The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-06-11 00:00:00


and education of his Highness Prince George, during the term of
his natural life.
This alto was negatived without a division.
After some conversation between the 41swcut.t.no of the Ex.
CHEQUES and Mr. BROUGHAM, upon the subject of the words
~will" and ** shall" in the Bill, the words ..During his Ma.
jesty's will and pleseure, and in such manner and forms as to his
3ledesty may seem Si," were introdticed es an stneedment after
the word " that." The Bill then passed with a laud and em.
Oldie ** No" from Mr. Brougham.
BUCKINGHAM PALACE.
Mr. BROUGHAM, hearing that a sum was *she provideefttehi
Crown
the sale of lends for rebuilding Buckingham Palace, b
to know if the Chancellor of the Exchequer had say :Tenn to
produce the account of the expenditure upon Carlton Palace.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHLQUER teplL.i, (M.: it
the Honourable Gentleman give notice of a in/tien en the sulk°.
he would try if the papers could be ptocured.
Mr. BROUGHAM asked whether it was the intent:on of 'ee
Right Hon. Gentleman to enter into say other exposition of his
views on the subject of Buckingham Palace.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said he had, for
the despatch of public business, Shortened the *details upon the
question. on Bement of the lateneu of the hour when it was men.
noned ; but he would be prepared, on the wood reading, to glee
the fullest explanation.
SUING OCT WRITS IN IRELAND.
Sir 1 NEWPORT presented a petition from a greet many
rweetable attorneys, on the subject of suing out writs, and the
difliculty of executing pmeesses..—Ordered to be printed.
MAGISTRATES OF SURREY.
Mr. DENMAN gave notice of his intention to present a petition
on Tuesday, relating to the conduct of the Surrey Magistrates, and
to found some proceedings thereupon.
TOWNLANDS' BOUNDARIES BILL (IRELAND.)
Mr. GOULBURN moved the Order of the Day for the House
going into 111 Committee oa the Townlands' Boundaries Stint.
Mr. S. RICE moved that it be an instruction to the Committee
on the Bill to receive a cheese for making the plamolappointe.l tor
gaols and eeetet.housee, and no longer used for etat pa/pose, pare
of the loeshjuristlictiona, whereto they are situated.
001 LBOURN opposed the caution.
Sir J. NEWPORT supported it.
And after a few word. from Mr. R. m•Nitor. the gallery was
cleared fora division, and the motion for giving the above in.
atruction to the Committee was agreed to.
Strangers were for a considerable time exeleded from the
gallery. ; a discussion in the meanwhile toot place, but there was
no division.

The Bill. with its several clauses and amendments, then passed
through a Committee, and the Report was ordered to be received
to-morrow. _ _ _

