The Express.
London, England, 1853-03-08 00:00:00

AFFAIRS OF INDIA.

Mr. BRIGHT, in reference to a question of which he had
given notice on this subject, said that, as he desired to in-
troduce it by stating some facts, he would postpone it till
Friday next.
PILOTAGE, to.
_ _

The house having resolved itself into a committee of the
whole house to consider the laws relating to this subject,
Mr. CARD WELL, in rising to move for lean to bring in
a bill to amend the law relating to pilotage, would take the
opportunity of stating in a general way what were the
mews of the government in reference to our mercantile
marine, and thought upon a matter involving so many de-
tails, it would be necessary to trouble the house at some
length. He promised to occupy as little of their time as
possible. Upon the present state of the shipping interest
it would be superfluous to dwell, for try it by any of those
tests which they were in the habit of resorting to in judg-
ing of the subject, whether by the aggregate of British ton-
nage entered inwards and outwards, the tetat amount of
tonnage owned by the several ports of the British empire,
the number of men employed in the merchant service, or
the activity that prevailed in all the great ports where ship
building was serried on, each and all of these various tests
prescribed the same uniform results of unexampled prospe-
rity. (Hear, hear.) It was no part of his province to ac-
count for the prosperity, for upon that point he apprehended
there would be little difference of opinion ; the time
probably having at length arrived when it might be re-
ferred to without exciting ancient controversies. (Hear.)
The committee were well acquainted with the fact that from
the time of the peace down to the period when Mr. Huskis-
son was at the Board of Trade, so far from there having
been any increase in the number of ships owned by British
owners there was a constant diminution, and • correspond-
ing diminution in the number of seamen employed in our
mercantile marine. In 1815 the total amount of British
tonnage was 2,081,000, and in 1825 it was only 2,553,000,
the men employed being in proportion. (Hear, hear.)
But if they compared the returns for the year which had
just expired with those of the year 1849, when the naviga-
tion laws were repealed, they would find that whereas the
tonnage entered inwards and outwards in 1849 was
8,152,000, in 1852 it had risen to 8,727,000; and while the
number of ships built in British ports was, in 1849, 121,000, in
18.52 it was 167,000. The committee would admit, he thought,
that they were greatly indebted to his right hon. friend the
member for Taunton (Mr. Labouchere) for measures which
had tended not only to increase the prosperity, but mate-
rially to elevate the character of the mercantile navy.
He did not mean to say, however, that the:details of those
measures, necessarily involving complicated arrangement*,
and tried for the first time, could net be improved; but he
did say that, looking at the broad result, the house and the
country had reason to be grateful to his right hon. friend
for the policy he had inaugurated. (Hear, hear.) Re-
ferring, in the first place, to the system of examination he
had introduced for masters and mates—how painful it was to
hear the imputation of incapacity cast during the discussions
on the navigation laws on that useful and important body of
men. Well, what had been the result ot this examination ?
The total number which bad received 'certificates of compe-
tence during the two years that the ristern had been in ope-
ration was 5,063. (Hear, hear.) And though it was pro-
vided that those who had She ad y served should not be
compelled to pass an ezarninatio-A and obtain the certificate of
competence, but merely the tertiicate of service, so great
was the value set in the mercantile marine on the certifi.
ate of competence that of those 5,069 which had obtained
such certificates, 1,879, Laving certificates of service, need
not have undergone the examination. (Heir, hear.)
Nor was the moral trnprovernent in the service confined to
the masters and re.ates, it extended to the sailors also. His
right hon. friend had, in the measure he had referred to,
put an efficiently to that system in con-
nexion with. the Merchant S- amen's Fund, by which,
by meat; of a compulsory tax, a precarious pro-
vision w,5 made for declining years; and he was happy
to 8,1" that the system he had substituted, however compli-
ce.ed, worked Bell. Means had been providei for ensuring
Comfort to the sailor in his declining years, and for minis-
tering to his moral and material advantages—;hear, bear).—
the system of sailors' homes, with its accompaniments of
registration of character, saviags banks, and other arrange-
ments for elevatiog the position and to increase the corn-

