The Express.
London, England, 1849-06-15 00:00:00

IMPERIAL P.

HOUSE OF LORDS.—ThossDAT, lints 14.
. The Earl of Saarrzanvar (Deputy Speaker) took his
seat at 6 o'clock.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.
SECOND READlNGS.—Hoghtoe's Diverse (proem&
Ira) ; Oaveadisles Estate; the Hon. R. Clive's Estate ;
THIRD READlNGS.—Sunderland Dook Act and River
.Wear Commissioners Act (amendment, etc.) ; London Gas
Light Company (amendments of am) ; Bill..
PUBLIC BUSINESS.
PETITIONS PRESENTED.
• Pactuoviow or WOKEN BILL.—By the Archbishop of
CANTERBURY, from places in Kest ; Earl NELSON,
Earl of MANSFIELD, eat the Bishop of OXFORD, several
from various places; in, favour of this bill.
Poore Laws.—By the Marquis of SALISBURY, from
various pleas., on this subject.
OPPICIAL Heroin OP mita LORDSHIPS' DEBATES.—
By Lord LYNDHURST, from shorthand writer, praying,
it the home should determine on having an official record of
its proceedings, that their claims to be employed might be
considered.
Foam° HIALTZ (Dextral)) —By the Earl of CAR-
LISLE, from Att lone, on the subject of the public health.
Fun TRADE.—By Earl STANHOPE, from shoemakers
of London, complaining of the injary of free trade.
AGRICULTURAL DISTRESS.-By Earl STANHOPE, se-
veral, from various parts of the kingdom, complaining of
agricultural distress, and praying for a return to the system
of protection.
AGRICULTURAL DISTRESS AND PEOTICTITS DUTIRS.—
By the Marquis of SALISBURY, from Wisbeoh, complain-
ing of distress caused by tree trade priaciples, and praying
for a return to the protective system.
Poitca (Scovirma). —By the Marquis of LANS-
DOWNS, trim me municipal authorities of a place in
Scotland, praying that • bill might be passed for the regu-
lation and improvement of the Scotch police.

ACCOUNTS OF TURNPIKE TRUSTS (SCOTLAND'
BILL.
Earl Gnawiters brought up the report of amendment,
011 this bill.
TURNPIKE TRUSTS UNION BILL.
This bill was reed a third time, and passed.
PARLIAMENTARY OATHS BILL.
The Earl of CARLISLE gave notice tut he should
move the second reading of this bill on Thee lay, the
26th inst.
HIGH TREASON.—SMITH O'BRIEN.
Lord CAMPBELL said their lordships were aware that
William Smith O'Brien had been convicted of high treason,
after a Dial which had been conducted in a most seniunctory
manner, and upon the clearest evidence. They bad also
been aware that judgment of death bad been paused upon
him, and that a writ el error had subsequently been sued
out. The cue was first brought before the Court of Queen's
Bench, Dublin, and the judges of that court, in a judgment
which had called forth the highest commendation of distin-
guished members of their lordships' house, had una-
nimously agreed that the trial had been properly con-
ducted, and that the conviction was perfectly regular. The
case had subsequently been brought before their lordship!,
who were assisted by the keened judges, and all were unani
mously of opinien that the conviction was legal and valid.
The unfortunate convict was, therefore, clearly liable to
suffer the sentence of the law; but upon the merciful consi-
deration of his cue—although he had levied war against
the Queen—although he had endangered the commencement
of a civil war—and although whet he did had led to the lees
of life—it had been thought that, consistent with the public
safety, mercy might be extended to him • and an Intimation
had been given, that upon condition of his being transported
beyond the seas for lite, his lite would be spared. It might
have been expected that such a boon would have been grate-
fully acei.pted ; but, on the contrary, an objection had been
made on the part of Smith O'Brien that the crown
had no right to exercise the prerogative of mercy.
He acknowledged that his life had been forfeited,
bat he said thatch' crown had no right to force this condition
upon him, and that he rijiicted the condition. Now the
dir reified and humane coarse no doubt would be to remove
the doubts which bad existed as to the power of the crown
thus to exercise the prerogative of mercy in cues of high
treason in Ireland. He had looked into the acts of parlia-
ment and had come to the conclusion that upon the con-
ditional pardon pacing the greateeal, a mitigation of the
sentence might be carried into effect ; but there had been
doubts expressed on the .übject, and therefore he proposed a
cl deiratory law to remove all such doubts.
Lord BROUGHAM :—Generally.
Lord CAMPBELL :—Generally, of course—to apply to all
cases. This power belonged tattle crown in felonies in Irelsud,
but it had been contended that the act, 6 Geo. IV., did nut
extend to high treason in that country. There was no doubt
on the subject as to the English law. Frost and his con-
federates ware convicted of high treason when he (Lord
Campbell) was Attorney-General, and having been sentenced
to death, it was subsequently commuted to transportation for
life. He proposed that the bill should be read a first time—
to-morrow he should more that it be read a second time—
that the dulling orders be suspended, and that it be at once
passed.
Lord BROUGHAM entirely concurred—it was no doubt
the better course of the two. This was the last act of that
pretended love of distinction—that absurd and preposterous
vanity in which this man's treason had es origin. (Hear,
hear.) He knew, when he rejected the offer, that he would
not be taken at his word, but he thought he would make a
flourish with the other agitators in that country so unfortu-
nately under the influence of agitation, and pretend to con-
front a danger which he knew had no existence. (Hear.)
The Earl of DEVON had been present at the trial et
Smith O'Brien, and bore testimony to the ability and im-
partiality of the judges who tried him.
Lord DENMAN said there could be no doubt that the
Queen had the power of commuting the punishment of death
to transportation in this country, and if that power did not
extend to Ireland, there would be no difficulty in enacting
the present biU.

