails that the same shoot sends forth a flower every seven years, Those well informed on this point, however, assure us that the shoot which has once flowered never flowers again. The root produces other shoots, which in their turn, give fornwers, not periodically, but sooner or latter ac cording to the streneth of the plant and the nature of the soil and climate. We observed in the same garden numerOusother plants of the same species; but none of these were in flower, nor were any of equal dimensions.--Ayr Advertiser. THE MILK TREE.—That extraordinary production of the ar borary kingdom, pale di v etco; or "milk -bearing cow tree," which flourishes in Para in South America, is among the lofti est of the forest--g-rowing to the height of one hundred feet and upwards. It bears a delicious edible fruit, which has the uni ted flavour of strawberries mixed with cream; and its trunk yields as fine bowls of mik as those from a cow. " It seems ra ther startling," says Mr. Webster, in his voyage to the South ern Atlantic. "to talk of a tree yielding milk, but such is the fact' and it is drunk by the people in large quantities, and was used by us at the gunrootn table for mixing with tea in lieu of cow's milk, from which it is in no wise distinguishable in gene -rat use. The milk is a rich, white, bland fluid, without odour, and of the taste and flavour of common milk. It mixes readily with tea or coffee, without curdling or undergoing any change, and in every respect like cow's milk. Boiling . waterdoes not alter it.. It keeps unaltered six or seven days in the tempera ture of eighty-five degrees. It appears to differ from all the known milky juices of plants ' and to approach in obvious pro perties to animal milk, from which it differs widely in chemical operation. There is no cream or caseous (cheesey) matter in it. I kept a bottle of the milk until our arrival at Trinidad—eight after my procuring it—when it was sent to the Admira'lity. Some, which I had myself, had separated into a sourish milky water and a white mass, which, when taken out, and dried in the air, was a white inflammable substance, not softening at the temperature of the body, melting ut one hundred and forty-four degrees, tasteless, insoluble in water or spirits, and resembling white wax more than any other substance I could compare it to. It burnt with a bright agreeable flame, without smell, and was neither greasy nor resinous; I am therefore inclined to consider it as a species of wax." To complete the marvel of this tree, we must mention that it affords the most valuable timber fer ship building, and that is isfso used in the dock-yard at Para. SECOND GRAND EVENING CONCEILTS AT THE ROYAL APHITHEATRE IHE Nobiity, Gentry, Residents, and Visitors of Li ve rp oo l are respectfully informed that Madelle. GRISt, Signor LABLACHE, Signor F. LABLACHE, Signor PIO CIAN CHETTINI, Signor PUZZI, and Mr. W. TAYLOR, Prin cipal Harpist from the Nobilities Concerts, Edinburgh, will give Two grand Vocal and Instrumental CONCERT , B3-TH IS EVENING, (Friday,) the 2Sth instant. '• • PROGRAMME Duetto—" Marino Foliero Sig. and Sig. F. LABLACHE—DoisizErrt. Aria—" Dall Asilo delie pace,"—Madelle. GRIST, introduced in the Opera of Lassedio di Coriuto—COSTA. Fantasia Corno—" Andante e Rodo con Variazioni,"—Sig. PUZZl—Puzzi. Aria 7 - 7 "Jesp,de Calais,"—Si r. F. LABLACHE—DONI Z E TT I. Fantasia HiiT, introducing t e celebrated new effects—Mr. W. TAYLOR, principal Ha ist from the Nobilities Concerts, ninburgh—TAyLon. Duetto—(By desire)—" quardate the figura,"—Madelle. GRIST • and Sig. L LACHE—La prova d'un Opera Seria—GUECCO. SECOND PART. Duetto—"Se fiato in corpo avete,"—Sig. LABLACHE and Sig. F. LABLACHE—II Matrimnnio Segreto—C IA M A NOS A. Polacca— (By desire)—" Son vergin vezzosa, "—Madelle. GRIST, Sig. LABLACHE, and Sig. F. LABLACHE— . Puritan'. Scottish Fantasia, Piano-forte and Corno—Sig. PIO CIAN CHETTINI and PUZZI—MOSCHELLES. Aria—" Non piu Andrai,"—Sig. LABLACHE—Nozze di __FigaTo-TMOZART. Variazioni— Rossim. Prechiera—" Dal tuo stellato GRIST; Sig. LABLACHE, and Sig. F. LABLACHE; Harp and Como Obligato, Mr. TAYLOR and Sig. PUZZI—Mose in Egitto---Rossisit. PIANO -FORTE, Sig. PIO CIANCHETTINL Boxes, ss. —Stalls, 58.—Pit, 3s.