The Sun.
London, England, 1852-05-11 00:00:00

MA Y i i, 1852.

act of the Chamberlain was a breach of privilege,
but he would make inquiries into the matter.—(Hear,
hear.) It certainly was for the convenience of
Members that the stand should be restored, and ha would
see if some arrangement could not be made which should
be agreeable to all parties.

-MINIE RIFLE.
In reply to Mr. W. 0. STANLEY,
Colonel DUNNE said the Mine rifle had not clearly
been proved to be the best; its advantage consisted in the
amount of ammunition it required, and the Master of
the Ordnance had directed some experiments to be
made with it.—(Hear.) The order which bad been
given for a quantity to a Birmingham house was autho-
rised by the late Government, and not by her Msje.ty's
present advisers.—(Htar.)
PAYMASTERA AND PURSERS.
Sir GEORGE PECHELL wished to inquire of the
Secretary of the Admiralty what progress has been made
towards the arrangement for a new mode of keeping
the accounts of the paymasters and pursers, and wholhar
the report of the Committee would be laid before the
House.

Mr. STAFFORD said the report had been reeeived,
and the practice recommended would be speedily adopted.
There would be no objection to by the report upon the
table.—(Hear.)
BOARD OF HEALTH.

Mr. VIVIAN wished to ask the Commissioner of
Works whether her M..jesty's Government had in pre-
paration any measure fur empowering local board: of
health to provide means of burial in their districts where
the existing burial accommodation was insufficient; and
whether they had any intention of intro'.uciog any mea-
sure for that purpose?
Lord JOHN MANNERS said a Bill was in prepara-
tion, but there was little chance of legislating on the
subject this session.
BETTING LISTS.

Mr. STANFORD wished to tt4c the Secretary for
the Home Department if his attention hsd been drawn to
the rapid increase of a species of low gambling houses in
all parts of the metropolis, styled " betting houses," with
a view to any legislative remedy ?
Mr. WALPOLE said his attention had been called
to the subject, but ho was not prepared to state yst
whether Government was disposed to interfere in the
matter.—(Hear, hear.)
THE UNIVERSITY COMMISSION.

Lord J. RUSSELL wished to know when the report
of the University Commission would be laid on the
table?

