The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-04-09 00:00:00

)IVIPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

In the House of Lords. April 4, their lordships met at four
o clock for the purpose of witnessing the Royal Assent twine
given itY Commission to the following Mile :—Peace Pret.erva-
Von 'lreland) Bill, Colnege Bill. Mutiny till, and Marble
Mutton HU The Lents Commissioners were:—The L'dd
Chancellor, Viscount Sidney, and Lord de Tahley.
The Speaker awl members of the House of Commons having
attended at their lor.laiiips bar the It 'pal Assent wee
fled to the above bills in the usual lorni, and their lordships
ani-ierned
At live o'ctock their lordships resumed, when,
Lord Per niece moved f .r a return of the criminal 'en-
teric-a which have leen wholly remitted or reduced or varied
by the crown a der the advice ot the Secretary of State 'or
the Horne Department duri..g the last three years, distin-
guishing the oasis in which tire grtduill of interference was
the suppo.ed innocence of the parties, the severity of the
sentence, or other causes. The noble lord said he did not wish :
to complain of the connect of the Home Secretary, for he
believed the authority of the Crown had been wisely
exercised, especially by the right hon. gentleman who
at present tined that office. He wished their lordships
to consider the way in which the criminal business
of the country was reviewed after it hail In ee dealt well
by jit.hes mei Juries No sooner had a judge on c:r nit
passed sentence of death than the scene shit let to London,
where a rt.ntleman recousidered the care ho a private room
The matter generally ended in a reprieve, anti an explanati. ii
by the there Secretary in the li.uso of Commons. This he
conteutied was not a satisfactory mode of conducting the
criminal business of the country, the total absence of any
rens. nettle mode of inquiry, after a conviction, having forced
in ihkluti hr res,rt to the absurd alternative .•f rising the
Royal prerogative. One result Ivan that when people
knew tha• a sentence of death passed In a criminal eteitt
/night he reversed by the Ilente Sscretary, was that the elf-ct
of such sentences wits weakeeed. Ile urged that a tribunal
Inizht be formed, Including the Horne Secretary, by whom this
duty should be fulfilled. It was of the first necessity that
Its inquiry should be public, and that all evidence should be
Riven on oeth ; secondly, that they should not be tied down
to the strict legal tures of evideece. Such a court should
have power either to send the case to a new trial
or to annul the trial altogether. The noble and
learned lord passed on to make some renmrks ahout
the difference in sentences which were passed by judges,
and pointing to how public opinion varied as to the severity
or Inadeqeacy .1 punishments he showed that the public had
no meal's of Iging, and he expressed an opinion against
Interfering .6 ith the dif cret ton of those who hail te administer
the law. He added that all this arose from a want of bid-
, fortuity, b,canee each man took a different view of the
enormity of various offerJces.

The Emil of Morley soul he was not aware that the noble
lord was gibe at such length into the question The Govern-
' nient could nut enneent to grant the returns, because it was
contrary to practice to call upon the Horne Secretary to
State ids reasons in a general way for the use of the Miyal
incr. wait. To do so would be to establish a dangerous
precede, t. while in individual cases the right hon. gentle-
man always afforded art explanation to the /louse of Com-
mons The ...titres asked for could only be produced at an
immense expenditure and with considerable trouble, and if
granted he thought they would in many cases produce a false
Impression If giv.in briefly, while if they entered into detail
- would furnish an enormous mass, with which it would be
• Lopracticable to deal.

_
The Duke of Richmond, as Chairman of the Royal Corm
mission on Capital Punishments, pointed out oFjections to
the proroieil tri..unal, and expressed a preference for the
existing system.
Lord dyveden wished to see greater uniformity in the sen-
tences pa.sed, not only by the Judges but by the Chairmen
• Of Quarter Se-stuns and Petty SngßlOnti.
. The Lord Chancellor eriticivni the constitution of the
tribunal shadowed out by Lord Pent ince, and pointed out
the superiority noon the whole of the crating system. lie
described the practice of the Horne office when application
WA. made for rt mittirg a criminal sentence, and doubted
whether the present state id polite opinion justified he
appointment of a Royal Commission. With regard to uni-
formity n, sentences, it would be impossible to take away
all discretion from the Judges, and to en tct that the ex-
treme sentence should be pronounced in all cases.
Lord Pe,mnice did not press his motion, lint explained that
. he Is never proposed to take ales}, the tirerogative of mercy
from the Crown. He was convinced .4 the necessity of
establie.ing some tribuital to assist the Home Secretary, and
believed that public opinion herein was more matured
than the G.tvernment appeared to suppose.
After a britt discnssion raised by Lord Cladricsrde, in
regard to a meeting at Kildare, their lordships adjourned.
In the House of C,-mmous, Sir C. Mike asked whether,
having regard to the circumstances attending the indium),
execudin of the late Mr. G W Gordon, a member of the
Legislature of Jamaica, and to the injury done to the pro-
perty of his widow, the Government were preiared to con-
eider the lattice of making acme compensation to Mrs
Gordon.