—Gallery, 2s. Doors to be opened at Seven, and the Concert to commence at Eight o'clock. Entrance to the Stalls from Roe-street. "La donna del Lago,"—Madelle. GRISI— LIVERPOOL ANNUAL EXHIBITION, POST-OFFICE-PLAC , CHURCH-STREET. THE Eleventh ANNU. EXHIBITION o f th e 'WORKS 4.s t of MODERN ARTI S will Open on MONDAY next, the 31st instant, and will continue open each day, from Nine in the Moruin 4 until Dusk. SAML. EGLINGTON, Secretary to the Academy. Admission, "One Shilling Catalogue, One Shilling. Season Tickets, Five Shillings. Exhibition-rooms, August 24, 1835. AT_THELYCEUM, BOLD-STREET, , . On MONDAY next, 31st Aust, at a Quarter-past Twelve o'clo c k, and also at a Quarter-past Five o'clock. i MR. JOHN GEORGE W O D, F.A.S., will commence a COURSE of SIX int esting and attractive LEC TURES, relating to the most c irated Portions of the Ancient World ; illustrated by an un terrupted succession of large Water-colour Paintings and Panoramic Views. Admission to a Single Lecture Young Persons under Fourteen years of Age 2s. Six Transferable Tickets One Guinea. N.B.—An advantageous arrangement may be made by Fa milies. The Lectures will be delivered at the same hours on Mon days' Wednesdays, and Fridays. Tickets at Mr. GRApsCs, and at the Lyceum. TO CORRESPONDENTS. We are in possession of all the particulars alluded to by Lynx respecting the charge of embezzlement. It has been iuves tigated by a sub-committee of the board, who, we take for granted, have or will report the matter to the whole house. EDE Tiiiberpool gitanbarb. FRIDAY MORNING, AUGUST 28, 1835. It is observed of the swallow tribe that they have several full and confidential musterings a few mornings previous to their departure, arid the same may be said of cabinets. We find the following in the evening papers of Wednesday. " ALL the ministers have been closeted with Lord Melbourne during the morning." They are, we suspect, like the swallows, meditating their departure. We have received New South Wales papers tothe7th, , of May. The colony is prosperous, but great complaints are made of the inefficiency of the police. Horrid crimes are committed in the open day, and it is not safe to travel the roads after nightfall. The revenue of the colony is on the increase. We find by the . Gazette that the revenue . for the quarter ending the 31st March, 1834, was £45,600, whereas that ending March, 1835, was £70,863, exhibit ing an increase of upwards of 50 per cent. 'We have Montreal Heralds to the end of July, but they do not contain any matter of much importance. Some local disputes, caused by reform, were exciting some speculation in the town. Our latest files from New York are to the 9th instant: The following extracts may probably interest some of our readers : REVOLUTION IN VENEZUELA.—Accounts have been receiv ed at Philadelphia, that Vargas, the president, and the vice-president Of Venezuela, had arrived at St. 'Thomas from La Guayra on the night of July 8. The troops, instituted by their officers, revolted, attacked the president's house in Carac cas. threatened his life, and' finally sent him under a guard to La Guayra, and put him and the vice-president on board the schooner Aurora, bound to St. Thomas. General Marino is supposed to be the leader of the insurrection, and it appears to have been some time in progress. A SournErtx ABOLITIONIST.—The south-western papers are full of accounts of a certain Mr. Murrell, a preacher, an orator, and au abolitionist, who, it is said, harangues as beauti fully as George Thompson. Murrell happens to be in the Ten nessee Penitentiary at this moment, but the following account Of him is droll enough : For the purpose of preparing this great stroke, (a negro in surrection,) he bad travelled first to New Orleans, thence (via' Cincinnati) to Lexingson (Ky.,) thence to Richmond (Va.,) thence to Charlestou, Milledgeville Savannah, and Augusta, from which place he returned to Williamson Co., Tennessee, his native place, or, as he calls it, his "old stamping ground." He says, "Its all the routes 1 only robbed eleven men, but I preached some fine sermons, and scattered some counterfeit United states paper among my brethren." He goes on to say that he re garded this plan ti ae a sure road to an inexhaustible fortune to all who would engage in the expedition ;" he adds : " My heart began to heat high with the hope of being able one day to visit the pomp of the southern and western people in my vengeance, and of seeing their cities and towns one common scene of de vastation, smoked, walls and fragments." If the Rev. George Thompson were to write to his maiden aunt at Hammersmith, what would he say? " 1 preached yes terday, my dear aunt, a very beautiful sermon, but I have not yet picked any pockets.—Cause why ?—there is nothing in the pockets here. When I get to New York, 1 mean to make up for lost time."