The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-04-27 00:00:00

IRISHELECTIyE FRANCHISE BILL.

Mr. LITTLETON moved the Order of the B.iy for the second
reading of the Irish Elective Franchise Bill.
On the question being put from the Chair,
Mr. LITTLETON proceeded. He claimed the indulgence of
the House whilst he stated the nature, object, and bearings of the
Bill, the second reading of which he had moved t he wished, too,
to state the advantage and great b Tit& likely to result horn it. He
assured the House that his motive fur bringing the measure for-
ward was founded on the conviction that the present system was
pregnant with vice, and fraught with every. thing that pro:noted
perjury o ne of its great objects was to reject that multitude of
votes in I relent!, vicious in most instance!, but onfortunatel4
avallabla—(llear.)—The electors, the object of the present Bi
were ter the most part Catholics—the measure was to affect them,
at the tame time that it was to smooth the way to Catholic Emend.
pinion, by landing to the Protestants a valuable security for pass.
ing the Bill introduced by the lion. Baronet (Sir F. Burdett).—
Before proceeding farther, he would notice an outcry that had
been rail d against him, for sezking to disfranchise so large a por-
tion of the people of Ireland. He denied that his Bill was one of
disfranchisement t, it was merely intended to regulate the elective
franchise of Ireland; it did not go one step towards the disfran-
chisement of a single individual. Indeed, the principal reason why
he delayed the second reading was, that he might introduce a
' clause. referring to all their present vested rights ; no freeholder was
to be deprived of the right of registering his freehold for the purpose
of voting; all had their vested rights most unqualifiedly preserved
to them. To show that such was the nature of the Bill, it would
be only necessary to read one of its provisions ; it ran thus--" And
be it furthes enacted, that nothing herein contained shall deprive
such freeholders aa have already registered their freeholds, of the
I right of voting, or of registering them hereafter, during the contd.
nuance of their present leases." He hoped that those Gentlemen
who expressed their hostility to the measure would now perceive
that there was not the most distant idea of disfranchisement, nei-
ther would it have the effect of preventing landlords from making
votes, but compel them to make them of higher calre.—(Heae.)—
I f the Irish Ch. freeholder hail at all resembled the English, he would
not have ventured on the present course; it was becalm Cher;
was nothing common to them both, except the mere quslitication—
it was because he looked on the Irish system as promoting fraud
and perjury, and encouraging vice of every description, that be
called on the House for its sanction of the Bill now before it.—
(Hear, hear.)—lndependent of these objections, in themselves un-
answerable, he considered that the system was calculated to keep
down the real and independent sentiments of the country.—( hear,
hear.N—lle looked on it as likely to check public opinion, and do
manifest harm to the landed interest, by the breaking up and sub-
divis:on of farms, in order to Licresse the number of persons wins
wc:: to derive Tatra Irony Cie-se little rarvqs. It an. calculated,