forts of the seamen. The right hon. gen•lemen then root
an extract from a report of the Liverpool Sailors' Homes,
stating the great advantages which had resulted from those
institutions. Now, the objects which the government had
had under their consideration were : Ist, the question of
light dues 2nd, of passing tolls; 3rd, of the restrictions ox
the manning of the mercantile marine, with a view to
their removal; 4th, of volunteering from the merchant ser-
vice into the royal navy ; 6th, of salvage; 6th, of deser-
tion ; 7th, of fees payable to consuls ; and 8:k and last, of
pilotage. (Cheers.) With regard to the first, the light
dues, the complaint made by the mercantile marine was,
that under the system as it now existed these dues
were levied compulsorily, and were disposed of by
the independent mawn of a self-elected body, with.
out the control of parliament. That was the grim
ante. (Hear, hear.) And in the principle involved
in the demand which had been made for its removal the
government explicitly and without reserve subscribed—
(cheers)—and he hoped he should be able to satisfy the
committee that in the measures proposed the object the
mercantile marine had in view in this respect would be
completely and entirely carried out. (Cheers.) The effi-
ciency of the lights being admitted, a great prejudice
he was aware prevailed as to the application of
the funds in the hands of the Trinity-house.
Where there was no system of perfect control and publicity
of account it was only natural that there should be misap-
prehension and misconstruction, and he by no means
complained that such an impression should prevail. (Hear,
hear.) In the Tear 1836 parliament imposed on the cor-
poration of the Trinity-house the necessity of purchasing a
large number of private lights, anti, this obliged them to
incur an expenditure of not less than a million and a
quarter. Whether an impression prevailed in some
minds that since 183 G the members of the Trinity-house
corporation had funded their surplus revenues for their
own benefit, or distributed them in an improper channel,
he knew not; but the fact was, that the money had been
employed in liquidating the debt thus incurred, and up to
the present moment it had been reduced from one and a
quarter million to 97,5001. (Hear, hear.) Concurrently
with this reduction in the debt, considerable reductions
had been made in the light dues—viz., in 1849 a reduction
of 80,0001., and in 18.52 a reduction of 38.0001. ; and without
going into details he had the pleasure of stating that he did
not think the budget of reductions was yet exhausted.
(Cheers.) But then came the question, what was the proper
mode and constitution for securing to the mercantile marine
those advantages of control of receipts and expenditure, ac-
countability to parliament and responsibility to parliament
to which they (in the opinion of the government, justly)
thought themselves entitled. (Cheers.) Rio hon. friend,
the member for Montrose, had on two occasions brought
under consideration this subject of the constitution
of the Trinity-house. In 1815, the committee of that
year recommended that there should be one board
resident in London—that that board should be the
•

