The Express.
London, England, 1848-07-06 00:00:00

pledges, and excluded 'from that house others who woad
have honestly represented the country. He need not
specify names or places ; hut when he heard the boa. mem-
ber for Dublin declare himself and others blameless, and at
the same time declare that they regsnled the repeal of the
union as • substantial question, he egauld not avoid observing
that his and their acts were not mach as to lead any radoW
man to suppose otherwise than that that question had been
usedas a pretence, to enable them to obtain seats in that
house, thereby deceiving the people of Ireland, and injuring
the character,uf the British House of Commons. (Hear.)
The question of adjourning the debate to that day three
weeks was then put and agreed to, upon which
Mr. REYNOLDS, is order to entitle himself to reply to
the hon. member for Athlone, moved the adjournment of the
house. He denied having used the observations attributed
to him by that hon. gentleman. He had known that hon.
gentleman long, but had never yet heard of his being guilty
of one act of public utility to his country. (Laughter.) His
attack up in the hon. member for Limerick reminded him of
the old saying—" Put an Irishman on a spit, and you will
get another Irishman to turn him." ( Roars of laughter.)
The hon. baronet had put the hon. member for Limerick
on • political spit, and the hon. member for Athlone turned
him. He gave that hon. gentleman joy of his new appoint-
ment of turnspit. (Much laughter). He had stated that cer-
tain Irish members of that house had received comfort and
consolation from the Treasury benches. Now he shoeld like
to have that translated into plain English. He liked open
and advised speaking—(laughter)--and not vague insinua.
tion. He was aware that there were some apostates in that
house who owed their seats to their pretended advocacy of a
repeal of the union ; but he knew also that there were other
hon, members who owed their seats to the influence of
wholesale beroughmongers, and whose expenses were paid
by money remitted from this country, justifying the act, he
supposed, by the argument that the prosperity of
Ireland would be increased by the infusion into
that country of British capital. (Laughter.) He
would not say that any of it found its way to
Athlone. (Renewed laughter.) What the hon. gen-
tleman meant by "comfort and consolation from the
Treasury benches" he was at a loos to understand. He (Mr.
Reynolds) bad certainly not received either one or the other
from the government. (Loud laughter.) He was not sent
into that house to distract its counsels, nor as a waiter to
providence, nor as an expectant lawyer watching to pick up
the crumb, from the table of a future administration. lie
wan an independent member, and amongst those who voted
Inc him were some of the most uncompromising opponents
of • repeal of the union. He did nut eater
that fifties as • repealer alone, hut as possessing
other qualifications supposed to be necessary for the due dis-
charge of the duties of that house. He quite admitted that
a great question like the repeal of the union ought not to be
made
a handball of ; that it it was not to be followed up it
ought to be withdrawn; and unless it were brought on on
that day three weeks, he would join the hon. baronet in
ealliag on the house to discharge the order. (Hear, hear.)
He begged to say that there was no quarrel between him and
the bon. member for Limerick, as the hon. member for
Athlone seemed to say. He desired to lee the legislature of
Ireland restored to her, believing that such a measure was
consistent with a close aad intimate connexion between the
two countries; end he would as readily oppose it as he now
advocated it, if ne thought it could in any degree endanger
, that connezion.
Mr. KEOGH said, after what had fallen from the hon.
member tor Dublin, he claimed to offer a few words in ex-
planation. When be spoke of a quarrel between the hon.
members for Limerick and Dublin, he had nut meant it in
the sense which the hon. member assumed. 'lb.' hon.