31-r--ii/arlstone clverved that the legal part of the case had
never been brought to a distinct point. Thf,re was no evi-
dence a hich proved to him either the motive or the extent
of the loss said in have been suitained, and he dui not thlok
It would be within the province of the Slint.ters to recom-
mend Clar pen sation In Ura case.
Mr Crawford wked whether the rum of £lOO,OOO, en-
tered as a receipt on account of l'ele,raphs "in the pnb-
Daherl statement of revenue for the quarter ended 31st
March, was in reaped of messages only: also the number of
sness..g,s for vard=ol for the public by the Department down
to the 3lst March

The Postmaster General replied that the £lOO OM would
Include all some received on mewiages, osot for postage
stamps in re,pe..t of messages. The number of messages
forwarded by the Department up to the 31st of March was
1,100,000, inclusive of message. received for transmission
abroad, hot exclusive of me.ages received by the Yost
Office from abroad for delivery In the bones districts.
• The Irish Land Bill was under discussion the whole even-
ing, but before Rolm( into Committee Mr. o,adstone promised
that bet me Kanter the solicitor-General should fix a day for
. the University Tests Bill, and the Lord Advo ats undertook
to bring in the Game Lsw Dill next Monday. The Committee
resin-tied at Clause 3, and
. . . . . .

..... „,
Mr. Disraeli moved his important amendment, which
limits compensation to unexhanated improvements and iii-
terrupi ion in any c mute of husbandry suited to the holding,
excluding al'ogether damages for simple determination of
tenancy, lie prefaced his motion by expressing his vexation
at being unexpectedly CMl,rd onto depart horn the attitude of
candid comideration which he and the Conservatives had
hithetto observed towards the bill. Bat he was compelled
to lead the Opposition to this pirt of the clause by the
Important changes m ido in the toll sine it got into Com-
mittee—the excision of the Ulster tenant-, ixht all over
Ireland, the droppii.g of Clau.e 16, which wouni have gin•-ti
to the landlords power to bargal.• themselves out of the liii
by a 31 years' lease, and now the pronitisd declaration that
. the simple tirolination of a tendency is a moral wrong de-
manding compensation. He was ready to Ove all that
justice eMllpeLSati,lll for improvements. OD a
liberal scale, awl, considering the circumstance of Ireland,
he would extend it to interruption of a course of
agriculture. But the new-fangled idea of the Go-
verment to compensate for distuiliance without re.
reference to these wind s would give every ten ail a contingent
rernaiwier to one-third of the freehold It was entirely
opposed to the essential principles of our legislation, it was
. utterly unjustified by the necessities id Ireenii. and would
,not sati.ty the tenant f,mers' clubs. Dilating on the
grievous const fineness of the adoption of this principle, Mr.
Disraeli argued that it would create a new grievance, the
payment of rect, because landlerds, in self-defence, would
permit DO arrears to accumulate. It must be estcniled to
Englmd and sentland, and it could not be confined to the
relations of landlord and tenant. . .

