The Sun.
London, England, 1864-04-15 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAX ENT

HOUSE OF LORDS—Last Everiing,
The LORD CIIANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack
at the usual hour.

PETITIONS.
Lord DARNLEY presented a petition preying for an
amendment of the Highway Act.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.
The following bills were read a second time :—Lea
Bridge District Gas—Northfieet District Gas--Tunbridge
Wells Gas—Huntingdon Gas—Ashton•under-Lyne—and
Stalybridge Water.
The following bills were read a third time and passed :
Shrewsbury Bridges—Llanelly Railway and Dock Com-
pany—Newry and Gremore Railway—Southwark Park—
Folkestone Water—Matlock Bath Water—Marple New
Mills and Hayfield Junction Railway.
SETTLED ESTATES ACT AMENDMENT BILL
(HAMPSTEAD-HEATH ENCLOSURE.)

This bill passed through committee with amendments,

VESTRY CESS ABOLITION (IRELAND) BILL.
This bill passed through committee and was reported.
PUNISHMENT OF RAPE BILL.

Oa the motion of the Marquis of WESTMEATH the
house went into committee on this bill.
On clause 1,
Lord WENSLEYDALE moved that instead of the
word " may," the word "shall' be inserted, in order to
make the punishment of whipping compulsory, instead of
optional.
Lord RAVENSWORTH did not object to the punish.
went of whipping in reference to other crimes, but as the
crime of rape was seldom or ever committed with premedi-
tation, he did not think it would be advisable to resort to
whipping as a part of the punishment.
Lord CRANWVTII thought that whipping was a
most undesirable punishment; but if it was to be resorted to,
they ought to pass a general measure applying it at once in
all the cases in which it appeared to he desirable, and not
proceed to apply it to one case after another by piecemeal
legislation.
The Marquis of 'WESTMEATH supported the bill.
The Earl of CARNARVON admitted the objections of
piecemeal legislation, but said that, although this was not
a satisfactory way of proceeding, it had became so much the
habit of Parliament, that he did not think its adoption in
the present instance was a valid objection to this bill. Prac-
tice had proved that the infliction of whipping had a power-
ful effect in deters ing from crime. He Lought this punish-
ment should also be inflicted in the case of an attempt to
ummit rape.
After a conversation, in which the Lord Chancellor, Lord
Cranworth, the Earl of Derby, and other peers took part,
the amendment was adopted, and the clause as amended
was agreed to.
The remaining clauses were agreed to.
The bill passed through committee, and the house
resumed. _ _

The report on the Charitable Assurances Enrolments
Bill was received.

The Improvement of Land Act, 1864, Bill was read a
second time.

THE HIGHWAY ACT.

Lord RED ESDA.LE presented a petition from the way-
wardens and ratepayers of the Morpeth highway district, in
the county of Northumberland, complaining of the size of
the district, and the refusal of the justices to alter the same,
and praying the house to adopt such measures for their re-
lief as might seem expedient. The noble lord also asked
whether Government intended to propose any amendment
of the Highways Act in the present session ?

Lord 6RAXVILLE WAS understood to reply in the
negative.

- -
E4rl GREY said that the Act was extremely defective,
and required amendment.
MICHAEL DONEGAN, PATRICK DONEGAN,

AND PATRICK EGAN.

The Marquis of WESTMEATII moved for copies of
certain correspondence relative to the pardon of three Irish
convicts, named as above.
Earl GRANNILLE consented that a portion of the cor-
respondence should be produced.
,THE CHALMERS TAR►GET.

The Earl of HARDWICKE presented a petition from
Mr. James Chalmers, the inventor of a new mode of con-
struction of ships of war. The petitioner camplained that
the Board of Admiralty had long refused to try his inven-
tion—that his target was afterwards subjected ;to a trial
mach more severe than had been applied to any other target
—that it successfully stood this test ; that, nevertheless,
the Board of Admiralty had declined to adopt his invention;
that the Chief Constructor of the Navy had pirated its
most important features, and had adopted them in the con-
struction of the Bellerophon; and that all compensation or
reward had been refused him by the Board of Admiralty.
The Duke of SOIIERSET said that, although Mr.
Chalmers' plan produced an excellent target, it was not
applicable to the construction of a ship. It was heavier than
the Warrior target, it was more complicated, and it was
more costly. Then it was very desirable that as much of
the target as possible should contribute to the structural
strength of the ship. Now, oat of five parts of which the
Warrior target consisted, only two did not so contribute;
but of the seven parts which composed Mr. Chalmers's
target, four did not so contribute. He admitted that the
Chalmers target hal a greater power of resistance than the
Warrior target; and on that ground the Admiralty had
consented to pay the cost of its construction. But, as he
had already said, it was not suited to the construction of
ships of war. He denied that Mr. Chalmers's invention
had been pirated in the Bellerophon. The two targets were
entirely different; and the latter contributed much more
than the former to the structural strength of the ship. the
test to which the Bellerophon target had been subjected at
Shoeburyness was in many respects more severe than that
to which Mr. Chalmers's hld been exposed. Al!hun...:ll
Mr.;Chahners's target was in some degree an improvement
upon those which had precsded it, it• was not much better
than the Warrior target. He did nut desire to to injustice
to any inventor, but the truth was that Mr. Chalmers's so-
called invention was not new, and was not suitable for
application in the construction of a ship.
Their lordships then adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS--Last Evening.
The SPEAKER took the chair et four o'clock.
PRIVATE BIT ..4INESS.

The following bills were read a third time and passed :
Andover and Chilton Pond—Downs (the) Docks—Oke.
hampton Railway—South Yorkshire Railway and River
Dun Company—Stirling Water—Stockport District Water
—and Thornset Road.
THE MALT DUTY.

A very large number of petitions was presented in favour
of the repeal of the malt duty.

CANDIDATES FOR THE MEDICAL DEPART-
MENT OF INDIA.

Mr. BAZLEY asked the Secretary for India, how
many candidates for employment in the medical depart-
ment for India were presented, and how many were the
vacancies at the time of the competitive examination in
January last, and again how many at the recent examina-
tion ?

Sir CHAS. WOOD said there had been no competitive
exanaination for the department in question for the last
three or four years.
STREET DEALERS IN THE CITY OF LONDON.
Mr. Alderman SA.LONIONS asked the Secretary of State
for the Home Department if he had yet approved the pro-
posed bye-laws for the City of London, and especially if he
intended to sanction bye-law No. 12, which virtually pro •
posed to withhold the common law right of way through
the principal streets of the City from dealers in fruit, fish,
and vegetables,
Sir G GREY said that these bye-laws had not yet been
sanctioned, and he considered the question of such import-
ance that he had referred it to the law officers of the
Crown.