Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-03-12 00:00:00

CHURCH RATES

The Duke of Marlborough laid on the table a bill for the
purpose of enabling Dissenters to plead exemption from
Church Rates, if they could declare they already contributed
to the support of their own places of worship.
The house then adjourned at six o'clock.

HOUSE OF. COMMONS-

-FRIDAY

CHARGE AGAINST A GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL AT HONG KONG

Mr. Ridley asked the Secretary of State for the Colonie
whether her Majesty's Government have received the report
of a commission appointed to enquire into a charge brough
against Mr. Daniel Richard Caldwell, for participating in
the profits of piracy during the time he was holding an
office under the Government of Hong Kong ; also a report
of the trial of the Queen against William Tarrant, which
took place in the month of November last, in the Supreme
Court of Victoria, in Hong. Kong, and in which trial it was
sworn that certain papers, implicatingll r. Caldwell in the above
charge, were destroyed by order of Dr. B ridges, acting Colonial
Secretary at that time, exercising, as is alleged, an unlawful
authority conferred by the Government of the eolony. If
these reports have been received, what course has her
Majesty's. Government taken with reference to the transac-
tions to which they relate, and whether they will lay on
the table any papers which may contain any information on
the subject.

Sir E. B. Lytton (pulling an immense bundle of papers
out of his po'cket)- said that these contained merely the
result of the trial ; the details would be furnished hereafter.
He had instructed Sir J. Bowring to institute a searching
inquiry into the matter. Mr. Caldwell had been suspended,
and Mr. Bridges was no longer Colonial Secretary. He
had no objection to place the papers on the table, but he
should prefer to place the table on the papers.

TRALEE AND KILLARNEY SAVINGS' BANKS

Viscount Castlerosse asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer
whether the attention of the Government has been directed
to the case of depositors in the Tralee. and Killarney Savings,
Banks; and, if so, whetheE he can hold out any hope -that
compensation will be made to them for the losses they
sustained by the failure of those establishments.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer said he had seen the
the report of the committee appointed to inquire into the
case, and he saw no reason to dissent from its conclusions.

THE MAGISTRACY OF HUNTINGDON',

On the motion for adjournment till Monday,
Mr. T. Iluncombe asked the Secretary of State for the
Home Department to explain the recent large addition to
the magistracy of Huntingdon. That county, he observed,
was a highly favoured one. It contained previously more
magistrates than policemen. He contended that many of
these late appointments were improper, and made on party
consideration.

Mr. S. Estcourt defended the appointments in question.
The new magistrates were qualified, and highly respectable
men. In almost every countyihere- were more magistrates

than policemen. -
General Peel, as member for the borough of Huntingdon,
and Mr. Fellowes, as member for the county, declared that
these gentlemen were not political partisans of the Tories,
and were appointed in districts where magistrates were
wanted.

Sir Andrew Agnew put a question to the Secretary of
State for India, respecting the disturbances which hate
taken place in the Travancore, with respect to the burning
of mission chapels, the ill treatment of missionaries and
native converts, the interruption of low caste funerals by
men of high caste, and the alleged conduct of the British
Resident.

Lord Stanley begged the House to suspend its judgment
till further information had been received from inquiries
now being made by the Madras government.

CHURCH RATES

In reply to an appeal from Mr. Schneider,

The Chancellor of the Exchequer consented to give a
morning sitting on Tuesday for the discussion of the Church
Rates Abolition Bill.

LANDED ESTATE COURT (IRELAND)

Mr. John Fitzgerald asked the Chief Secretary for
Ireland, whether it was the intention of Government to
recommend the appointment of a Supreme Judge of the
Landed Estates Court, Ireland, in the room of Judge
Martley, lately deceased ? He contended front the present
state of the business of the Insolvent Court, it was not
necessary that a third judge should be appointed.
Colonel French said that by the original bill of Govern-
ment there were to be but two judges. In consequence of a
discussion in the House, it was decided that a third judge
should be ' appointed. He now thought that it was alto-
gether unnecessary to depart from • the original arrange-
ment, or to fill up the vacancy which had occurred.

THE PIICENIX PRISONERS, &C

Mr. Deasy asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether
there is any foundation for the statement which appeared
the Times, that letters from the persons accused of political
offences in Ireland to their professional agent, had been
intercepted or delayed by the Government ?
Lord Naas, in reply to Mr. Deasy, assured him that
nothing of the kind bad taken place. The matter had been
brought under his notice last Monday, when he received
a communication from the authorities in Dublin, to the
effect that orders had been transmitted to the governor of
the Cork prison, ordering that the letters between the politi-
cal prisoners and their legal agents should not be subjected
to the usual prison rules, but should pass. between the parties
unopened. In reply to Mr. Fitzgerald, he said that the
change of the number of judges under the last act, from two
to three, was made in deference to the opinion of that
house, and to that of the right hon. gentleman himself. It
was time to depend on the business of the courts, but it was
impossible as yet to know what that business would be,
as time had not yet been given to the public to take advan-
tage of the new regulation. As to the filling up of the
vacancy, no decision had as yet been come to. The matter
was still under consideration, and whatever was done,

SAItRbAN, MA_Ii;,CH 12 1859

the charge of a matron, duly appointed o.r selected by the
Government ?
Sir E. B. Lytton said that, in all emigrant &i1:15 charter-
ed by the Commissioners, matrons were appoinv:ed, who
were allowed back passage.