Mr. WALPOLE said it was in the hands of the prin-
ter, and it would be laid before the House immediately.
ASSIGNMENT OF THE FORFEITED SEATS OF
ST. ALBANS AND SUDBURY.
The orders of the day having been gone through pro
forma,
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER then
moved for leave to bring in a Bill to assign the seats
forfeited by the disfranchisement of the boroughs of
Sudbury and St. Albans. He said that when he as-
sumed his seat, after his election, he stated to the
House, in reply to the Honourable Member for
Wolverhampton, the general policy of the Government,
and the course they intended to pursue for the dispatch
of the business before the House. He stated then that
though it was the intention of the Government to
counsel her Majesty to dissolve the present Parlia-
ment, they were not prepared to give that advice
until those measures were passed which the exigency
of the public service required, or which the Government
considered of paramount importance. He did not men-
tion all the necessary measures which would be brought
in, but he stated there were three of paramount
importance : Ist—one with reference to the internal
defence of the country; second, another to carry into
effect the recomraecdations for a reform in Chancery;
and lastly, he added that the Government intended,
when the Bill for the disfranchisement of St. Albans
passed, they would ask the House to com-
plete the constitutional number which formed the
aggregate of the House of Commons. He confessed he
was surprised and individually pained to hear it in-
sinuated that in proposing this Bill he had taken the
House by surprise, and committed, ho would not say a
breach of trust, though that accusation had met his eye, but
tampered with that honourable understanding which ex-
isted between the Government and the House. He was
not conscious of having acted in any other
than a perfectly straightforward manner. He
trusted this explanation would acquit him of
any charge inconsistent with his position,
as a Minister.—(Hear, hear.) The Government
thought it was highly expedient that the seats vacated
should be filled up before the dissolution. Honourable
Members opposite might ask what particular magic
there was in the number of 658 Members?
He confessed he would b 3 somewhat perplexed to defend
the cabalistic charge as to that fixed number. The
foundation of all arrangements, however, consisted in
prescription created by experience and sanctioned
by custom. Prescription was the most im-
portant element of liberty and progress; and
though he did not yield to any principle of superstition,
he was of opinion that the time had not arrived when
prescription could be lightly treated by the House of
Commons. The violation of prescription was an element
of disturbance—it led to discontent, offered a premium to
extravagant prejudices, and invited men to 'Jaz irdous
objects and schemer, and were it for no other reason
than these he would warn the House against that which
was becoming a continuous and systematic deficiency in
the aggregate number of the Members of the House.
If the Government followed their own inclinations, he
hardly knew a subject which they might not more pro-
perly evade than the present, which was essentially in-
vidious. They did not propose this measure to lengthen
the duration of Parliament, but because they consi-
dered it of great importance that the constitutions!
number of Members should be completed before the
(dissolution.—(Hear, hoar.) The impending dissolution,
instead of being a reason against the Bill, was the
etronge,t argument in favour of making some ar-
rangement. That unfortunate jealousy existing be-
tween town and country gave rise to a tendency
to c -insider whether other elements for forming a consti-
tuency might not be devised than those which had hitherto
formed the elements of the electoral body. Many plans
for that purpose
had been suggested, which were en-
titled to very great respect. The Hon. Member for
Malden had given notice of a motion for apportioning
two seats to the University of London. That pro-
position would not give rise to any prejudice in his
mind, but on the contrary excited his interest
and sympathy. Ile could not but admire the idea of
permitting science and learning to exercise the popular
suffrage, but when the question was examined, the diffi-
culties in the way were not inconsiderable. The plan,
however, was so plausable to the reason and captivating
to the imagination, that he could easily understand its
exciting the public interest and receiving the public ap-
probation. The Royal Society, for instance, wog a very
ancient institution; it was founded by a king, and
had been composed of some of the greatest
men England have ever produced, and of whom
their fellow-subjects were most proud. Though he ad-
mitted the great attainments of this eminent body, he
thought the elements of which it was composed
would not ha conducive to a proper representation.
—(hear.) If such a principle were carried out
there was no reason why it should not be extended to
the zoological, geological, ethnological, and other similar
societies.—(Laughter.) In fact, they would place it in
the power of any body of men who gave themselves a
scientific name to claim the franchise.—(Llear, hear.)
The difficulties were too great to be contended against.
He did not wish to impugn or to trench on the privileges
of those societies, but it they looked at their constitution

