The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1819-05-11 00:00:00

try. -it was 10111131:11ted. that the Armorial,. of
their revenues should be left to thecaselve.. he
(onion Islands had brAs reduced to great diificul-
ties by the reiterated vicissitudes and epithelia's
they hail suffereil ; hut he could take upon himself
to say, that the finst debt. to the discharge of
which they would attend, was the demand of this
for the military establishment required for their
protection. It could not be expected that he
should go into tlw other various questions which
the • Honourable Gentleman had introduced, on
the inertly general knowledge hr iime.essed of them.
however, was more Inreigii from the tii-
teisti•iii of the Noble Lord at the head of the Co.
lonia! Department, or his own, then to keep the
country in ignorance of any of the modes of Go-
vernment adopted in the Colonies; because he was
convinced that the snore it was searched into, and
the more it was known, the more it would be sp.
proved of. The Colonies had always had their
military force kept up at the expense of this coon-
try ; and he thought the House would not rashly
depart from the principle, at least till papers were
before it, 'hewing the revenue of these States more
accurately than it was now known.
Sir JAMES NIACILINITOSH said, that if he under-
stood the objection of his Hon. Friend, it was, that
there was already a surplus revenue from tlicse Co.
bones, adequate to the purposes to which the vote
was to be applied, without the imposition of any
new burden. If that assertion were true, it wawa
strong as could be made out for the interpoai-
tinn of the House, the question was important
not only in a financial, but a constitutional point
of view. If there really was a large sum of
money proceediog from these depfndencies left
at the disposal of the Ministers of the Crown,
if there was a large extra parliamentary revenue,
it was the duty of the House to institute inquiry
into a matter that involved the first principles of
the Constitution. If Ministers desired that the
Resolution should pass, they were bound to shrew
that the revenue of these possessions was unequal
to defray the charge. Very shortly sifter the con-
quests of Gibraltar and M res. the House insti-
tuted an investigution into the income arising Drum
these places, and caused the surplus to be applied
to the public service.

Mr.Guut.suutt and Mr. HUMS mutually ex-
plained.
Alter a few words from Mr. F. DOUGLAS and
Sir W. DE CRESPIGNY, the amendment was nega-
tived, and the original question carried.
On the Resolution being read for granting a
sum not exceeding 21,635/. Is. I Id. for medicines,
surgical materials, and hospital contingencies for
Great Britain.
Mr. J. P. GRANT said, he had already moved
for papers to 'hew the charge of the Ophthalmic
Establishment included in the estimate read—it was
not his intention to oppose the Resolution on the
present occasion, but it was his intention to-morrow
to move for papers distinctly describing the expen►es
of it.—The remaining Resolutions were then read
and agreed to.

BARNSTAPLE.
Lord CLIVE moved the Older of the Day for
the second reading of the Barnstaple- Bribery Bill.
The question havingjeen put,
Mr. BERNAL rose to oppose the motion. There
were but three cases iu which Parliament had
thought proper to pass similar Bills—the cases of
New Shoreham, Cricklade, and Aylesbury. The
Hon. Gentleman then entered into • detailed state-
ment of the nialiaractices which had previously pre•
wailed in each of these boroughs,_ and argued that
the evidence given before the Committee in the
present instance did not justify the House's inter-
fering in such a strong and summary manner. It
was unnecessary to remind Members that it was one
of the most ancient boroughs iii the kingdom—it
had received its charter in the time of Henry I. and
sent Members to Parliament in the reign of Edw. I.
A great part of the electors seemed not to hive
been infected with the corrupt practices of which
some of them had been proved guilty, and he
thought there was a strong call tan the justice of the
House not to deprive the whole body of their an-
cient privileges and birth-right. On the *hove
grounds, but principally that of the want of suffi-
cient evidence, he moved, as an amendment, " That
the Bill be read a second time this day six months."
It was seconded by a Member whose name we
were unable to learn.