—New York Herald.—(Sold for one cent.) THE FATE OF Aesrore.---Our readers may remember that within a few months, a narrative was published in the Mobile Commercial Register, purporting to be the dying confession of a man who had resided near that city, and to give the particulars of that distinguished lady, whose fate has been so long envelop ed in mystery. The story was positively contradicted by the . Alabama Journal, and also by some northern papers; and this contradiction has elicited a statement from a physician \vim at- • tended the dying man, which leaves no doubt as to the fact that such a confession was made;• and this, taken in connexion with another fact mentioned by the physician, namely, that a corres ponding account has twice before been given by individuals who, in their last moments, declared theMselves to have been • present and actors in the dreadful scene—one at Norfolk, many years ago, and the other in South Alabama affords strong rea son to believe that the truth is at length disclosed. The iollow iug is the statement of the physician.—Con.. Ads'. The pirate who died, and the facts of whose case came into my possession, was by the name of Foster. He was without family, and kept a grog shop. He was taciturn and silent in his disposition. Ile for some time before his death grew gradually more intemperate. He often spoke of being a sailor—of having been much at sea, or, as the phrase goes, of having " seen much ate vice." He fell ..iek•matt wae4essefsssed for-some time. His brain appeared disordered, and his mind at times haunted by strange impressions.. He, on his death bed, confessed to a very worthy and respectable gentleman who stood by him, that be had been a pirate, and belonged to a piratical crew who took the vessel in which Mrs. Alston had embarked. That after the crew and passengers of the captured vessel were all despatched, she alone remained .to be disposed of. Each man expressed an unwillingness to become her executioner. They finally drew lots to see whose duty it should be to destroy her; and it unfortunately fell upon him. Upon learning her fate, she begged strongly and _pathetically for her life; she entreated them to spare her. She tuld them she was Mrs. Alston, the daughter of Aaron Burr, who had been vice-president of the United States, and that he was waiting her in New York, where she was going on to join him, and to console him-in his . adversitv—that he made her walk the plank—which, finding she could not avert, she finally did, with great firmness °el composure!!! He was an illiterate man, and had probably never read any thing upon the snbject. "For some days previous to his death,' he iipagined he saw her in his room, and would convulsively point to different parts of the chamber, exclaiming with much earnestness—" There, there she is !" and would ask the bystanders if they did not see her. This delusion tormented him as long as he could male himself understood, when. he died a most miserable death! "ALEXANDER JONES,. M.D. "Mobile, Alabama, July 19, 1835." In the House of Lords, on Tuesday last, the church robbery bill was pruned of its felonious and sacrilegious clauses by a majority of 138 to 41. The bill is therefore a safe and salutary measure. It charges the payment of tithes upon the landlord instead of the .tenant, as for merly. The charge is, we admit, a reduced one, but the certainty of recovery is a considerable advantage. The clergyman will not, under the provisions of the bill, be brought into collision or angry contention with the mid dle or humble orders of society. • His claims will be re gularly paid without any compulsory or disagreeable pro ces. It is true that the rent charge upon the tenant will be proportionably increased, and it is quite possible that the landlord will tax the tenant at a higher rate than would be warranted by the tithe impost ; but that is his concern, and no fault of the clergyman. The farmers of Ir4and, instigated by the popish priests, and excited to fury and to deeds of desperate guilt by one of the most unprincipled scoundrels that ever lived—these men, 50 ~3 AL instigat Allowed gliently they w times t.l Were cc Crim es their tions, The origins Will, if it will i 9f . pop disaffe( reg►'et is eons °booxi N' on tent. itructi tithe kover 11 4der Inaste inex o pr , th e y 411 i1 tl snore It i s, Ilr f9rni s 'tam, boar( YDun bill lead 1 101 3 t m an Ti wort fered and 1 in apt b6un PrelE lon g 1 14 s cone e Tobh With Le f ha s awl our tro Pat