they would find that they were generally self-elected bodies.
They had also considered the claim of the London Uni-
versity, and they did not find that circumstances pre-
vailed there to entitle it to the concession. It was not
yet fully developed. nor was it sufficiently extensive to
justify the claim, and it must therefore be passed by.
Another proposition which had been mado to them was
to concede one Member; to the four inns of court.
No doubt the Members of the four inns of court would
make up a considerable constituency. Their members
occupied a conspiouous position in histo, and many of
them had often found their way irynto Parliament
where they had rendered the country great
service; but there was a prejudice, which he did not
share, against the too considerable appearance of lawyers
in the House of Commons.—(Hear, hear, and a laugh.)
The Right Hon. Gentleman then continued—l beg to
say, Sir, that I do not share it, because I remember how
much of our liberty is owing to our law, and is founded
upon our law, and that lawyers have been the greatest
champions of the rights of the people of England. I
confess I am surprised, therefore, at
etehelerxeiesoteinieeeeth
otfaat
prejudice such as this.—(Hear.) When
dor of
of the
a rd
the lawyers have been, not only the great asse t ro
English liberties, but also the greatest ornaments
House of Commons; when I recollect that Sir Edward
Coke and Lord Bacon both sat in this House; when I
recollect the revered age of Mr. Selden and Lord Sumer!:
and in after days the golden elognen
the majestic virtues of Romilly; when cofl
Mansfield
recollect
the doscendaats of many of these eminent men it is still
our pride and boast to rem
ember are sitting in this as-
sembly, I cannot, I confess, agree in a prejudice which
I think is totally unwarrantedby facts.—(Cheers.) It
would not do, I am perfectly aware, for her Majesty's
Government to propose, unless the proposition were at-
tended by some identical or analogous projects, to allot
one or more of the four vacant sews to the inns of court;
therefore, on the part of her Majesty's Government,
after the most painful consideration, and with the
most ample desire to introduce constituencies founded
upon these elements, and believing that they might con-
tribute to the increased reputation of this assembly, I
must renounce at present any attempt to form a consti-
tuency out of those interesting, but, I fear, impracticable
elements.—(Hear, hear.) Under these circumstances,
Sir, I have now to place before the House the results of
the next step in the investigations by the Government
upon this subject, and the course which, on the whole,
they think it best for the House to follow, in order to
accomplish that which they deem one of the highest
duties of the House—namely, to complete its constitu-
tional numbers previous to the impending dissolution.
—(Bear, hear.) We had first to consider where we
should seek for the elements of a new constituency, to
whose trust we could confide the possession of the no-
blest privileges which freemen can exercise. We have
considered that the relative claims of different portions
of the community very much depend upon the relative
degree of representation that they now possess; and
that that relative degree of representation could not,
on the whole, be more fairly tested than
ascertaining the number of theexisting bt
i-
tuencies, and the numbers of the population : T
e
by whom
those existing constituencies are, as it were, fed,
supplied. and maintained. And in looking over
the different constituencies of this country, guided
by thl; principle, there is one constituency, the
claims of which seem to her Majesty's Government to be
paramount. and that is the
oh,
of the West
Riding of Yorkshire.—(ph, h gad i
UkpcliitiA grid he , laughter from the
ar, . 402 the taimsterial benches.)