member took it in • more serious sense than he (Mr. Keogh)
had intended. He (Mr. Keogh), however, ob,erved that he
had touched upon a sensitive point when he alluded to the
hen. member having received comfort and consolation from
the Treasury bench. He did not m an comfort and conso-
lation in the shape of broad pieces of pounds, shillings, and
pence, and he would state what he had meant to assert. It
was this, that the hoar. member for Dublin, being a violent
supporter of the repeal question, had at the last election
opposed the late member, Mr. Gregory; and that while the
government professed to be the strenuous opponents of
repeal, the very first vote tendered at the last
election for the hoar. member opposite (Mr. Reynolds) was
to tendered by her Majesty's present Attorney-General for
Ireland (hear, hear), who was so zealous in the cause, that
not finding the deputy in the booth fur the district in which
he was reginertd, he pulled out his watch and called on these
present to notice that the booth had not been opened at the
proper time, adding that if Mr. Reynolds was lad returned
be would on that ground have matenais for • petition to the
House of COOIMOLII. (Hear, hear.) He (Mr. Keogh) would
not however rest on this isolated case, but would go further,
and state that at the last election he had seen, and could pro-
duce if necessary, a letter written by the Attorney General
for Ireland, who bad conducted prosecutions against men
who carried only a little too far the principles agreed to in a
modified form by her Majesty's government—a letter under
his own hand, addressed to the agent of a candidate standing
at the Gat election in opposition to the government,
in which he (the lash Attorney-General) stated that
although he was not himself a ;repealer, he would
much prefer the repeal candidate to be returned
than a supporter of the right hon. baronet the mem-
ber for Taiuworth. (Hear, hear.) Now, when the
hon. member fur Dublin again came forward to make whole-
sale denials he ought to be prepared to meet the accusations
of any hon. member why disputed his assertions. What he
(Mr Keogh) had now stated he knew :o be true, and he
defied contradiction. With respect to the words e had at-
tributed to the hon. member, as having been uttered in Con-
ciliation-hall, he (Mr. Keogh) had just been informed by
the hon. baronet the member fur Marylebone (Sir B. Hall),
who took an interest in matters of this kind, and sometimes
fell across some of the " tit bits" of the hon. member for
Dublin's oratnry—(a laugh)—that he (Mr. Keogh) had
quoted the hon. member correctly, and that the hon. mem-
ber had said in his place in Conciliation-hall that on the re-
peal benches in the House of Commons there sat a greater
amount of political profligacy and political rascality
than ever disgraced the sacred benches which
had been consecrated by the presence of the
liberator of Ireland. (" Hear," and laughter.) He (Mr.
Keogh) made this assertion from the reports contained in
the public print of Dublin ; but, after he had sat down, the
hon. baronet (Sir B. Hall; informed him that the quotation
was perfectly correct, and that he had only just sent away
the paper containing the speech by his servant, thinking he
eheuld not require it on the present occasion. (Laughter )
After this explanation, he (Mr. Keogh) apprehended the
house would not think that he had only hazarded the asaer-
tions he had made. If he had bad the slightest imagination
that the house would to-day have been called upon to discuss
this false-pretence question of repeal, he would have been
prepared, not with one or two, bat with twenty, instances'of
similar conduct to that he bad rated having been pursuni.on
the part of her Majesty's government, and to have proved
that he was justified in saying that they had been playing
" fast and loose " with the question of repeal, in order
to secure those majorities at the last election, to which their
political consistency did not entitle them. (Hear.)
Sir G. GREY had not intended to have interposed in the
present very irregular discussion between the two hon. mem-
bers—who, he must say, were very equally matched—but he
rose simply in consequence of the unprovoked, uncalled for,
and unprecedented course which had been taken by the hon.
and learned member for Athlone (Mr. Keogh) in availing
himself of such an opportunity to make a wholesale charge
against the government, or rather the Lord Lieutenant of
Ireland, upon the meagre evidet.ce of a vote given probably
Len fat ata tdh it it et grounds by
ctpte Attorney., tf
ie.,:)lnbeiri.,..General for
Mr. KEOGH.—Not given but tendered.
Sir Sir G. GREY.—WeII, upon • vote tendered, the hon. and
learned member had brought a wholesale charge against
the government, represented by the Lord Lieutenant of
Ireland, of haying thrown all their powerand influence in
favour of the repeal candidates:at the Gat election. He (Sir
G. Grey) believed the secret of this attack was that what-
ever had been the solicitation to obtain the influence of the
government, it bad not been given to secure the return of
the hon. and learned gentleman opposite. (Hear, hear.)
AU that be (Sir G. Grey) could at present do, was to meet
the charge by a general denial; and in proof, he might
mention that his right bon. friend the Secretary for Ireland
(Sir W. Somerville) had, at the last election, met the most
determined opposition of the very body who it was as-
serted had received comfort end consolation from the govern-
ment. (Hear, hear.) Let the hon. and learned gentleman
bring forward a distinct charge against the Lord Lieutenant
for having misused his power, and the government would be
prepared to meet it ; but he (Sir G. Grey) must protest
I against these sweepiag charges being made without notice,
and only supperted by mere declamation and general tuner.
lion. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. REYNOLDS expressed his readiness to withdraw his
motion for the adjournment of the house, but several hon.
members objected to the motion being withdrawn.
The SPEAKER therefore put the question, which was
negatived without a division.
APPEAL IN CRIMINAL CASES BILL

Mr. EWAST said thig 111 dr select committee on the
subject of the criminal kior MIMI yet made its report, he
would postpone the sicced mew a this bill until this day
fortnight.
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