The Sun.
London, England, 1864-06-25 00:00:00

'E: a

HOUSE OF LORDS—Last Evening,
The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack al
5 o'clock.

CONVOCATION.

Lord HOUGHTON gave notice that on Tuesday nexi
he should ask a question regarding the powers of the Con.
vocation of the province of Canterbury.

PRIVATE BUSINESS.

The following bills were read a second time :—Metropoli-
tan and St. John's-wood Railway—Shrewsbury and
Welchpool Railway—Belfast Improvement—Nantwich
and Market Drayton Railway—Bristol Port and Channel
Docks—London and South Western Railway (North
Devon Extension.)
The following bills were read a third time and passed :
Sunningdale and Cambridge Town Railway, and Argyle-
shire Roads,

.311iNT indirect taxation of this country, the Excise on malt re-
quired consideration.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUE agreed to
the propriety of the resolution in the abstract, but said it
would be unadvisable to pledge the house to iT y particular
course of action in dealing with the remis3i L of a specific
impost. The arguments he (the Chew:- of the Ex-
chequer) used in reference to the retention of
the malt duty were founded on present circumstances,
and had no reference to future legislation on this
subject. If a Government had a surplus at its disposal no
doubt it should be applied to the remission of duties on
excisable articles, but a right of preference should be
conceded which would enable the Government
and Parliament to make remissions in a direc-
tion that would be oppressible, but which would
not be felt in regard to some particular com-
modity. The hon. member had contended that this ditty
was a mill stone round the neck of the agriculturist, but
what was the fact ? Why the duty on spirits was between
£4OO and £5OO per cent., and Ireland and Scotland were
pressed on more severely than England, because spirits and
not beer or ale formed the national drink of the country.
With regard to any amount at the future disposal
of Government, they could not pledge themselves to its
specific application, and he trusted that the house would
decline to embarrass itself by any pledge.
Lord J. MANNERS agreed that it was impossible to
deny that the malt tax operated injuriously on the producer
of barley. This grievance was admitted, and yet, strange
to say, there was no attempt made to redress that griev-
ance. It had been said well by the right honourable
member for Oxford (Mr Henley) that beer was
to the poor man what wine was to the rich man, and he
L contended by analogy that if they reduced the duty on the
latter, they should have done the same with the former.
(Hear.) He contended that a fallacy lay at the root of a por-
tion of the right hon. gentleman's theory, namely, that when
the duty on beer was reduced it would have the effect of di-
minishing the consumption of spirits, and therefore injure
the finances of the country. The right hon. gentleman
quoted statistics in support of his argument.
After a few observations by Mr P. URQUHART,
Mr NEATE, who had placed upon the paper an amend-
ment which he was precluded by form from moving, made
its allegations the substance of his argument against the
resolution—namely, that the owners and occupiers of land,
by reason of immunities from taxation, and the comparative
lightness of the burdens to which they are subject, are not
entitled to any priority of consideration on any review of
the taxation.
Mr NEWDEGATE briefly supported the resolution,
which was negatived upon a division by 166 to 118.
Mr D. SEYMOUR called attention to the system
pursued of removing paupers and persons under sentence
of banishment from Jersey to the seaports of England,
especially Southampton ; and asked the Secretary of State
for the Home Department whether he had received any
report upon the subject from the Lieutenant-Governor of
Jersey
Sir G. GREY offered to lay upon the table papers upon
the subject.
Mr MAGUIRE inquired the intentions of the Attorney-
General for Ireland regarding the promised bill for regu-
lating and reforming the Irish Court of Admiralty.
Mr O'HAGAN said a bill was in preparation, and no
time would be lost in proceeding with the matter.
The house then went into Committee of Supply pro
forma, and afterwards into committee upon the Inland
Revenue (Stamp Duties) Bill, after a short explanation by
the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
On the motion of the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER,
a clause was added to the bill for the payment of taxes in
Scotland by means of Post-office orders.
The house then went into committee upon the Chimney
Sweepers Regulation Bill, the clauses of which were
agreed to.
Mr COWPER, in moving the second reading of the
Cranbourne-street Bill, explained its object and the finan-
cial details connected with it.
Mr A. SMITH suggested that the bill be referred to it
select committee in order that the facts alleged in the
preamble should be inquired into.
The bill was read a second time.
The Weighing of Grain (Port of London) Bill passed
the cornmitee.
COURT OF CHANCERY (IRELAND) BILL.
On the order for going into committee upon the Court of
Chancery (Ireland) Bill,
Mr LONGFIELD moved that the bill be referred to a
select committee, stating the rearons why he had not
made this motion, of which he had previously given notice,
on Tuesday, when he was present. He insisted that a bill
like this, containing 192 clauses, which he denounced as a
job, designed to increase patronage, could only be properly
dealt with in a select committee. In showing how the bill
originated, he gave a long and amusing history of the
attempts at Irish Chancery reform ; and he undertook to
predict that three of the members of the last Royt 1 Com-
mission would be provided for under the bill, which, in-
stead of diminishing, would, /19 said, increase cost and ex-
penditure.