The Chancellor of the Exchequer denied that there had
been any change in the principle of the clause. It had
alwAys recognised compensation for disturbance, though
originally it was mixed up with improvements, which had
been found inconveni, t. The legal right of the landlord
to distui b was not ignored, hut it was treated as a right
liable to abuse, the unchecked exercise of which was
• standing danger to Ireland, and raised the bitterest
feelii gs between landlords and tenants. After show-
ing how absurd it would be to contir e compensation to the
two items seected by Mr. Disraeli, he denied that the
clause gave damagee for eviction. lie preferred to describe
It as f•e,.urir g that if Any tenant could show a loss on his
tenancy being brought to a Close he should he compensated
for it, and the object he admitted, was to put a check
on toe practice ot eviction. Si far from beirg an
invasion of the rights of property it would render
property more secure and valuable ; and as to the
violation of political economy, which tie defined to be the
laws governing the accumulation of wealth. Mr. Lowe de-
clared that It was not to promote the accumulation of
weabh. but to save society, that the bill was brought In.
Finally appealing to the o.mmittee riot to pass the amend-
ment. Mr Lowe drew a sarcastic picture of what would
happen to the Irish landlords handed over to the necessities
of Mr Disraeli with a "good win kolt minority."
Mr. II trdy warmly retorted on Mr Lowe by reminding
him of bin spe,h two yaws ago, when political economy,
now thrown overboard. was recommended as the panacea for
Irish evils. He followed up and enforced Mr. Disraeli's
chw ge that tla clause had been essentially changed by mak-
ing the ierminwion of tenancy alone a subject for damage,
$ll.l ciii plaited particularly that the scale had not been
lowered since the element of improvement had been taken
out at it.. _ . . . . .

Sir Matildell Palmer, after protesting that he could not
vu • e for Mr. Dlsraeli's amendment, accepted it as a very fit-
ting occuion for the full discussion of toe important prin-
ciple which it rais-d. The proposed removal of Clause 16,
enabling the landlord to cover himself by a 31 years' lease,
he strongly censured, and criticizing the 0 whined effect
of these changes, he maintained that they would lead to an
Increase of rents, to accumulation of holdings to landlords
keeping hidings in their own hands, and to all bargains
being 0 thi.e.l to 31 years' lease.
The discupsion mao comlnind by Mr. 11. Matthews and
Mr. Gladstone ; and Mr. Disraeli wound up the debate, re-
peating his objections to the nor and mischievous character
of the proposal.
On a division being taken the amendment was rejected by
296 to 29). _

Several bin were forwarded a etage, and the House
adjourned.

In the House of Lords. April 5, Lord Redeadale gave notice
that anon after Easter he should call the attention of their
lordahips to the Order in Council relating to the scheme of
naval retiremeht, with a view of conaidenng the effect that
scheme would he likely to have 011 the naval service of the
country and to move resolutions thereon.
The Ecclesiastical Patronage Transfer Bill was read a
second time. _ . .

Lord Redesdale called attention to the vacant land in
Downing-street, and the Houses In King-street and Parlia-
ment-street, intended to be taken h,r the extension of Govern-
ment offices in Downing-street, and asked for information as
to the design awl progress of the works.
Lord Lansdowne, in giving the required explanations,
said It was the intention. f the Government to erect new
ofilees in Downing-street without delay, lint he pointol out
the intpoasibilit3 of completing no large a mass of buildings
with,n ail one financial year.
The Duke or Argyll said that a portion of the vacant land
belonsed to the India-office, and It had heen intEndeel to
build upon it a museum, which wls very much wanted for
the Exhibition of the comm,,rcial products of India In the
present state of the finances of India, however, the plan had
been postponed. . . .

the delay in completing the monument to the late Duke of
Wellington in St Pam's Cathedral was complained of by
Lord Cadogsn, who adverted to the sum voted by Parlianient
for the erection of the monument, and expressed his doubts
whether a farther sum would not be required. Lord Lans-
downe expressed a hope that the monument would be com-
pleted within a year ; and after a brief conversation, in
which Lord Stanhope and other Peers took part, the infra,
mutton deetred by L .rd Calogan was ordered to be laid on.
the table, and their lordships aulf turned.
In tie House of Corenions, Sir H. Selwymlhbetson gave
notice that ou the Srd May be would call attention to the
remit • *vat on railway accidents, and would conclude with
a midi. n.

Mr. i;o!ryKidd that on the 3.1 May he intended to more
for a a, het committee to inquire into the hiarratiou of our
commercial treaties.

Ihe Attorney -General intimated that on Friday next he
would move for leave to bring in a bill to disfranchise the
boroughs of Bruigewater and lievelley.
••- " " " .

