The Sun.
London, England, 1855-08-25 00:00:00

LORD STANLEY TFIT M.:RAT-WY OF
SESSIO S OF PARLIAMENT.

Hi, The clefse-ef-a-Perliatia•enearteeeeree - _ -
fittest opportunity for offering a few suggestions as -
time of year when such sessions ought to begin and enn
I have. nosyuapathy with that very. constitutionalscher• :
of politicians which thinks that the finuseiirConiT_cuk
ought to sit all the year round, or neatly so, as a
.04,
upon the executive. On the-eontraryel beleve +bat P`Le
lie interests are, on the whole, very sufficiently represotri;:i
.by the press during the !lanai au necessary sttellenr
legislative busine-s. An increase in the number re date.
during which Parliament should sit would add littn!no
the amount of work done, and certainly
tendency to improve the manner of doing it. The fri,fide
ineident to a nine or ten mouths' session would e c'eo,
many reenibers, too conecientionato leave their . dui giber
would have 00
performed or helfperformedrand who, either from
occupation or physical weakness, could not devote the
amount of time and attention in that case required. too
err-already in' this country in the way of demandingd 10
much from the bodily strength of public men, wit
doing so losSesome otherwise available talent: I Id be
ou it
think that to advance farther in that direction w
recommended by any reasonable person ; besides wbrthe
Ministers are to have seats in Parliament, and direct
proceedings of the Legisletare, in addition to the rlgioir
mice of their own more immediate functions of "ti, re'
tration, a recess of several months is indispensable
bile
vent one of two evils—either that of the work of P;eed
offices falling hopelessly in arrear, or of its being handed
over—in reality, though not in nanie-by the reePnu
ministeirto the irresponsible clerk. °r well.
I assume, therefore, that there exists no general e, ei
grounded desire to lengthen the session. To shorten
the other hand, seems difficult; if not impossible. I , uste
ueither course ; but accept its present duration-
ow
months on an average—as that which custom and c- •do
!deuce sanction. The question which I would raise i°,
we choose our time of sitting so as to suit either the P
lie conveniene or own ? • s•
England is,c to the best of my knowledge, the 0...°1100011
tion in the world whose most civilised inhabitau,'"' `per
their summer in towns, and retire to winter in tue vge•
vinces. Every other country adopts a different ar,ree
'vent. Nature and common sense tell us to eult%ood
•;itbet
set.
pleasures of out-door life, of rural residence, or of
et the time of year when days are long, when the we
is warm, when trees and flowers are in full beanti'es-,
when the heated atmosphere of a populous city bee ctsef
at once unwholesome and disagreeable. On the 104
hand, frost, snow, interrupted comnennicationsc, or/
nights, and short- gloomy days, naturally suggest se teivine
and social habits; the assemblage of friends and ang,osle,
antes in a place where they may..meet.without tr"tbose
and the substitution. of artificial enjoyments fo,r doe
which 'nature has ceased to afford us. A day of 'Twee
(I write as an M.P ) divided between clubs and eoln,n3e,"ost ss
debates and drawing-rooms, may be enjoyed aw'ber se
much, and employed to as good purpose, in Novein.do,ll/
in July. But no one, unless his tastes be very deci„ tbe
and exclusively those of a sportsman, will cornn tbe•
pleasures of the country in January with thee!ew;
country in J une. The question is one chiefly of,t`'setflea
does not bear much argument ; but if it were to ee e,estle,
now for the first time, apart from the influence of Pv.,040'
custom, I believe that by three-fourths of the 910
affected it would be decided in favour of the change
I Bri venture to suggest. sbOUI
Briefly, whet I propose is this :—That ParlienieneToloor
meet regularly, as near as possible, on the Ist of '001?
ber. That it should sit for six weeks, adjourning Tbst
the 15th of December, for three weeks or a niontb",eiS
it should resume its sittings not later than the been
January, by which two clear months would has'ocer"
gained at the time when our session usually comlne
namely, the Ist of February. Deduct- those two Muoigst
From the other end of the session, and Parliament, 'steel
be prorogued by the first or second week in June, 1°
of the first or second week in August.
ei'"e•
I have treated this mainly as a matter of socioi eqtee
niece, but it may be looked at iu another light. Eoesl
jobs and blunders which escape the vigilance of .Per.nete or
the great bulk are perpetrated- during the last 0100
six weeks of the session, when heat, wearinessee"
earsl
ractions of our brief summer have driven or drawn
,o,oe
dl except some seventy or eighty members, Cle:,isto'
jorit yof whom are often official per,one. That thrtei 00
of things is an abuse no one can doubt; it is adrint died) ,
all hands. Ido not say that it can be entirely 11110
for human energies will fail, and human zeal w,,,,tefet
' after a certain amount of continuous labour, at 0170th
season perfor,,ied ; but the attendance would be for, bet'
.
the excuse for absence feebler, and business therek"ofre
ter done, if every M.P. had before him the certainli, ter,'(
lease before the middle of June. As matters sten' torr
few constituencies will find serious fault with On eon,
Tentative, evecially if he be an old or middle-ar', jiilP
becoese on the plea of health he has "paired off?
Moreover, the intervention of a month's holidaYe, 'Log,
gestetl, between the first and second acts of the 8:01°J.,.
will give a longer interval of rest than is now e't.'ooeo"-1,.
The Easter holidays, in the plan proposed, w°°'",,eile.;
undisturbed • at Whitsuntide none would be nene',4 to "•
I may be "The subject is one which OP
left in the hands of ministers, party-leaders, 411 tsrf e
who are entrusted with the management of Parlianied
business" To such a criticism I reply, that le4euefels`'
parties are precisely the last persons who can o°oll'
originateetan alteration of this kind. They cannot ei,,g
.1.0-yoke opposition or to lose support by thn9w.fib'