The amendment was seconded by Colonel DUNNE.
Mr HUNT protested against the couree taken by the
promoters of the bill. The decision of the committee on
Tuesday showed an unwillingness to proceed further with
the bill, and, according to the ordinary practice, it should
have been dropped, He suggested that the bill had better
be withdrawn.
Mr. O'HAGAN reminded the house of the position in
which ho stood in reference to this bill, which was introduced
in order to carry out the recommendations of a Royal Com-
mission of the highest authority, and upon which it was the
duty of the Government to act. The bill had been fully tr.,e,
cussed upon the second reading, and most of its clauses, were
clauses in the English bill. If, after the adoptir4l of the
principle of the bill—which, he repeated, would, reduce ex-
pense—the house thought fit .to reject th.,„ measure, he
should not be responsible and could not I:ielp it.
Mr WHITESIDE, after an argr.ment of some length
upon the matter of order in relat'An to the past history of
the bill, proceeded to discuss '',lo merits of the bill, which
was, he said, a crude meas•are, and he objected especially to
the system of the chief clerks and to the proposed construc-
tion of the Court. 7i. here was no evidence, he observed, on
the vital question of cost—and he repeated that the cost of
the new syster4 would be greater by one-third than the pre-
sent. It w"Juld be much wiser, in his opinion, to postpone
this mee".sure till next session, and in the meantime to sub-
mit it 'co the Master of the Rolls in Ireland and a Judge of
the. Landed Estates Court.
Mr LONGFIELD having withdrawn his amendment,
Mr W HITESIDE moved to defer the committee for three
months,
Mr BUTT supported the principle of the bill, expressing
his astonishment at the reception it had met with.
Mr GEORGE supported the amendment.
Upon a division, Mr WHITESIDE'S amendment was ne-
gatived by 51 to 49.
Mr VANCE thought that, considering the narrow ma-
jority, another opportunity should be given to the house to
determine whether it should go into committee upon the
bill. He moved that the debate be adjourned.
After a short discussion, upon a division, this motion was
negatived by 56 to 51.
Mr COLLINS moved that the house do adjourn.
The discussion was renewed, and ultimately the motion
for adjournment was negatived by 56 to 53.
The adjournment of the debate was then moved by Mr.
LYGON.
Lord PALMERSTON assented, and the debate was
accordingly adjourned.
The other orders of the day were then proceeded with,
and the house adjourned at 1 o'clock.

THE METROPOLITAN BOARD OF WORKS.—The
dual weekly meeting of this Board was held yesterday at
ti,l'h6 offices in Spring-gardens—the chairman, Mr J.
cameos'w presiding. The first important business which
afore the Board was to consider tenders which had
been mods to execute the eastern portion of the Northern
Low Level Sewer. There was a short discussion as to the
the contracts in public, but it was agreed
opened. They were as follows :—Messrs.
T. Brassey and Co., £26B,ooo—Mr T. Pearson, £265,500
tphoelyicysh ofo should biletnli
Mr A. W. Ritson (the contractor for the second portion of
the Thames Embankment), 4337.499—Mr G. Furness (the
t the Thames Embankment),
259,000—Mr W. Moxon,
contractor for the first portion
247,840 —Mr W. Dethick,
L233,ooo—Messrs Thorn & C 04., £309
£,. W.Webster,
tenders should be con-
fi2d2eore,odoOin.
colnit
niwiatsteceanrfritebdetwhantotlei
Board
When the public
were re-admitted, Mr Carpmael. brought
up a report from
the committee, recommending that Ur
Webster's (the
lowest) tender should be taken, and, la
moving that this
expressed the
report should be adopted, Mr CarP.Mael
Board's satisfaction with the works which Mr Webster had
carried out. The motion was agreed to t.tem. co„.
A report
was brought up from the Streets' Committee, recommend.
ing that certain lands should be acquired to form a park for
Southwark,and the question was discussed with closed doors.
It was agreed that the zeport should be adopted, andAbat
the finance committee should have the power to negotiate a
loan for the purposes of the Act. Several thoroughfares
were ordered to be renumbered, with the odd numbers on
one side and the even on the other, and the various sub-
sidiary names in Englefield-road, and Englefield-road west,
Islington ; in Middleton-road, Hackney ; in Mayne-street,
Bethnal-green, and in the thoroughfare known by the name
of Arundel and Albion-street, in Camden-street, az I in
Temple-street, of the same parish, were ordered to be
abolished, and the thoroughfares called by the first names.
A great deal of routine business of no general public im-
portance was transacted, and the board adjourned.
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