Slr.tC It 31;eve gave notice that on the 3,1 of May he
would cat! the at,etition of the House to the condition of
Ireland under the Government which the Act of Union had
We/dished, and would move a resolution thereon.
The House then went into cornntittee on the Irish Land
Bill, resuming the rons,deratton of Clause 3
Mr. G 1 sAlstone said that he intended to alter the amend-
ment which stood in the name of the Chief Secretary for
Ireland so as to meet the objections raised against It last
night by Sir Bounden Palmer and others. The amendment
as altered would be to the effect that the tenant would be
entitled to comper.sation for the loss which the Court should
fli dhe had sustained in quitting his holding. This proposal,
taken a ith the provishin 011 Cause 12 (the particul.a, elo mid
be given of the lo,s for which compensation was claimed)
would, he believed, reon me all apprehension that unfair ad
vantage would he taken of thee anon.

Alvr a discussion, durba which several hon. memhers
strongly opposol the Glans. and the amendment, whilst
others summrted the amendimo, R. altered, the coninattee
divided—For the amenume,.i, ; :1;28h, t, 162.; ru ijority,
11l To EOM hdnient was thereiore c
Mr Corrosive moved an amendment limiting the com-
pensation to fire years' rent, and to holdings under s',ls
annual value. It was °pinned by Mr. C. Fortenua, and, on
its being pointed out that the polMs could be better die-
ctmed on the scat-, Mr. Corrance dui not press it.
Some verbal amendments consequent on Mr. Fortercue's
amendment were made, and, on reaching the scale, tha
further progress of the Committee was adjourned until
Thursday.
Mr. .P. Taylor moved for leave to bring In 1'1,31 to restore

, he ancient constitutional practice" oi paying members
' if Parliament. He supported Ms proposition by reference
, to ancient precedents in our own history, anti to the uni-
, cereal custom of all other constitutional Countries; and he
'trailed that it would put members out of the ream of
Ministerial itilitence, and would be the only means of
heroducing working men within the walls of Parliament.
Leaving it to the C-minittee in the bill to grthe amount
remunerstipn, which he prPposed to take from the
Consolidated Fund. he indicated his own preference for a
sum a hich would leapt men of education and culture,
soy 4f.Od a year, to a poor as niece suhsistence
Monty.
Mr. Gladstone, without receding from his oft-expressed
desire to see the less opulent eon ci more numerously repre-
sented in tryo ff...., was of opinion, looking to the merits
of the gm.stton and the ciromeoances ul the times, that it
w. unotsirable to clitertakin tim tioe,tioa now. Ent lie vfloi
extremely sceptical as to the pay !nett of ni,mbers making
much difference in the eloss from which constituencies
would choose their represchtatives and if it were
- . .

desirable to 'Send plor tu,n to Parliament, .1-irbt7 shO;11;1
not the constituencies subscribe to pay their expenses
The country, he punted out, was full of gratuitous ger-
ViC el ; it was not in the two Houses on,y that there were
•tat; and what, he aslied, in a parenthes s, was to be
o tie for the lards ? into were the n adetrAce, municipal
ant parochial otti 'ers, Jurors, volunteers, the. Ike crimple
Of fortign countries am quite inapi.lica,le, or we had a
tiered class here quite unknown eTewhere, and if the
rouutry c,.uld get the seroC.-11 01 eecupeteht hien grateltelligy,
hy should as; go out of our way to piy them / The trans-
ference of the charge too, to the Consolidated Fond was an
Itchilt;011111 ohleCtillit, Fined pa) aunt by the locality was, at
least, a guarantee of the proper estimate being matte of the
service rendered..

_
Tim hil was elan opposed by Mr. Crook by Mr. Iltbbert,
Who stweested that the re a,leat mode of opening Parliament
to poor men was to reduce the expenses of elections, and by
Lord limy, alio appielitinled, fron the example of foreign
countries, that the practice would lead to dihnying," and
would lower the tore I f political morality. Mr Qin°.
S ircastically uked whether the new doctrine of conipeu-
satb di for disturbance" was to apply to rejected mem'rers?
On a division, the House ref used leave to bring in the bill
11.211 1021.
..