The question having been put on the amendment,
M►. N. CALVERT spoke in support of the mea-
sure ; he thought the Bill only put the electors in
a situation in which they had less power to injure
the Constitution and yell their own rights.
Mr. BENNETT supported the original motion,
and defended the decision of the Committee, of
which he had been a member. If the witnesses
had gone one step further, the Committee would
have declared Mr. Ornmanney also not to have been
duly elected. They had found bribery to have
been the common system of the borough; one of
the electors examined, said he received a bribe
seven times. In fact, there was not on election at
which every elector, beneath the rank of a G-ntle.
mail, did not receive a bribe. At this moment the
voters put off making any promise. saying, they
wished to wait till some turtle came down, refer.
nng, lie supposed, to an expected wealthy candi-
date From the City.—(Langiater.f
Sir it. WiLson said. he hoped he should not be
considered as acting inconsistently when he stated
that he would give his decided opposition to the
amendment; but that when the Bill came to a
Continence, he should move that the Borough be
altogether diafronclused, said the right of voting
transferred to some of the lunge uurepre,tiiirn
towns.

Mr. BARHAM thought that one uniform rule
should be laid down for the guidance of the Hume
to parsing Bills like that before the House—snit
that rule should be the guilt of the majority of the
electors. He impressed strongly on the House the
necessity of every Gentleman txamining the came
mitult►ly, and coming to a rational decision n► his
own mind before he voted, in order that the electors
who were affected by the measure, and the public
at large, might be ati•tird with respect to the
ground on which he proceeded.
Mr. BATHURST said, the que►tion here was, whe-
ther they had evidence enough to act oil or not ? A
ease might arise, where guilt could be affixed to
particular person', but not to a great number.—
sud yet those who examined the Emil' might be
convinced that moral guilt attached to ull the par-

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ties concerned. find they, in such a tiSibits a riglit
to 'emceed to the, adoption of mermen" et prrerro.
lion P It via', dear they il El. Mr: Griblde said,
that this presetic.• had not existed for more gw,
ripr or Ave elections—and that sum. of moo.
having been given to the electors, in threw inetaner:,
they would naturally look for it in others. N„,,
although this circumstance could not b.. p,„,,,1
with respect to more than A, 8, or tip. hu
doubt could he entertained of 'h• genern it% •'.-A
which prevailed. Unless, then, something w.,. :km.
with iferetiet to the overthrest of the My Sltlll o.gli,
he be little good coulefllk attained 1,.. „,e,„,
cutilig needy individual., who, ii they could , p,i.
in their purse must pay see this persons. I lic.
that, where a body of electors acted upon t cot--
rupt system which seemed to mat in this horsugh
f
—a systein which rendered it impossible for as
election to be carried on fairly—if they did not e,,..
tirely forfeit their franchises, they reheard, iu ,
great degree, their right to them, end, unifier these
circumstances, that right ought to be extruded is
others. It appeared, from the evidence, that/.
was the sum drinmilett for bringing u voter .
hustings, which wee put down under the heart os
travelling expenses ; and this, together wilts ct;,,•
circeemstancts, having been proved before the (:,, ti-
miner, lie conceived a sufficient case *a. lustle out
to authorise the. House to act as it had dust-.
Mr. BARHAM and Mr. BATHIAIeT revcr4ity ex.
plainer!.
Sir J. NIWPORT reakin extract lento the erns
deuce before the Commie, to chew, that the
Bribery Oath was not tendered at the election to
env of the voters. This, coupled with the states
meld, that at several elections sums it money had
beets given to the electors for their votes, shelved
that • regular system of corruption, shit is called
for the intervention of the house, was co,i.nently
acted on. Therefore he should vote tor di, Kit.

Mr. BERNAL mod. it apne..reil tie,
loi.t election. the bribery oath hid be. ii .01mi...,-
tered to Mr. Cann', One of the el-ctors.
Sir J. NEWPORT riot!, he drew his informattou
from the documeists before the House.