ideas that may chance to be 'unpopular among all 050, e
political friends. A question not, in any large el, poi';
tionally important, and not advantageous in a Pat:'looJe°
of view; must be taken up by private and intler-
members, if meant to be carried through at all. iserr,
eI may be met with an objection to disturb the 000 .
and most laudable practice of family gatherings a°
' mas• b't for these ample leisure is allowed betty
15th of December and the 15th of January. OP 1
It may be said that, ccnsiderinr, the class frorleosst'i
Parliament is mainly recruited, the habits of fasces 0,14
life will interfere with such an alteration of
seasons as I suggest. But what is called the "01,- soT,
re,ulated by the session, not the session by the "Lasien`,.l
It is to the augmented assiduity of modern Par•Leel*e
not to any change in the habits of the plea.sure-101"e01.0P-
ef the public that we owe the lengthening out of "00
i
estivities into' the middle of summer. Fifty Yee°
session began nearly when it does -now ; but it rjitg
June. The social nuisance of which we conlP'9"e;ciflr;
being cooped up between walls of brick and mot tacoie
nearly all'the fine part of the year, isone ()Ignite t
origin. We who seek to abolish it are restorers, 13°
„f
vat The ors.
be
conduct of Parliamentary business will ;e:ti°, '1;1
ender the old as the new system. Even the pro 00u;
the. budget at an earlier period than is now listyle.te,l"
eaus6 no inconvenience or derangement, excePt, htici'7;
during the first year. It is not among working rarilr
'
whether in office or opposition that the present 005 0
teents will find supporters. I have conversel on OelPO
ject with many members of all parties. and I hi'veeeseielje,
heard any doubt ex.,ressed either as to the ion"e'elio4loe
1' the existing practice, or the possibility of swoEr °fro
Some argue, that though in times of eniergener's-`iee
~"01
any question of interest presses, an autumn se esen",,l
frequently been held, yet t hat the earlier coin wero to ebe
of Pat lianientary proceedings has not caused the,bicb
earlier. They instance the session just clos&I--: reloo
gan in December last, acrd also that of 18 2-tter,°,„o6
hat the practice of meeting in autumn is, 38 i"0 tO 'Ol
stand, excepti-nal and irregular. The object 10,,,ti'et,
some partici) ar measere, or to la'ce the sense of the oleos
representatives on the continued existence or: ;elor jot
No effort is made to push on the or query hu.'ne-eelPiod
year; the budget, the estimates, the votes of sae Pe' or
taken at- the usual time, and generally the w".„e erieee
gained in advance is occupied by debates on ebrasf
two topics. When we separated last year fo' the
mas holidays nothing had been done except tec,P.ll and
conduct of the war, and to pass the Militia Pl' off
Foreign Enlistment Bill. •
srb'cb tither
Lastly, and this is the only objection to
tint nee, „ere
assign any validity whatever, it may be entiy °fresh
there is in the house a nrm=rous and valuable :nl. re/. or
whose love of spurt lads them to prefer, a w'Ltueroto" ,
erd who must either sacrifice their favourite P ore
neglect their public duties. .„b
s,
If this were so it would be an argument of :ge! apes'
I, therefore, go into the question a little in de„ $4, trfrel
by incideptally, and not as laying stress :110°'
vious fact that by keeping country gentlemen eolefieteelt
their homes in summer, and thereby ainrbiet.nre t
them to-reside there in- e inter, the Legr'ej, is a' Ile"
encourages that particular kind of siert
jurions both to agrioniture and to rural morallv`Job 'roof
the preserving of hares and pheasants in log:, of eP:etel't
battues. But it true that the snaisemerneble .terel"
M.P.'s will be interfered with to any con,e'eese eFslk...;
by n November meeting? Let us see how tued deerbeff,
Scotch moors, with their peculiar pursuits. o leave yf
ing and grouse shooting, are out of the queen, will Ist°
November. The lovers of those amusenr:on litho P:h"-e
interfered with. Partridge shooting logdih"eforebioe
September, and the best time for it is over ant' ter
posed day of Parliament meeting, not 197:„Oc'ei
month's recess at Christmas, Even fore 1"i,;00,,,e4t,
hares and rheasants two full months ail 'ely,
ber, half December, and half Jelin:ay. ;if
of the year is. enough for theastime of a leg roen„e, 'Les
in practice, it is well .known that very deco
now reside in the country until b?; less
coming up at intervals for an ",leere
or division. In this slack performannLble, or, ,ns
dividuals, though not abstractedly justitrijoe 40)0%
harm to the public than many might ;lose ~i.thon
Most of the business transacted by the reenen'ijoreentetel
is business of detail. Business of dee!' rei totrisft.emeo
degree of reticence•and patience, which o°o3, b° sotaet,lo,l,
assembly can one reasonably expect t° been dtO Pt' tbef
by 610 persons. If, as• in old times has nivelle utvbe.,,ji
done, every member of the house were o'4 den' elitt7l
and to remain present in his place, /greeeew get, iv 'belie!,
much of the work which Parliament of 4-tfre
would not remain altogether unperforillecoseonee,o 0t :0,
am rather p Elating than vindicating ;e iSI:e111
tbat Ater'
it is enough for my purpose to say be in ,4,06,
present time, and that it is not likely t" Fen' Ile
creased by the change proposed. cludiniiing 1814
The question at issue is, in one c°, 100' lee 6 15t
this-shall the apathy which makes rae,sk of !%ieeln
part from established custom, and the, re' few ilieetere'tse
interference with the amusement or_i'do fee
stand in the way of a reform recommet reeen" of Pots
. of °tee if an ba 0
common sense, by the practice t itse hose
tpf tb
wish of a large majority in Perliarne,l'n tant, WAOO3 t fie
larger number of persona not ii) Ptil-el;ed by
o• joeiwteet
are indirectly, but powerfully, int!u' matter, 001'001
members of the Leslenre ? The
buttoi thOublie
not ond of national importance, of solo, of p
Torwes
concerns the convenience and corn
ESC
bpezionnesse,
rtehmataitnenvd,
Aug. 24. surtoobi rnel.Prire7testehrveeacee;/,.x.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

