The National Register.
London, England, 1818-03-15 00:00:00

/Ufa nal' AraiOW+

Our Iting, 00119taUttOlt itaivs.

SUNDAY, MARCH 15, 1818.

was the practice of our ancestors to indemnify both those
who acted in preservation of the peace, as well as those who
load given information. Parliament therefore having thought
tit to suspend the Habeas Corpus Act twice in the Insil4
months, and as he thought the House must he satisfied, from
the then state of the country, of the necessity of that suspen-
sion, lie load too, doubt the House would see also the necessity
of granting an indemnity. to the Magistrates, and even to pre-
vent the publicity of the mimes of those who oaac information
to Government, whose 11:1111CS had been pi omised to be kept
secret from those against whose prActices they had given in-
formation. Men might Itlioik that sour trfrren ‘‘ neeevlosey,
without ,desigothig against the Stare; but einartili any nue
of 1110114114 of tti6ttr who held the Ainflgnate that i*y
hair Sc. carry their l'etition In one hand, anti their sword
tile oilier. In his mind Animal Parliaments and Universal
Suffrage meant nothing hoot rev olott Lou and anarchy. The
object of the 801 l Wm to indemnify Magistrates and others,
who had apprehenJew persons,and seined papeas and arms, as
also to protect those who had oli,persed tuntooltsoos and dis-
orderly meetings; to protect them from actions at law;
and from giving up the sources of their information. Ile'
hoped the noun would suffer the 801 l to be read a first time.
Mr. LAMB'COS assithi not even to the first reading
until the conduct. of Ministers, doting the period the Habeas
Corpus was sitssensled, had been ins 'litigated. Ito therefore
felt it his defy to move as an Amendment, that this Bill
should be read a first time that day ASK mouths.
Sir. :11. Rintry supported the alotion of his lion. Vriend.
Mr. STANIIIOIsS could slot Stlispoo tie Motion, '
Mr. SMICTII (of Cambridge) in a long speech was against
the Bill. He thought the house ought to pause bee they
erected a pi ecedent of the nature of this Bill, whirl, would
go to lessen the reverence which the people had for the
laws.

Mr. It Ann observed, that if it was necessary to oppose the
Bill, which he was convinced of, that necessity had been en•
creased by the singular arguments of the Honourable and
Learned i(ientlemaii, with his precedents ; which had nut any
application to ti:t• late trunsactions—it was, indeed a danger-
ous Hill. Ile content! oil, that the Bill had in it the principles
of injustici---it ssoliki exclude the people of England from
obtaining, their rights, amid therefore be maintained, that the
Bill oug!it to be rejected.
Mr. M trer-A.l-r could toot ii.nd any grounds for accusing
Ministers of having abased the power entrusted to them, and
bhonld therefore sate for the Motion.

Mr. FRUCH A NTLE thiltlaht it was due to those who executed
this trust, to pass a Lill of Indemnity ; and therefore' he
should never regret haviLg voted for it.
Lord Mir; Ear, though he voted fur the Suspension set, still
considered he could tind reasons for opposing a Bill of In_
demnity,independent of those which induced his vote on that
OCCAiiOII. He asked how was the House called upon to de-
cide upon the conduct of Ministers ? Why they desired Par-
liament to judge of their conduct by evidence furnished by
themselves. They went into the Grand Jury Box and
found the It'll of indicuawn', and then vent their own Jury who
pronounced a verdict of Acquittal. The Noble Lord com-
mented in warm terms ou the employment of spies—that
horrid and polluted source of information--whielt every Wan
ought to be ashamed of. Ile instanced the story told by Ler•
vantus. of a man who procured a friend uf• his to tempt the
wife of the former ; the consequence was that the tempter
triumphed in the opportunity afforded, and exceeded Isis
commission. But who, after such a procce•diug on the part
of the husband, could pity him. It was a bad proceeding,
and what pity would be slsewn to Mini►ters if they went
about tempting to the ronimission of sin.
The House then divided --Ayes, 190—Noes, rilMajority,
120. This Majority was received with cheers.—Adjourned.

PIIICE 90.

of the Poor Laws. The Hon. Member gave notice Out h►
ivould on 'Thursday move for leu%e to bring in a Bill on the
Sinneer.
On the Motion of Mr. CALCKASZ, a Committee was ap•
pointed on theSaltDuties. . . . .

The Indemnity Bill was read a second time, after a division.
—for it, Iit); against it 2.1.--. Adjourned.

WtousEsnAr.