Mr. R. MARTIN opposed the Bill, because he
thought it was contrary to the essence of justice 1,,
punish the iiiiiocent as well as the guilty—mid this
measure would evidently have that oprriitioo, tome
it would affect even the children of those woo moo
had • right to vote. fie should pro.tose, that, 111
future, it should be mandatary ou the ieturtiii.,4
officer to administer the bribery oath, which
probably, have the effect of repressing the systeui
of offering sod receiving bribes. With treitect to
the proposition for extending the right of t ming is
the freeholders of the hundred, lie c,:ohl see
meritorious el: which the hundred could put
forth, 141 order to justify their receiving such 40 im-
portant boon.
Lord MILTON said, that individuals who peti-
tioned the House to correct un election worn we ,e
not generally guided by a desire of securing Itinoy
of election, but merely wished to unseat the slitiog
Members, and, if possible, to seat themselves. lit
doing this it was necessary to prove, that, if the tier-
son petitioned ugaitiet bad not made use of bribery,
the petitioner would have been elected. lo these
cases, he believed, those who petitioned were vt ry
rarely altogether free from blame themselves. It
was said in the present instance, thit a great injury
would be inflicted on the electors of Barnstaple
the freeholders of the neighbouring hundred were
admitted to vote. He could not see this. The
*fictive franchise was as valuable to the electors of
Wettniiiister, who were most numerous, as to the
electors of Grompound, or any other place. It
was, in fact, of rquJl value in every city, town, or
borough, where it was properly made use of—where
it was exercised, as it ought to be. not for the pur-
poses of profit or of lucre, hut in order to return
proper representatives to Parliament.— (I fear, hear.)
—lie was, therefore, in favour of measures similar
to that now before the House, which went to cor-
rect it great evil, and he was sorry that opportu-
tittles were not more frequently afforded to correct
such sbuses.—(" Hear, hear," sad laughler.l—
What he said. he had said advisedly. They all
knew that unity cases of this nature did occur—hut
they also kites., that they were very gcnera!ly con-
cealed from the House.—(Hear. hear.)—He wish-
ed, however. that the same course was nut adoptcil
on all occasions of this kind. Instead of
only the freeholders of the hundred to the right toe
voting, he conceived it would be well if the cow-
holder, 'and the respectable householder. who were
scattered through the hundred, were presented with
the same privilege.—(!!tor, hear.)
Ald. WAITIIMAN !aid, the seintinents lie enter-
tained on this subject were so perfectly expressed
by the Noble Lord who hail just sat dowe, that be
dud not deem it necessary to ilespaos o,i tl;e
fur many minutes.—(Coughing,und utter ma 41 I!
impalienee.)—lf he ruse, at any tour, to 'tithe,.
the House unnecessarily—if he introduced irrtgo;.r
matter—or travelled beyond We just bounds of de-
bate, he would be the first man to acktiowleil4e
his error, and he would feel heartily ashamed . I
himself. But when lie saw, for some reason .1
other; a disposition manifested in a particular quar-
ter of that House to put him dowu on every ocea-
,ion, he must say, that he could not compromise
his own rights, as a Member of Porlittment, and
much less could he compromise the rights of
those whom he represented, by brioltog Iterate
such an interruption.--(Hear, hear,
Leers j--
Some time since he heard the Speaker, wit;
cuter delight, at the bar of the House o' Lod-.
claiming for the Commons of the Unites:
unfettered liberty of speech. What Illicit, •
speech hod they, if, in delivering their seitlitit-los
on a citiesitou intimately connected with ti.t.
of the electors of the British empire, he. or Nov
other Gent cum, was to be put down, not by or-
guinea, bet by clamour ?—(Hear.)—He, there-
fore, woult throw himself on a quarter, where he
wai sure ofreceiving protection—he placed himself..
as he had right to do, under the protection of
the Cliairruso.—(Hear, lour.)—Having thus far
digressed, le would now speak to the question.
He wasa derided advocate fur reform—but he never
had, in his thole life, however he might have been
misunderstord, uttered • sentiment favourable to
those wild doctrines which he knew were unpopular
amongst tln greet majority of that House. fie
never spoke in [amour of Universal Suffrage and
Ammo! Parhisnents--bat he did not blouse those
who held tech seuttments. They, of course.
*opposed their rumple correct—aud they hod