'Mr, Alderman Lawrence brought en his annual motion,
comiernniim the Home Tax ais unequally assessed. The ob-
jecti•ns to it on which he I rid moat stress were the rise In
lents it caused. and Ps interference with the mist couvenieut
mode of building houses for working men, and he showed,
too, how impossible it was to l•iy it fairly Ott the Manakins of
the rich. This last ',obit was then up slid enforced by Mr.
T. Collins, who secouded the motion.
Mr Stansield, who replied for the Government, admitted
that there might be an amendment in tins respect to the
inode of assessment, but with regard to the main question,
he meintalliell that it was not all unjust ta, all things con-
sidered, and that it certainly did not stand first on the roll
for repeal. Consequently be c odd nit hold out any chance
of its i•ring included in neat Month'', Budget. Mr. Alder-
man Lawrence did not p-ess his ion to A division, and
after other Maine*, of airs pnlthe interest had been disposed
of, the House adjourned.
In the Douse of Commons, April C. Mr. G. C. Morgan
moved the see old reading of the Sites for Places of Worship
Bill. In the ilebridea a site for a church
slot once be obtained for a district as extensive as the Isle of
Wight lie was prepared to urge that there was nices4ty
•it his proposed legishlCon, and also that this legislation
would nut interfere with the rights of private property.
Probably, the landlords g nerally found, with regard to their
own intermt, that it was expedient to agree to the wishes of
the neighbourhoods. It was to the exceptions that his bill
applied. Nothing was thought of turning te..a of thousands
of tiersons out of ho,we and home for the purpose of making
a Dover and Chatham hallway to Ludgate hill. Why, then,
object to interfere with property by compelling a proprietor ,
t• permit the erection of an E•ienezer on his estate in the I
Collniry
. . .

Mr. *Gregory moved that the hill be read a second time
that Oily sit moths. By clause 2 the bid w. resiricted to
England. Why not apply it to Ireland and 5C..t1.11? An
application waa to be mole ill the Charity Commissioners to
select a site for a chapel or school, awl then the spot was to
be compulsorily tie des!. Ile objecttd to the power of
selecting a couple of acres on another a estate, and erecting
Ott it a building, chapel, or school, which might sot be
specially, cruamental.
. . . . . .

Mr. Lt. IVenards said he did not object to the principle of
She bill, but he thought that its details were objectionable.
There were places where schools were it q.drell, and they
could not be built became the owners of the only available
property strenuously re,isted the acquisition of a site.
Mr. G. Hardy objected to the compulsory character of the
bill, and surge.ted that the question should be leit to the
Schools Bill. Ile believed that In any part of England where
a chapel was required, a site was provided.
Mr. Secretary Bruce assented to the second reading A
change of the law, so for as enabling a site to be given fore
Dissenting chapel or school, was much needed.
After stveral other hon. members had expressed their
opinions on the subject, Mr. Mowbray suggested that Mr.
Gregory should with.zraw his aseminient, to w hich Mr.
Gregory consented, and the aniendment was withdrawn.
The second re Ming WM then agreed to.
. .

Mr Nesvdegate gave notice amt on the motion for the
committee he wett.d move that the bill ho committee that
day six months
On toe order of the day for the second reading of the
Jnriee: Bill, .

Lord Enfield proposed the second reading, remarking h
the bill was identical with that of laq year As the matt. r
Involved so many matters of intricate detail Le would be
prepared to rerer It to a select committee.
Mr. Yourg said that one general panel might he prepared
for a sitting instesd of a special jury for each ; that twelve
j iry men were mule .essary ; and that In the colonies a jury
.4 four had been found to work admirably. The unity of a
Jury was a myth.
After some observations from Mr. Denman and Mr. D.
Dab) mph',
The Attorney General said he was rrepared to agree to the
principle of the bill; but he trusted that it would be referred
to a select committee.

--i;:ii4;ll;:y7r;r7t;i7hat the bill woolf not be paned except
on the req.'s:Nifty of the government.
The hill was then read a second time, and ordered to be
referred to a select committee.
. . . . .

The F.vidence Further Amendment Act (lSCO) Amendment
Bill passed through couguiltee.
Mr 11-ionall moved the second reading of Summary Ci n-
Yietiobs Bill, which, however, was aft, rwards witildrAwn

Alit U. B..eheridifil be light in it bill to protect the goods
of lodger* against executions upon tile property of the
landlord,.
. _

The bill was read a first time, end tha House adjourned.