Itilleaultoiltieptruicreeros
faltabL:uicr.ester, stating
Mr. BenteeToN presented a Petition from the Hosiers and'
the delay of trade and
PARLIAMENT4RV trl7,Voirat.
Sir F. Burt ntrr presented Pentiony for Petliemeutary Ire-
"form from Mneelestbid, from Pre t s on, and from Sr tv ea..l le.
mem-Tyne. Ile also presented a Petition from James Si tiers,
complainine of having been pet into 11titditig gaol and ironed,
under the Suspension Act.
INpEANITY BILL.
The ATToRNEY Girtiert.s I. moved that the House should
go into a Committee on the Indemnity Bill.
Sir S. ItostiLse said, he hail not objected to this Bill yes.
terday,on account of the then state ef the Honse ; but lie
now considered himself at full liberty to debate the princi-
ple, and oppose the Bill. The trite nature of thiaßUl was, to.
putt out of tile protection of t lie law all persona, who, since the.
27th of Jan. Ixl7, have stifle red by at bitrary and illegal acts.•
Let Gentlemen recollect that this country way one of law and.
justice, and our Monarchs, by their oaths,. were bonnd to
support them both ; and that our great chaster says, that
justice shall be denied to no our. If no one had been
gaily confined, then was this 11i11 completely unnecessary ;
but they Fere called on to stop the course of law and justice,
without knowing the causes of oppression that might have
occurred tinder the suspension of the Habeas Corpus. The
Bill might be divided Wm three parts--the protection of Mi-
nisters and Magistrates front the acts they had committed—
and to prevent the persons who have given information ta
tiovernment from being know it. Gentlemen laboured nutlet
a great mistake when they ,supposed that Ministers should
have an Indemnity for their acts miller the Suspension Bill.
Now that was tint at all necessary, because the Siivemion Act
was itself their ludestmity, fur it authorised them to do cer-
tain acts. But this Ituatmnity was wattled for acts not
done tinder the authority of the Suspension Act. Did ally
one, he would ask, ever bees. of Ministers requiring an In-
demnity to be granted for putting on an embargo on all the
vessels in the country ? No more was an bidet 111 l ity Ball ne-
cesaery fur colitiuing mei without britteiug them to trial ; for
the Sutpension Act was their indemnity' in ever' Court of
justice in the kingdom. Neither was thieuiswiteleuuty reqnir-
ed for those men who had 'given their intormation to Go.
vernment, it' they liatl given that information ue oath aliel
their names had been regularly inserted on the warrants of
commitment, The House was easily convinced, if it took the
words of 3ittlistets, that they had not abused the emsaueli-
eary power vested iu thou. Ile did out soy they had abus-
ed it, but the House could nut say they half not until engin: y
was granted. Miuisters, it seemed, considered that they
ought, out of delicacy, to take no port in their owu defetwe
in tin bile debate; but their conduct was diderent in secret
Committee, where they reoilated the whole of the proceed.
ings, produced what evidence, and drew tip such reports as
they pleased. The appointmeet of a Committee sty ballot
was always carried like every thing else in the way !bat Ali.
iiistei s aisheet These were lists handed round by Ministers
of those Gentlemen they wished to be on their Committee. ;
97 of these lists out of 10:t which had been issued, were
claret!, by one of the scrutineers, to be in one baud writing ;
and lie had no doubt but that to save trouble, in a short time
the lists fur ballotting for Secret Committees woitld be print.
ed. What was the reason why this Indemnity was to be car
tied back to the 24th of Jan. I ell Was it to enrweal an d
protect some unknown criminal? lie would ask the House
to recollect the petitions on the table, detailieg the cases of
individuals chat ged only with libels, whose houses were bro-
ken (Iwo in the dead ufnight, their papers acized, and theme
selves dragged to prison, and kept to hard labour. These
facts had been asset led, and not only never yet been dig.
proved, but they hail been trussed user in silence. He repro-
bated the eunduet of Government in writing to the Magis-
trates, that they might apprehend anti load with irons, and
keep to hard labour, men suspected of bullion seditious libels
even before they were tried. That leas the case with a poor
man of the name of Swinton, and Chester' who had been
dragged from his bed in the dead of night, his wife being far
Advanced in pregnancy. The unhappy svonum, in euee.i-
queitee, died in premature labour, and her child also. 'rhea.
rem. li ll ing child was scut to the parish workhouse. a,i this
poor niaa was afterwards discharged without any thing being
hron2lit agaiiwt him. They miclit savend the laws of the
land as long as Iltry pleased, hot they could not suspend the
laws of God : they might indemnify MiMeters and Magistnites
from human process, but they could out preserve :lain front
the torment of a conscience burdened by deeds like these.
The great and awful lesson of Ireland ;Smola be present tie
their nl i 11l 14, in order to see whit Otis 0 loyal Magistracy had •
committed. A Noble Lard had said all those hot rible trams
actions had better be bellied in oblivion; it would have been
much better that they hail never esisteil. Vet were all these
horrid cruelties committed in Ii i•laili under the mild Go vein-
meat, as it was called, of this country. These should Isere
been warnings to them, not to eats list extraordinary powers
to Magistrate*, ecru Limn; I t
Ill's were most of them men of
excellent ch.iiarlt rs. and of 1110011 Ser•loe to the country.
It WWI :laid that MtirtOlory wi• necessary for the persona .o,c,
had given inforaoiti hod del the Howie believe that she
state of il.e• rountrs was eutelt th it any such man's safety
was eielasigered Had they seen any reluctance in ally of
the witn, „„, al 10,•1 by, or elsewhere, to give the it evidence,
Or had,trot ari.iled to the Court for its proteethin
There seemed to he a new system introduced into this et '
try., that persons should he sent Among a •iit, • ing poptilase i • •
to excite them to insurrection, and then the Spies and Itifotnl•