Trinity Board, and that one-third of its members
should be nominated by the crown. (Hear, hear.) Now
the government had fully considered those recommenda-
tions. They thought that the mercantile marine were enti-
tled to this—that there should be an efficient control over
the receipts and expenditure in the hands of some person
whose position in the executive government rendered him
directly responsible to parliament, but they thought there
were objections against consolidating the lights of Scotland
and Ireland under the management of the Trinity House,
for it would be invidious to those unpaid commissioners who
in Scotland had acted greatly to the public benefit, and
might possibly raise an objection in Ireland, which he at
least had no desire to encourage, that the government were
endeavouring to carry out a system of centralisation to the
prejudice of that country. Then, as to the composition of
the Trinity House—the proposition that the crown should
have the power of nominating one-third of the elder
brethren would no doubt confer patronage on the crown,
but, at the same time, it would leave it in a
minority of one within the walls of that body.
It might also create a natural hostility between those who
owed their place to one mode, and those who owed their
election to another. It was desirable that those three
bodies should not be charged with their own re-constitution,
but that they should be responsible to parliament, through
the medium of a minister, for the examination of their ac-
counts ; and that the house should virtually exercise that
control over them, which the hon. member for Montrose
said it ought to exercise in behalf of the mercantile marine;
and he (Mr. Cardwell) maintained that this was more con-
stitutional and a more effectual control, than could he
effected by any partial change in that body. The govern-
ment had communicated with the Trinity House, and had
received an answer which bad been unauimously agreed
to by that body and signed by the Master, his
Royal Highness Prince Albert. lu that answer they
stated that the objects of the government, as explained
to them, were, firstly, the establishment of a controlling
government authority directly responsible to parliament for
their receipts and expenditure; secondly, a periodical
audit of their accounts by the audit commissioners; and,
thirdly, an alteration with regard to the dues paid to chari-
ties. On the first two points they had ex -reseed their
entire acquiescence ; but as to the third they had put in a
plea, which as coming from trustees of charities appointed
by charters should be treated with respect, but which bad
not been acceded to by the government. The government
was of opinion that the time had arrived a hen by the in-
crease of commerce and other causes the m- tractile marine
should have tolls levied on them for ii,ffit dues alone, and
in his (Mr. Cardwell's) answer to the Trinity House he
said :—" Board of Trade, Feb. 16.—Sir,—The letter which
your Royal Highness, as Muter of the Trinity-house, has
done me the honour to address to me, I have laid before her
Majesty's government. It is very satisfactory to the go-
vernment, and, in their opinion, highly honourable to the
ancient Corporation of the Trinity-house, that the Elder
Brethren have shown so perfect a willingness to adopt the
views which their sense of public duty has led her Majesty's
government to suggest. The principles which regulate
the receipt, control, and expenditure of moneys compulso-
rily levied upon the public for the general purposes of the
community, will henceforth be applied to the sums payable
to the Trinity-house for lights, buoys, beacons, ballsstage—
in short, to all sums, without exception, levied upon and
paid by the mercantile marine. The gross receipts
will be carried to a separate account at the Bank
of England, from which no payment can be made
except by the authority of a department of her
Majesty's government responsible to the Houses of
Parliament. The accounts will be regularly forwarded
to the Board of Trade, and thence, after examination, will
be transmitted to the Commissioners of Audit. A full