CANADA.

In reply to Earl GHAT,
Lard BROUGHAM said he would lay the terms of his
motion on Canada upon the table to-morrow.
AGRICULTURAL DISTRESS.
Earl STANHOPE, on presenting the petitions on agricul-
tural distress, inquired whether the government intended to
proceed any further with their measures of free trade.
The Marquis of LANSDO WNE was not prepared to give
any pledge on the subject.
Earl STANHOPE said the corn-laws bad been carried by
wry great perfidy, and the votes of their lordships lied
Wen taken by ballot, the result would have been way dare-
font. He bad no doubt the petitions he had presented would
be treated with the same contempt as other petitions on the
same subject; the consequences, however, of such blind
policy would be seen hereafter. Tayer ^f the peti-
tioners was for a fall and effectualprotection for themselves
end other deism It had been said by Mr. Cobden that it
would be as impossible to re-enact the awn-laws as to destroy
agriculture, end that nominee had been retailed throughout
the country. Bankruptcy end insolvency throughout the
land bed been the consequence of these laws, notwithstand-
ing which the fns-trade party were attacking one interest
after another, and last, but not least, the shipping interest.
The people of this country were not satisfied with these
miserable economists. He would conclude in the words
of one of the scot eminent men of the present day, that
their Icrdabips would not believe themselves to be in
danger until their castles were falling around them.
The Marquis of SALISBURY, in presenting the above
petition from Wiebescda complaining of agricultural distress,
said he was glad to find that no noble lord had been bold
enough to rise in his la
es and deny that every interest in
this country was at peeseet suffering.
PROTECTION OF WOMEN BILL.
The Bishop of OXFORD, in moving the third reading of ,
this bill, said that it had undergone amendment in com- I
'sinew, and that he had nothing to add to what he stated to
the house on the former stages of the measure. He was
aware that in many instances it would fall in the desired
object, but he believed that it would effect a eonsidereble
amount of good by meeting some of the most flagrant cases
which were occurring in the me' ropolis and the country.
Lord CAMPBELL said it would give him the most sin-
cere pleasure if he could support the third reading, because
no one was more anxious than himself to ob-
tain the object sought by the rightprelate,
and no one was more willing to give credit to
the efforts of those who had that object in view. But, be-
tiering that the bill could do no good, and that it probably
would do evil, he felt bound to oppose it. In his opinion it
was not in the slightest degree calculated to meet the evils
it professed to remedy. AU who had engaged in this meet
1 laudable attempt bad found themselves between two great
evils. They either sought to legislate against that which
could not properly be made a crime, or they sought to legis-
late against that which the law now considered a crime, and
which it was ready to punish. A noble earl, who was slab
absent (the E art of Mountcwhel) befit a former occasion I
alluded to measures which would subjects of legiala- '
tion if they were politic, and he had further pointed out the
evil of carrying the law beyond its present stringency. At
present, wherever they had the intervention of a third per-
son for the purpose of corrupting female innocence, the law
ae it now stood considered that a crime, as it ought to be,
and was ready to punish it. But what did this
bill ? It was • very short and simple msuure, and Its
scope and tendencies were manifest. It professed to do what
the common law did not do—it Feigned to introduce • new
law, sad to make that • crime which was not now a crime.
It said that if any one for the lucre of gain should, by false
pretences, false repreeentations, or other improper means,
solicit and procure any woman to have connexion with any
man, each person being duly convicted thereof should suffer
imprisonment; and the indictment in such a case would be,
that the person had solicited and procured this illicit con-
nexion by fraudulent means and the lucre of gain
But this was now a misdemeanour, end had ever
been a misdemeanour by the common law of England.
Wherever each a plot was laid for the corruption of female
innocence, the law celled that a conspiracy, and the party
guilty of it might be severely punished. Again, the bill did not
meet cases in which scandalow promises were made, with a
real intention to carry them into effect, that en innocent fe-
male should have 1,0001 a_year a box at the opera, and a
carriage to drive about in Hs dei-park ; but, according to the
common law of England now, if suck temptations
were offered for the purpose of corrupting fe-
male innecznee, that would be a crime, and would
be punishable. There was, in fact, no difficulty at present
in punishing that most nefarious crime, the crime
of procuring, and treating it as a misdemeanour. Though