Knowsley,

orl°
et be
tea!'

A N AWFULLY SUDDEN DEATR.--YeStel
~ trulY ',
o'clock, one of those occurrence.; that sbow '''' f E'
uncertainty of life took place in tamedcinity 0 _ 00
street, Folio. A labouring man Sullivv, :10
had just returned from hie work to dinner, fell 41 coca
he was in the act of wiping his hands, and instantn bee/
expired. He was about 45 years of age, and D9l,,AeclicA
aaidquwiet, temperate, and well-conducted raso... otioct;
as. at once procured, but life was (1("'e , fro 0„
The pcor man had been for some titne suffer'llin of P
disease Of the heart, and leaves a, fawily, congl.,%,ag• .
112 and four children. two of whom are WY -7,00,0ce:
THE LATE MR. PATRIC PARE. --The circiwbis deSVP
under which this dielinguished iirtis: came " cferi6ti:,
werewii stomewb.at peculiar, and we tuns- saY
t,llB"sr-7-rriogte`l-;
s standing at the railway Tistatl,i3
h mi er 3f 'coed
h I saw a norter t-truggliog to get up "''' i: ster ir
LI his utaial impulsive, elier etic mto"er' "Lture",t,"
lot ward to assist ho', and in the grill be r" Pon
tya
blood-vessel. The accident terminated fatAlig
fourth day.—Scotsman.
• A --.' •

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