statement of the accounts of the put year will be regularly
laid before parliament. The provision of the statute 6th
and 7th William, chap. 79, for reducing the dues upon the
requisition of the Sovereign in council, will at all tunes be
carried into effect so soon as, in the opinion of her Majesty's
government, the state of the fund will admit, without any
regard to any consideration whatever, except the efficiency
of the several services for which those dues are levied. It
appears to her Majesty's government that the mercantile
marine is justly entitled to these advantages, and that the
scheme proposed by the Trinity-house will secure them."
With regard to local charities ho stated—" The government
will not fail to give a full and impartial consideration to
the grounds which the Trinity-house proposes to lay before
them for continuing the pensions and charities ; but, while
it would be manifestly unjust in the highest degree to de-
prive any individual of an advantage legally conferred upon
him under the system which has hitherto prevailed, they
are glad to observe that the Trinity-house have consented
to acquiesce in their views, if they shall adhere to their
opinion; and that, in the meanwhile, the Trinity-house
undertake to abstain from making any ddition to the list."
He was of opinion that the Trinity House, as trustees of the
charities, naturally used arguments in favour of those for
whom they held them in trust. But he (Mr. Cardwell)
was supported by the decision of a committee which re-
ported on this subject; and after that report the Trinity
Hotta* obtained the opinion of the Attorney-General es to
the necessity of keeping up the trusts; but in 1824 the com-
mittee, having the opinion of the Attorney-General before
them, again reviewed the question, and stated that their ob-
jection was not to the distribution of the funds but to the
principle, and they thought that the dues ought to be ap-
plied to the providing of lights only. I' hose were the views
of the government which they had communicated to the
Trinity House, and declared that there ought to be
a parliamentary control and responsibility over the
funds arising from light dues, and a strict limi-
tation of the funds to the purposes for which
they were levied. And he (Mr. Cardwell) begged
Ito be allowed to pay a tribute to the spirit in which he had
been met. (Hear, hear.) The next subject to which
he war about to call attention was connected with
that of harbour lights, he meant passing tolls ; which bad
been described by the right hon. gentleman the late Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer last year when he laid down the
rule that taxes on shipping should be confined to those for
which corresponding benefits were received. To that canon
he (Mr. Cardwell) entirely subscribed. But he disagreed
with Mr. Disraeli that the proper remedy was to charge these
tolls on the consolidated fund. A careful inquiry was
the plan proposed by the government at the pre-
sent time. There was another reason why inquiry
was neoessary if not desirable. There was a griev-
ance of the mercantile marine from which it Was de-
Bitable they should be relieved. It was desirable that foreign
powers should reciprocate the course which had been taken
by this country in lowering her tariff and repealing the na-
vigation laws. The government was most earnest in their
desire to obtain this ' • and one of the difficulties by which
they were met, small as the matter appeared, was the sub-
ject of the light dues. There was some controversy with
regard to facts, and it was therefore necessary and desirable
that those difficulties should be removed, and that could
only be done by inquiry. lie now proceeded to consider
what were called the Admiralty questions. The first was.
whether it was expedient that we should continue to main-
tain the restrictions which required a British crew te consist
of three parts British subjects and only one part foreign-
ers. The government was not prepared to retain
those restrictions. (" Hear, hear," and cheers.) lie (Mr.
Cardwell) remembered his noble friend, the member for
London, saying that pretection had been the bane of BO'
culture, and he hoped the time was come when, as regarded
British seamen and British shipping, the same maxim might
be safely applied, and that free intercourse would be dreaded
by neither one nor the other, nor any man with British
blood in his veins have any fear of competition. (Ile"'
hear.) The next question to which he came was that of
volunteering into the navy, and it was proposed by some
persons that that should be abolished. In the first place.
the changes which he had just proposed to make materially
ntroctqd that question. But, having made such concessions
to the shipowners, he should be sorry if the government
were to be forgetful of the British seamen, and that as re-
gards so deserving a class of British sulijaed, if they .r,nt
out in ships, no matter to whatever part of the wcrld, and
by any chance they met wi,.h tyrannical =Vets, insufficient
diet, or any other cryino grievance, there should bs
no hope for them until their ship had completed her voy-
age. Some right of appeal to a British authority ought to