Sir, I certainly did not expect ever to hear the claims of
this constituency derided by Liberal Metnbers.—(hear,
hear.) Her Majesty's Government propose to recom-
mend to the House that two of those seats shall be ap-
p aliened to the West Riding of Yorkshire.—(Cheers.)
The constituency of the West Riding of Yorkshire is, as
Hon. Gentlemen are aware, about 37;000. Generally
speaking, the representation of the county has been, as
far fi.3 the great material interests are concerned, neu-
tralised, in the opinions of its Members, in this House.
The agricultural or manufacturing interests have gene-
rally sent Members into the House of Commons ot such .
opposite political opinions in reference to these great in-
terests, that they have sustained a nicely-balanced power
upon the impoi tint subjects connected with these inte-
rests.—(Hear.) But on remarkable occasions, when po-
pular feeling has been touch excited, that has happened
which has generally happened under such circumstances
—namely, although the parties in this great district are fie
nicely balanced, popular opinion has just given the &cid-
_:enie
ing impulse to the election, and two Members ot the •
same opinion have been sent here as representatives,
as in 1841, for example; and a moiety of this
great constituency has been practically disfranchised.,; „,.
--(Hear, hear.) Sir, under these circumstances, it the s,
two Members were to be given without pros-Wiles for esel
these difficulties, it is very probable that the same result it ni
would frequently occur under similar circumstances, end etist
you would, have four Members returned for the county el ci v,
by a similar casting majority, and of the seine, opinions noel
as these returned in 1841. Yeti have had two Members eese
in the House professing Conservative opinions, who have..:; oen
been returned by a small majority. For instance, the ~r:r1111:
consthuency being 37,000, I think the two Conservative
~ee
barelyMembersdng
exeeeleeetteid in 1841 were returned by a majority
1,000. Under each circumstances her
Majesty's Government think the best course to recoil,- ~ ee:
mend is that the West Riding of Yorkshire should be di- eoteei
vided.—(Hear, hear.) And if the House will permit eenael
me to lay before them the reasons which have induced snore
us to recommend that course, and the method by whichner,
we propose to carry out this division in order to effect
that object, I will at once proceed to do so.—(Hear, lege!:
hear.) Sir, when we had arrived at this conclusion of
recommending to the House the division of the West
Riding of Yorkshire into two, each of which can be
represented by two Member?, we naturally supposed
that that division could be effected by availing our-
selves of what I may call the natural and leading °
divisions of the hundreds, or as they are called is
the West Riding, the wapentakes. There are ten wapen-
takes, and by a division of these we naturally think that
our object can be effected. Bat when, we examine the
divisions of them we find that they present difficulties
that are insurmountable. For example, one wapentake
or hundred out of the ten possesses at this moment more
than one-third of the whole constituency. It was, there-
fore, found impossible that we could recommend such a
division. There are other reasons to prevent such a
division, which at the present moment I do not think it
necessary to trouble the House by detailing. We find
it impossible under such circumstances to effect a proper
division by availing ourselves of the natural districts of
the county. That being the case, we thought the diffi-
culties might be overcome by establishing a division of
the west riding by means of the polling-places. But as
it is in the power of the justices in their court of quarter
sessions to change these districts at their will, the House
will see that we are again baffled in effecting such an
arrangement, for a division of this character would not
afford us any permanent boundary. We, therefore,
think it impossible to effect our object by the
present system of electoral divisions. A suggestion
has, however, been made to us to meet the diffi-
culty; it is one which I observe has transpired
--
Ido not regret it; but it has led to some of the most
unfounded and ludicrous representations that have ever
been circulated. It was represented to us that the
comity magistrates of the West Riding, for county pur-
peses, at this very time and for some period back, find-
ing the necessity of dividing the West Riding, have con-
structed a division of the riding; and we were recom-
mended to consider that division. It appears that they
have not yet formally adopted this arrangement, but ss he"
they have frequently discussed it amongst themselves, Ile°
and it has been received with great favour by gentleme4 —645
of different ouinions in the county. I have this plan noW wised
before me. It proposes to take the simple and intolli- ewe
gible boundary of the Midland Railway, which I think seat?
I can show to the House is one entitled to their conaHesent
deration.—(Cheers.) The Midland Railway would enter 00
the West Riding from tho county of Derby, it would then it
lead to Skipton; then turning towards Cole, it proceeds es oe:
until it meets the town of Manchester. This division
would thus effect the constituency. All that part of the
country lying south and west of the line, we shall pro-
pose to call the southern division of the county; and all
that part lying north and east, we propose to call the
northern division of the west riding. Wherever a town-
ship intersects this line, we propose that it shall
belong to the northern division, in order that no such
township should be divided or overlooked in this ar-
rangement. The effect of the constituency in each of
these divisions as to numbers will then be this—the con-
stituency of the northern division will amount to 17,965.
and that of the southern division 18,785.—(Cheeringe)
Now I have considered, with some attention, a criticism
that has met my eye, and which, I confess, in the liveli-
