The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-15 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARITANEI

HOUSE OF LORDS—This Evening.
Th© LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack
at the usual hour.

DENMARK.
Tly3 Earl of ELLENBOROUGII gave notice that on
the motion for the adjournment of the house for the Easter
recess he should call the attention of their lordships to the
exact state of affairs between Germany and Denmark. In
the absence of the noble earl tho Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs, he begged to ask the noble duke opposite
whether the terms of the identical note, which appeared in
the newspapers this morning, containing now proposals
from Austria and Prussia to Denmark for an armistice and
congress siveof were authentic P
SOMERSET said, in the absence of the
noble earl the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, it would not be
expedient for him to say more than that the terms in the
note appearing in the Morning Post on the subject of an
armistice wore substantially correct.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.
The following bills were read a third time and passed:—
Belfast and Northern Counties Railway; Belfast and
Ballymena and Ballycastle Junction Railway ; and Trent
and Ancholmo and Grimsby Railway.

INSANE PRISONERS' ACT AMENDMENT BILL.
On the motion of the LORD CumicuLLort, the bill was
referred to a select committee.

MALT FOR ANIMALS BILL.
Lord STANLEY of ALDERLEY moved tho second
reading of thie bill.

Lord- BERNERS gave notice that he should move cer-
tain amendments to various clauses in committee.
Earl GREY regretted the introduction of the bill, be-
cause it appeared to him to endanger a revenue of extreme
importance. He considered that nothing more injurious
to the landed interest of the oountry could occur than the
repeal of the malt tax. It was a tax paid by the con-
sumer, and in the event of such a source of revenue, amount-
ing to £6,000,000, being swept away, an increase of taxa-
tion must be sought in another direction. That increase
could only be attained by an increase in tho income tax,
than which nothing more was to bo deprecated by the
landed interest. Ho thought the malt tax was ono that
ought to be retained, and those who were agitating for a re-
peal of it wore agitating in favour of an increase in the in-
come tax.

Tho Duke of ARG YLL said that the Chancellor of the
Exchequer had introduced the measure, being fully assured
the revenue would not suffer.

The Earl of ILARDWICKE objected to the bill.
Lord REDESDALE was of opinion that the malt tax
was altogether indefensible.

Lord WODEHOUSE thought it ought to be clearly un-
derstood that a repeal of the malt tax would more than
likely lead to an increase of the income tax. This was a
moat unadvisable course in time of peace, as it took away
the most fruitful source of raising large sums of money in
time of war.

The bill was then read a second time.
VESTRY CESS (IRELAND) ABOLITION BILL.
The house then went into committee on this bill.
Clauses 1,2, and 3 were agreed to.
The Earl of DOWNSIIIRE moved the omission o
clause 4 ;
Upon which their lordships divided, when there ap.
peared—

For the clause
Against it
Majority against -7
The clause was then struck out.
The bill was then reported with amendments.
INCLOSURE BILL.
This bill passed through committee.
MARINE MUTINY BILL.
This bill was road a second time.
Their lordships then adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS--This Eveniug.
The Speaker took the chair at four o'clock.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.
The following bills were read a third time and passed :
Tho Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (Additional
Powers) ; Swansea Vale Railway; and the Wrexham
Water.

The following bills were considered and ordered for third
reading :—The Aborbrothwick Harbour, Chichester and
ididburst Railway (No 3), and the Dublin and Belfast
Junction Railway.

THE DUTY ON FIRE INSURANCE, &c.
A very largo number of petitions from different parts of
the country w•as presented in favour of the abolition of the
duty on fire insurances, nd the Salo of Liquors Perminive

IIAINAULT FOREST ALLOTMENT.
Oa the motion of Mr. COX, the following return was
ordered :—Return from the inclosure commissioners set-
ting forth the several allotments of the 528 acres of the
King's woods in the late forest of Hainault to
the parish of Barking, and of the fortytwo acres to the
parish of Dagenham; showing the names of the proprietors
clbitning allotments; the nature of the claim, whether for
a house only or fur house and laud; the amount of rating
to the poor of such house or house and land; and the
quantity of ground allotted to each claim,
THE INCOME TAX.
Mr. HUBBARD gave notice that, utter Easter, he would
draw the attention of the house to the imposition of the
income tax, and move that such imposition should be
founded on some recognised basis.
PAPERS PRESENTED BY THE BOARD OF
EDUCATION.

Lord IL CECIL gave notico of a motion in roforence to
the mutilation of documents laid on the table by the council
of the Board of Education.
__._.

ABOLITION OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.
Mr. EWART gave notice that he would move tor leave
a bill for the abolition of the punishment of
T DUTY ON FIRE INSURANCE.
death.t to bring il%
Mr. HUBBARD asked the hon. member for Dudley
whether ho would postpone his motion for a bill to reduce
the duty on fire insurances until atter the Budget ?
Air. SHERIDAN said that the notico which he had on
the paper for this evening to bring in a bill to reduce the
duty on fire Insurance, to which the Chancellor of the
Exchequer had given notice of an amendment, he would
postpone until the Chancellor of the Exchequer had.ufade
his financial statement. (Hear.)
THE BRADFIELD itEslißvorrv,
Mr. FERRAND asked the home Secretary if he would
direct the engineer appointed to examine tho Bradfield
reservoir to visit and report upon the Doe Park reseryolro I
Sir U. ()JULY said that he had communicated with the

Mayor of Bradfield, and the report of the engineer at the
time was quite satisfactory.
NATIONAL EDUCATION (IRELAND).
Sir 11. CAIRNS asked when the returns relative to na-
tional education (Ireland) would be laid upon the fable, and
for what reason the annual report of the Commissioners of
National Education (Ireland) for the year 1862 had not yet
been presented to Parliament.
Sir It. PEEL said that two returns had already been
laid on the table, and the report for last year would be laid
on the table on the Ist of Juue. As regarded any corre-
spondence between himself and the Chief Commissioner,
he bad no objection to lay it on the table.
Sir H. CAIRN S said that the papers laid on the table
were " d minim" (Laughter.)
Sir R. PEEL said that was not truc—(laughter)—and
the papers were laid on the table when the members were
leaving town, and therefore did not receive any attention.
"EXPENDITURE WITHOUT ACCOUNT."
Lord R. IA ONTAGU asked the Chancellor of the Ex •
chequer whether a awn of money was ever issued by direc-
tion of the Lords of the Treasury as" Expenditure without
account; and, if so, in what manner the same was brought
under the consideration of the Commissioners for the Audit
of Public Accounts; and whether the expenditure is passsil
by them after due examination of the vouchers for the
subordinate items of expenditure included in that sum.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER explained
that the expenditure alluded to was made in conformity
with the requirements of the public service, and was pro-
perly. accounted for to the commissioners for the audit of
public accounts.

RIFLING LARGE GUNS

• AN 0.
Lord FERMOY asked the Under Secretary of State for
War whether the trial of Mr. Lynal Thomas's Eye tem of
rifling large guns was completed, and whether he had any
objection to produce the report of the trials P
The Marquis of HAII,TINGTON said that a large gun
had been manufactured, for which Mr. Thomas had not
paid, in order to test the value of the invention, but the
committee had ordered that no further experiment should
take place until the general merits of the invention had
been aaoertained.
INCREASED APPLICAIIONS FOR PAROCHIAL