I

1

-v4l-
- Se

be 'Owed in those cirenenstanen to a person tonally sal
were
defenceless as the sat the
The diultlise
~,,,,e all
;bet were felt in Australia at the preseat moment by
,b,powners were familiar to every gentleman; but this
cantles were three yean ago felt in California en
41n,theratil state what wu there done by a British ()Moat
:-. ccann Shepherd, of the Inconstant frigate, proceeded
so :is Franeism by order of Admiral Horny, sod arrival
[ire October 4, 1549. when he wrote to the British Idea
nia I expressiug his readiness to afford asthenia lo
e'lls-t., interest., dc. At the earns time, he sent Si 0111111
~
. ‘,.)01 ali the British ships in port, to ascertain their moo
digs and wino, and to desire the masters to apply Gregg
to ban fur such assistance as they might require. He worth
0, to aly, .. By the 7th of October I had ascertained this
o, of ~, British vessels lying at this port, but four barques,
on' by their crews, required the aid of hands to nevi-
ute them to Valpusiso, whde the remainder were either
muyet dial:wird, chartered, or stationary, those ships
used with Lacers, or crews hired at high wages fur
being eal
short vly.titi. Having determined upon taking these four
l• in hand, I caused them to be brought down, fitted for
7o7..nanited with 41 officers and men from the Inconstant, and
they were clear off the porton their way to Valparaisoby this
18th." lie only ineatiocied this to show that there were two
Bides to this as to other questions. (Hear.) But, while the
government did not intend to abolish the system of 'ohm-
gorier altogether, they did intend to brill in enactment@
es the subject, and to provide that if a positive lose fell on
a sLipowner by there volunteering*, he would he entitled to
compensation from the lunch; of the Admiralty. (Hear.)
In till. way justice would be done both to the shipowner and
to the seaman. (Hear, hear.) He would now turn to the
go, scion of salvage. There were some who thought the
nicht of salvage in regard to the Queen's service should be
abolished. He was not at all sore that if they were to poll
the neclastriters they would be of this opinion. On this
'abject Lord Tenterlen, a high authority on this question,
said the law of Great Britain was more liberal than the law
of gawps geberally on this subject. The Admiralty riga-
Wiese laid it down that, before any officer could raise a
'palm fir salvage, he must have rendered really important
service, or service accompanied with hazard, otherwise that
claim was not to be attended to. (Hear, hear.) But there
was a grievance cum cctcd with this subject; and that was
the peremptory lien which the law gave upon a ship in
such cues, and which enabled them to detam it at • vast
cost in a distant port. (Hear, hear.) On this point he was
anthorieed to state, on the part of the First Lord of the
Admiralty, that arrangements were in preparation by
which, in cases of this nature, the lien might be released,
and the case transmitted to the judge of the Admiralty
Court in London, instead of detaining the shi Lad reign
port. (Hear, hear.) He might be told, as bebeen
by a deputation, that the jurisdiction of the Admiralty
Court was objected to, and that the Board of
Trade would be preferred for the adjudication of
such questions. Ile felt much obliged to those parties
for the compliment they had paid to the department
with which he was connected, but considering that the Ad-
miralty Court was presided over by such *man as Dr.
Lathington, he must decline the honour; and he would
my that atter the announcement which had been made by
the law officers of the crown as to the intended reform of
the ecclesiastical courts, there could be little doubt that if
the Admiralty Court required amendment it would be very
mite to be attended to. (Hear, hear.) He would come to
the question of donations, and all he could say on this
point was, that a bill was in preparation, and would be
laid before the house, intended to remedy the grievances to
which the shipowners, especially in Australia, were =-
reLby the desertions caused by the gold discoveries.
, hear.) lie would now come to the question of
insular fees. There were, he believed, some erroneous
impressions on the subject of consular fees. They were all
regulated by act of parliament, in conformity with the re-
port of a committee on the subject. He found that the
nuts' payments from the Consolidated Fund unmated
ee 145,000/., and the fees to 27,000!. lie had been told
that in one department a consul had received the
large sum of 1,0011., but on inquiry at the Fo-
reign-office he found that one-tenth of that sum
would have been nearer the truth. (Hear, hear.)
It was true that the recent ameadments of the Marine Mer-
cantile Act had thrown many additional duties on consuls
la harp, part, and complaints had been made that • con-
ga sipal bis aims many times, and received many feu,
where sue signature and one fee would be sufficient. His
(Mr. Cardwell s) answer was, that the power rested with
the Foreign-odice entirely, and Lord Clarendon entered
readily into the spirit of the complaint, and, if he found it
to be well-grounded, it should be redressed. Therefore he
hoped the shipping interest would be satisfied that there
was no indisposition on the part of the government to do
what was just with respect to the subject of consuls' fees.
There was another little matter, which he believed was
now made much of by the shipping interest, and that was
the right of sending home from Queen's ships invalids in
mereheat vessels under the terms of the act of parlia-
ment, instead of contracting for theta. It was intended
by the government to make an ant in favour of
the mercantile marine, and to place • sailor in this re-
spect on the same footing as the soldier now stood. (Hear,
bear.) Having adverted to the grievances known by the
name of Admiralty grievances, ha cum to the ques-
tion of pilotage. The right hon. gentleman opposite had
announced to the house the intentics of his government to
propose a committee on this subject ; bat the experience
of former parliaments with respect to committees and arm-
missions on the subject had not been such as to satisfy
