The National Register.
London, England, 1818-06-14 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL REGISTER

bearing, that lie could not venture to sneak positively on the
effect of any of its provisions. It might be a mere misappre.
lien'ion in I . but he conceived it probable, from the pre
amble of the Bill, that it might trench on some of the prernga-
tivci :the Crown with respect to Aliens. lint no part of
of the prerogative, their Lordships knew, could be taken
away without a recommeothation from the Crown. It would,
however, complete the climax of ignorance on the part of
Ministers, if, after.proving themselves ignorant of the Scots
Act of 1693, of the practice of Parliainerd relative to amend.
talents of several Irish and English Arts, they should finally
manifest their ignorance of the prerogatives of the Crown.
He defied their Lordships to see at present all the effects of
this Bill. He azreed that it was proper to do something in
the state which the law stood, but he could not come to the
conclusion that this was the measure which ought to lie
adopted. Their Lordships had witnessed the lamentable
ignorance of ,Ministers on this subject.; and it must therefore
be ditheolt for them to place reliance oil persons who had,
within a few days, so often changed their opinions on this
silLject. He, in general, disapproved the course of proceed-
ings which had been adopted, hut as the retrospective clause
was removed from.the Hill he should not object to it passing.
The staiiiling orders were stispentled,.the Bill read a second
time, and the Motion forcommitting it negatived. It was then
read a (birth time.

Or. the question that this dilll do pass,
Earl GREY said, he could not permit prooeedinge•fraught
with such dangerous .conseqiiences to take place, without
entering his protest against its being made a precedent, Min-
isters, lie was aware, had placed themselves in a situation of
difficclty. Ile alluded to the general belief of the speedy dis-
solution of Parliament. Me was aware that, at ench a time,
delay might be attended with much inconvenience, as the
country was making preparatiour for the new elections; but
notwithstanding that inconvenience, he should have been dig. .I
posed rather to meet than to run a risk of netablishing any I
precedent of this kind. The standing orders ought •only to
be suspended on questions of great public importance, and.
not merely for the sake of expeditiou. The principle on
which they were to be suspended was, that the measure was
of such urgency that delay would he attended wieli injury to
•the pnhlic interest. Now thisecould net be said to be the case
with respect •to the present Lill, for no danger to the public
could arise, whether it war passed this day or a week hence.
It was for ;he House to determine whether they would now
establish a precedent of thus rashly repealing Acts of Parlia-
ment. The rights of foreign seamen serving in the navy, of
foreign Protestants settled in the colonies, were, according
to the Bill. saved. lint were these the only •rights that
might be affected? There were several sa.cts of Parliament
inviting foreigners to settle in Ireland, with a view to the
.political iuterests of that country. Were their Lordships
certain that these Acts could be repealed without a breach of
faith? It was provided in sonic of these Acts that they should
mice effect under the license of the Lord Lieutenant, but
these ikets were not saved by any exeeptiou in this Bill. It
was a serious consideration, that the .person %VilUie .rights
were suspended, might, before tifie2sth of March, be scot out
of the country on theenformation of some of eliose miscreants
whom Ministers encouraged and associated with. and One
placed in situation never tc he able to prosecute their rights.
This was a case in which the wholesome rules framed Tor the
security of the rights of indiviiinale and the public interest
had been set aside ; and therefore to satisfy his conscience,
he co Id not permit the Bill to pass without expressing his
disapprobation of the rashness with which it was framed, and
protesting against the course by which it waspaesed becoming
a precedent.
The Petri of Livitemme said there were gumerous instances
in which the standing orders had been suspended for passing
Bills, merely for the sake of expedition, without any reference
to the importance of the measure. The standing orders, how-
ever, could nut be suspended without a day's previous notice,
and in this their Lordships had an advantage over the prac-
tice of the other (louse, and it sufficient security against sur-
prise. When it was agreed that the orders should not be
suspended without a day's notice, their Lordships expressed
an opinion that they might be suspended at any time, without
referenceeo the importance of the measure. But he was not
disposed to rest the question on this ground ouly. Indepen-
dently of any expectation of a dissolution of Parliament, if it
could have been calculated that the House might sit a month
on this Bill, it 'multi, in that case, have been necessary either
to suspend the standing orders, and pass the. Bill with the same
rapidity as now, or to give it a retrospective effect.. If it
should have been neglected to do one or other of these things,
there would soon have been lIJ alien in .the country to be
affected by the Bill. They would all have been naturalised
under the Act relative to the Scotch Bank. He, therefore,
maintained, if there ever was a case of necessity to he
made out in order to warrant the suspension of the stand-
ing orders, this was one. As to the objection that the Acts
affected by the Bill were not specified, that wouldhe very
worthy of consideration, if there were time for It
was, however, agreed on all hands that the mode of naturali-
zation taken away by the Bill ought not to' exist, and yet it
was not repealed but only suspended. The Noble Lord had
asked what rights the measure took away; iu fact it afforded
noue. It only suspended for a time the capacity of acquiring
rights. There were exceptions relating to naval and military
services, and other cases ; and it was the exceptions which in
such a measure, a merely temporary measure, ought to be
specified. Their Lordships would doubtless agree with him,
that it was not fit, persons should acquire the rights of natu-
ciecept in a regular and definitive manner; and to
prevent the infringement of that principle was the sole object
of this measure.
Earl Si'ENCF.ft expressed his readiness to join with his
Noble Prieud behind loco in pretesting against the unjustifi-
able measure. He complained of the manner in ss itch it had
been introduced, by a clause tacked to the end of a Bill, and
hurried through the House without any previous discussion
whatever. When'he save all the errors tnet had been coin
mitted through excessive baste, when be saw the present Bill
proposed in so precipitate a rnanuer,he thought it constituted
a precedent that might on no account to be established. If it
had neen retrospective, it would have beeu still more °knee-
tiunable ; and he still thought that no evil whatever could
arise from its postponement, even under the present qualified
form. Altogether he thought it did affect the rights of in-
dividuals in a most unprecedented rummer, and it must meet
with his decided opposition.
Lord HOLLANO, alluding to the plea of •necessity that had'
hems° strongly; insisted on by the Noble Lord (Liverpool)
advised him so be a little more chary in the nee of it, anti to
preserve it, like Goliah's sword, only to be brought forward;
on urgent and stet. occasions. It was bust three or four
days ago that the Noble Lord had maintained with the ut•
mast pertinacity, that it was' absolutely necessary for the
safely of Li;glanti, and the peace of Lutope, teat the 1.11