SMUGGLING PREVENTION BILL.
The House resolved itself into a Committee of the whole House
on the Smuggling Prevention Bill.
Mr. BERRIES said this was one of a series cf Bilk proposed
to be substituted for the numberless statutes at present existing for
the prevention of smuggling. lie did not exaggerate when he
stated that the number of Acts to prevent smuggling exceeded 500.
It was now intentleA to compress the substance of these Acts into
twelve new Acts, containing all the important provisions. The
House must be aware that the formation of these Acts involved s
labour of great difficulty (hear, hear), lie therefore had reason to
expect that the subject would be treated with all possible intlul-
gence, so as to reader the new enactments perfect and effective
(Hear, tear.) The Bill now before the House had had several
amendments added since its original formation. These would un-
dergo dieeussion on a subsequent occasion. One important, and li
he thought useful, alteration, related to the seizure of foreign ves-
sels. he old regulation was, that a foreign vessel, having on
board contraband goods, became liable to niters if found within
eight leagues of our coasts. Ile proposed that the liability should
only extend to foreign vessels discovered within one league of our
shores. Another atnenlment related to searching of persons. The
principle he had in view was to prevent any unnecessary restraint upon
the liberty of the subject, at the same time that the revenue should be
protected by the preventiorrof smuggling. The preser' regulation
sus
picion the officer
the person of anyhndividual. Now it was proposed by the new
Bill 'to *Cord Individuals the right of requiring the officer
to take ahe suspected person before a Justice of Peace. or
superior officer comment to administer an oath, and the officer
must not proceed to search until the Justice of the Peace or supe-
rior officer is satisfied that there are reasonable groan+, tfbr suspi-
cion. It is further intended to secure the individual, by subjecting
the officer to a penalty, should the Justice of the Peace or superior
officer consider that th seizure was offensive or vexatious. By this
regulation the rights of the subject and the revenue also would be
guarded. Another alteration which he intended to propose was,
with respect to persona found lurking within five miles of tke coast,
and suspected of being engaged to assist ih'the • f contra-
band hmods. By the present law such pen set to heavy
penalties, but to protect the right Of, was proposed to
Insert a clause subjecting the Ater to a Eeavy penalty for seizing
any individual upon vetestieets,or inadequate grounds.
Mr. BERNAL sruSitilling to give every credit to the Government
for the atrention'they had given to this subject. It was a matter of
great itueortance to render the confused mass of laws enacted to
prevent smuggling more intelligible. lie could not agree with the
provision which recognised right of personal search, even under
he modified circumstances proposed by the Hon. Gentleman.
Air, BERRIES suggested the propriety of postponing the dis-
cussion on this subject untllahe clause came before the Committee.
Mr. BERNAL was willing to comply with the Hon. Gentle-
man's suggestion, if it met the views of the Committee.
Mr. BRIGHT wished particularly to know those parts of the
proposed enactments which were old and those now introduced.
Dr. LUSH INGTON objected to the provision giving the right
to search foreign ships without extending a reciprocal right to other
coantries. This enactment would hereafter be used as a :precedent
to the great injury of our maritime interests. If a ship under a
foreign flag, haring on board contraband goods, be discovered
within four leagues of our shores, should half the ship's crew be
British subjects, the ship is liable to seizure and the cargo to con-
fiscation. He could not reconcile such • provision with the law of
nations or the rights of British subjects. This act, however, was
not continedloßritish subjects, but referred to foreign vrisels as
well; and he thought that such a principle was dangerous to be
adopted by this country.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said, that ifs vessel came to
this country under a Freoch flog, but attended with filth dr.
eumstanoes u to amount almost to a demonstration of them inten-
tions being to evade the Revenue Laws of Lis country, he consi-
dered that it was not violating the law of nations to prevent them
from doing this. The provision was a defensive one. What right
had any persons to be engaged under a French flag to smuggle
goods into this country ? Under the circumstances which this Act
required the vessel to be previous to its being subject to seizure, he
would ask whether it was not a fair presumption that the object of
a vessel so circumstanced was to smuggle, and if so, would it not
be justifiable to seize her? It had been objected that there was
no crtain facts required to be proved of the intention of the par-
ties. and that it was only on presumption that these seizures would
be made. It was, however, the object of this clause to state what
'evidence should be considered as suspicious, and such as should
justify a seizure. They could not wait for a demonstration bf the
intentions of the parties; he therefore would say that this deflhi.,
tion of their intentions was considered aufficiettt, and they had ne-
ver given rise to any complaint whatsoever on the part of France.
Unless they were disposed to abandon the principle of seizure en-
tirely, they must retain a clause of this description. This clause
had been in operation fee forty or fifty yuus, and no complaints
had been mule against it, and therefore he contended it ought not
now to be rejected.
Dr. LUSHINtiTON did not wish to throw any obstruction in
the way t but he could not agree to the principle on which this
clause was founded. If lie thought it was according to the principle
of the law of nations he would not oppose it • but they should re.
members hat if they insisted upon this principle other nations would
act upon it against us. If they determined that no vessel with a
French flag should be within 21 miles of our coast the French
would adopt the same course. The object of this provision ass not
unknown, and it would be taken advantage of by those woost io-
terests it went so materially to affect.
Mr. DENAIAN must say. that he looked at many of the clauses
of this Bill with It degree of horror ; they went beyond what she
just interests of men required; and there was something‘ bar-
barous in the very terms of this law. The seizure took place first,
and then erne a resistance, in which blood was shed, and after
that it came to an idle inquiry in some Court of Law, whether it
was it murder or no murder ; a sort of power came lagging behind
after all the mischief was done, to decide whether there was a right
of selzwv or ao. How was it possible that the persons on board,
COMM4II English sailors were to know that the persons in the sat.
petted vessel were his Majesty's subjects or trot Why, the na.
site Hindno and the Lamar were his Majesty's subject*: so thus.
whether they had the right in the first instance of taking the vessel
by this law, was to depend upon an inquire after the feet had hap-
pened. Ile also objected to the clause which went to empower
AagiAtrates to take cognizance of the complaints of poor men who
might suffer from the acts of the revenue officers; he considered
they ought to have the benefit of a trial before a Jury. Another
most monstrous clause in this law was—that where, alter a eririve
had been made wrongfully, and the question should be tried, if the
Judge should certify that there was a reasonable cause for making
the seizure, then the damages were cut down to twopence. It
would cert.iinly be better to let the ease be decided by a Magic.
trate, than any such a mere pretence of a trial should oust.
After a few o'usatations by 51r. /kettles, Sir R. WILSON,
and the Crineeght.cia of the hectitoshism, the clause was put
Arai agreed to.
Mr. HERMES Introduced • clause to empower Custom-house
offices, to search tine persons of individuals arriving on the coast.
Mr. GORDON opposed the introduction of the clause. espe-
daily, he observed. DS the question was now under consideration in
a Court of Law. The practice of searchieg was a mast indelkote
one, particularly as it regarded females ; and he thought tia re-
venue had much better sustain any loss that might accrue, than
subject any individuals to such a proceeding.
Alt BERRIES said his chief motive In lueng this clause
was to determine at once the question, which was now at issue in a
Court of Law. It was utterly impossible to prevent smuggling,
even to n considerable extent, unless some power of search were
siren to the officers of Customs.
3lr. BRIGHT and Mr. Hoye opposed the clause.
Air. HUSK ISSON said that many persons made considerable
sums of money by pin'- frequently from Calais to Dover, aud car-
rying prohibited goods about their persons. In his opinion, unless
such acts was precasted by law, the evil would boson a very
grekt one.
Mr. HUME said, that if such persons as those alluded to by the
Eight Ilonouzable Ueutletuac were Lucien. it would be easy to