him (Mr. Cardwell) that the government ought to con-
ine itself exclusively to that mode of investigation. flo
long ago as 1833, Bit B. Peel appointed a commission
to investigate the subject of pilotage, and though inquiry
then was necessary into some parts at the one, ware
there no parts, in respect to which they had now sufficient
ineemation to enable them to act without being sub-
ject to the charge of temerity ? Let him ask the house
to look to two or three of the principal ports in this
courtesy ? What was the grievance, for instance, in the
porte of London ? The right hon. gentleman opposite had
justly treated with ridicule the idea that a person tromps-
tent to navigate a vessel down the river was inompetent
to navigate it up the river. Now there might be some dif-
ferent@ between the navigation down and the navigation
up, but he thought the man who would trust his ship to a
person who was not skilful enough to navigate it both
ways would be a very bold man. In site of all the ingre-
ssions arguments expended on the point, be meloilined
that the employment of two persons for work which OM
might do necessarily led to higher charges, to a want of
uniformity in system, and, above all, to a want of IMF
formity in regulation and control. (Hear, hers.)
lbsgevsminent subecribed to the principle which OMB
lelaiald down that pilotage was entirely • loath wilifer_ .
mil sitenid therefore as much as possible be left Solon
boles. Bat that was no reason why they ought net Ile
NW= on the Trinity-house pilot, who steered • mud
lien the river, the right of steering it back ; or, why
Moak compel a meritorious Clique-port pilatorbe
a shM teem Dammam to London, to travail lenkjui pol
noreturn
& Maim' of I. charge of a veeseL The
mieyed the two sots of pilots might be with
y y interchanged. What, then, was to beenalhier
: il
the ariadiction ? The vested
_n as rights of the pilot, they
ra
see when they road the bill, would be carefully pre-
aimed both as regards the right to pilot and the piles'.
had. With regard to the jurisdiction, the principle Mal
had been laid down was that the jurisdiction should lee
hal; end then he asked, was it not the great port of
Leaden that sustained the commerce whieh eircu-
hied between the Thames and the Cinque Ports ; and
eight sat Me litiediedes, therefore, to lie in London?
It was thosAro proposal, reserving all the rights
Kadding Aim to amalgamate the two belies
end pines ism- under the OMNI to which the Lamina
OM
won widgeet He would now advert to the case es
OWN the "y.
_That was described by Loyd Lone.
eddeidinstgithe esamehniesen appointed by Sir K. Peel, in
Be mods :—.. The conaisquence of the system has
him to mimes she valve of the pilot's vessels from 1.2004
Is MM., their original met, to between 4,0001. and 5,00114
Mimes mom." The oommaisidosers then proceeded to se*,
M hardens levied on the shipping interest—" The Vied
Mad applies principally to Liverpool, where coasters ahem
VII tens harden, or vesicle which have not been employed ,
la that trade for six months, are subject to pelotene,
althsegh it appears that they were formerly exempt ; and
it ahe applies to the ports of Ireland. In most other ports
mutes are free, and as their masters are generally good
*ls for the places which they frequent, we consider
Met each 'nab should be placed on the same footing
deseghout the United Kingdom, and be everywhere
anmented from the obligation to employ a pilot." And,
Au speaking of the hardship on steam companies of being
eimpalsil to pay pilotage every time, they rooted :—" As
this, however, is a question involving not merely the risk
oiProperty to an immense amount, but still more the vela-
Us lives ef huadreds who daily embark in this clam of vos-
eels, we cenceive that some regulation is absolutely Malt
say, as well for the ports in which steam vessels, trading as
"Wm, are now exempt, as in those in which they are at
Present compelled to take a pilot ; and this how's the
aon netessar), as steam navigation is so rapidly Increasing
both in extent and importance." The house mould remem-
ber that ia 1849 the right hon. gentleman (Mr. Labenehere)
rased a bill by which the pilotage authorities were
talweleered to confer on masters and mates the
Poser to pilot their vessels, after examination and
as grant of a certificate of confidence. Bet se
Issuttim had been sufficient to indium the pilotage
asthmatics at Liverpool to enter on that question. True,
they had made an over to exempt these parties from the
Nam contribution with respect to pilotage as other people
Sid, but the law officers of the crown gave it as their
'Man that regard being had to the provisions of the local
...15
.. .(
'hey mad not consented to bring in • bill to amend the
" sets in order to enable them to accomplish the object
defeatso . The siovensount, therefore, in order to remedy
I the kind, proposed by act to confer on the Board
of Trade the power of providing for the case, where no
examination was entered on, and, consequantly, no certi-
te, ids Created by the local authe'irity. 'The government
"4",_ 4, nothing so little as centraliaation in this matter ;
••1 milted to leave the power to be exercised by the
meal authorities, and, as they thought there must be a
maedy for an acknowledged grievance, they would ask
616Teniding power to override these and all other similar
j
r°4l Seta Llk order that the local bodies might be enabled
to rake CallOtNioll4 to the mercantile marine. He now
6Plweacked the ease of the Severn It appeared that the
fllKratom of Bristol had °shame. d the passing
pusing of a bill
tins; them the right to charge pilotage for every ship
that alvtarated the Severn. Since the period when that bill
seiwee. circumstances had very much altered, and Newport
asibilitr considerable'
11tr.,:0 had Poets, some of them not inferior to
groan up us the Severn, and those pints had
by lac sct to which he had alluded,' a great tax imposed
it.,th10t_.....11e cordially subscribed to the doctrine that
tkr.7,;, Merin extended character was necessary into
m o pilotage ; and he only dealt now with
1"11 of the greater and more salient objects. The

out •

emir quietism wee bow that inquiry would best be insti-
tuted ? After what had already bees does Is the way or
inquiry through committees aid sesamieskins bie wee sot
in favour°, prosecuting as investigation by either althea'
210418. Hew, then, wee inquiry to be ittedtuted ? By
the sdk, Mudd, of those able offieen, whom the right
bee, the member for Taunts* bad placed Is
the department of the Board of Trade. The
aellain a clause telling on every pilotage body
fa ea bleobsee for complete information, which would
Wes be beseght before the Board of Trade and laid be-
witseurlemeng. By these means he trusted that they
set a temporary, bat a permanent inquiry,
tx:fra evasion, self-meting, and stringent. There
aim be a power given to the pilotage
boils of staking needful reforms in the way of
ellsbashisi freeteased exemptions and facilities in favour
acs *yobs interest, but no restrictions could be
Vanameades•-•• a safeguard, the sanction of the Queen in
first obtained. With regard to the case of
the Severs % %reed in saying that by the harmonious
'combination ring the several bodies a vast improvement
and great measure of justice might be effected. He invited
the house to give to the Queen in Council, that was to say,
the Board of Trade, a new power, but not of a compulsory
but of a mediatory character, and he should request
Captain Beechey, of the Board of Trade, to go down to
the Severn mid investigate the case, both in its physical
and legal bearings. If nearly all of the different bodies
agreed to that officer's recommendations, he did not anti-
cipate that any one particular body would be a recalci-
trant party in respect to what the majority considered fair
and just. He asked them calmly and indulgently to con-
sider the proposals for substantive changes which he had
placed before them. The right. hon. gentleman then re-
capitulated the several points upon which he had enlarged,
and said he appealed to the committee in the hope that they
would think, where the government had knowledge they
had not shrunk from action, and that, when they had not,
they bed candidly stated the limited information they pos-
owed, sod invited the committee to ink', the most judicious
mom he obtaining more. He ought, however, to have
stated that there would be a very early reduction of 25 per
cent, on the pilotage of the port of London, while the pilut
age of vessels tugged by steams would be raised.
He had concluded this task which the indulging*
of the committee had permitted him to discharge. It W2B
221011bitious in its character, and necessarily so from doe
sates* of the subject; bat he trusted that the abeam be
proposed, if the committee sanctioned them, would result
lin practical good. At least be could tell the committee they
were making no surrender to political pressure, and me
abnormal conomions to the exigencies of a suffering into.
rest. On the contrary, the time selected for this legislation
was a time of comparative prosperity, and the government
only asked the committee to reflect upon what were their
own sincere convictions, believing the committee would
come to the same. They were asked to take another step
in the sewn, commenced by Hushisaon, and continued by
Peel; and in the name of British enterprise he would defy
competition from whatever quarter it might come, sin-
cerely believing that in proportion as we maintained nor
place in the vanguard of commercial freedom, in the ease
properties' we should maintain the pre-eminence we had
earned both in mercantile prosperity and maritime policy.
(Hear, hear.) The right hon. gentleman then moved • re-
solution that the chairman be instructed to ask leave to
bring ins bill on the subject.
Mr. HUME approved of the proposed reforms as far as
they went ; but thought they might go further. He praised
Mr. Cardwell for his statement, while he corrected some
errors into which he believed him to have fallen. He was
opposed to ell restrictions upon shipping, believing them to
be the most mischievous of all our indirect taxation. And
with regard to the management of the department, he was
for sweeping awny the Trinity Board as "lumber," and
placing its jurisdiction under government control.
Mr. HENLEY gave a mild approval to most of the pro-
positions ; but he made some qualifications, and especially
doubted whether any great saving would be effected with-
----serration of the controlling power.
with

Mr. LABOUCHERE agreed, ....a very little qualifica-
tion, to all of the measures proposed; and took that oppor-
tunity of alluding to the prosperous state of the shipping
interest, which he believed to be caused by, and not to
be in spite of, the repeal of the navigation law'. His prin-
cipal disagreement with the government was with regard to
the proposed alteration in reference to foreign seamen, not
on the ground of any supposed injury to the British seaman,
but because he had some apprehensions of the effect of
destroying the national charae:er of our ships.
Viscount CHELSEA adverted to restrictions imposed
upon the pilots of the Cinque Ports, to which
Lord A. PAGET responded by citing some of their pri-
vileges. He was, however, very glad that the government
was rain/ to take that class under its protection.
Mr. TLENER gave a qualified approval of the measure.
Mr. HEADLAM considered that, as the British ship-
owner was thrown into competition with the foreigner,
he should be relieved from all those burdens which
pressed upon his class, and from which the foreigner was
exempt ; and he hoped this point would not be omitted in
the bill.
Mr. DEEDES deprecated some of the proposed innova-
tions, and claimed at any rate compensation for existing in-
terests.
Sir E. PECHELL contributed some criticism.

Mr. ARCH. lIASTIE believed that the bill would give
satisfaction to the shipping interest and the country.
Mr. INGHAM pointed out some deficiencies in the bill,
amidst a great bun of conversation, which some succeeding
observations from Mr. Stapleton did Hot tend to diminish.
. .

Mr. HUDSON complainid that the bill did not propose
to remove the unjust pressure of passing tolls upon the
people of Sunderland.
Mr. CARDWELL, in reply, remarked that he had no-
thing to do with fiscal or financial arrangements—his duty
being simply confined to bringing forward measures for the
objects he had stated, and explaining their general prin.
eiple. He proposed inquiry as to the passing tolls, because
it was but reasonable, when it was proposed to deal with
the private revenues of particular ports, or the burdens on
the public funds, that they should not proceed until alter a
preliminary investigation. He had not felt it his duty to
go into any detailed statement on the subject of the light
(thee; but there would be an opportunity of doing so before
long, when he hoped that those hoe. gentlemen, who now
seemed to suppose that it was not intended to make any re-
daction in those dues, would be satisfied with the explana-
tion he should give. (Hear, hear.) Hon. gentlemen should
however remember, that on the subject of taxation there
was one principle of taxing whieb, according to Adam
Smith, was the least objectionable—that was, taxing for
services rendered. He slaked the committee to sae the
measures is detail before them, before they pronounced an
opinion, he M beileired. wire they did so, they would find
that =impel the suggese{mss which had been made in the
cause of the eveningited been rat.
The resolution was than agreed to, and the house having
resuased, the bill was ordered to be brought in.
BLACKBURN ELECTION.—ADJO CRNBD