ness of its remarks, reminded me of some observations
which I have heard elsewhere. I find the great accusation
brought against this project is founded upon this objeo
—that the northern division we have thus marked out is
composed of an agricultural constituency. Note, I must
~
say for myself—and I offer this as a remark rather b"--
„
as an argument—if the 17,000 or 18,000 of the consti-
tuency in this division be composed of persons most in"
tereeted in agriculture, I see no reason why
they should
not be represented in this House as well as any other
constituency within the kingdom.—(Hear, hear.) Nal
more, I cannot understand why an objection should be
made to 17,900 persons forming a constituency in this
northern division being represented by a person con'
connected with the agricultuial interest, any more than
the 18,900 in the southern division being represented by
a person intimately connected with manufacture. I really
think that 17,000 or 18,000 independent electors in the
county have a right to choose those Members they think
most entitled to their confidence.—(Hear, hear.) But,,.
it should be observed if the division have the effect of
making one portion of the West Riding almost purely
agricultural—if that were true, in the same way °
leave the other division, the southern division, entirely
manufacturing; and therefore it might be equally o_
jected to us that we take a contracted view ot this
,tln.ebe
tion in reference to this latter division, for it feign'
Member
for
said that by such an arrangement the Hon. Meroete.
the West Riding (Mr. Cobden) will be its repress.bat
tivo for life, for we are giving him a constituency ;bet
is entirely devoted to him—Mean hear)—in fact, re..
the Hon. Member for the West Riding
presentative of a constituency in which no element of
opposition emists.—(Hear, bear.) Well, if the re:sierest
this arrangement be that the Hon. Member for tot;euse, I
will be diet
of
Riding shall have a permanent seat in this TRhould
cannot say that I shall regret it. I confess that ;Asher,
be sorry to see him absent from this House,
a man has the power of influencing public opinion
_le.
is, in my mind, much better that he should be respoi:sv.
sible for his conduct in an assembly like this than PI,
he should exercise his great talents in other scenes, in-
dependently of his responsibility as a Member of the
British House of Commons.—(Hear, hear.) Its the enoe
of the county magistrates which expresses their plan, ht
perceive that the division therein marked out is made 112
connexion with a simple and intelligible lino of railway,
by which Leeds, although a manufacturing town.
thro*n into the northern division. We propose to fop'
low that intelligible line of railway, and to leave Leeds
in its natural position—the northern division. Such se
division may, no doubt, prevent Leeds exercising its due .h
authority in connexion with the interests of the southern n
division. The southern division is entirely inanufec" '•
turing; it, therefore, wants no assistance whatever from
Leeds, and by allowiag it to remain in the northern
division we shall be promoting the enterprise and
energy of a great manufacturing town working jai°
large agricultural district. We propose that "eye'"
as it ought to be, shall be the town of election for the
northern division of the riding; and we shall l""
to Wakefield, its former rival, to be the election town
n
(
for the southern division.—Hear, hear.) oI mention
these details lYcause I wish to show that we nave really
no selfish nor sinister design in making this recomhieo.
dation.—(Hear, beer.) Sir, we thought it but r
to Parliament and the country that we ld exaivhisien,
into and consider well all the plans that could be devised
to effect the object which we have in view. We thought
it for
aspect!
0e
it due to this House to bring forward our plan e,„, for
tured that we could confidently recommend that Pesto to
your adoption which we consider more advantagelhaes.
the community at large. But this, after all, is ecii,llol
tion for the Committee of this House. Although li:enn
endeavour to support the views of the Governmen 011
although I shall be prepared to express to the lion on
another occasion, the minute details of this Prj.no'r the
all those reasons which I think can be urge oir,
adoption of this line of demarcation—(Hear)
have no other object in view but that there shall be.
,h 0
tied into effect that plan which is moat agreeable to
ettp
House, as well as most advantageous to the sou ere
And if any gentleman can show to the House that there
can be a line of demarcation more advantageous to to
wore9ents,
community—more just in its conception—ono
in its application, and more beneficial in its re Tea
her Majesty's Government will bo but too 4, it
pleased to support it.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") hick
remains for me to express to the House the viewsw`,; to
her Majesty's Government have adopted in reger', tee
the two other seats that are vacant. With rege,aree'et
the two other seats that are vacant, we have consire
osoot
that on the whole we cannot be guided in Ow PT eto
instance by a better principle than thatl hay©
n
tempted to express. I would remind Hon. Gunticteeot ewe
that the question we have to consider now is in
largo question of Parliamentary reform—it it the
number of
portant question of completing the proper
.till
Members in this House, with a due deference iv,
existing arrangements in respect to the franchise;o;'to
must, then, apportion these seats with a due reg_rth,e
our existing Parliamentary arrangements. lehdcP:ith
when this subject is discussed it will he viewed with
ma"'
conviction of the truth of that observation. e
be gentlemen who disapprove of the presenereshY"ced,
upon which the constituencies of the country se oiriti,
Different opinions upon such a question may b
•e
then
mutely maintained andtpuotowethrfiuslidyisaeduvscsheloante, d
which. arises
questions do not enter
sfromeat s thevvtthn edcueeesit y
regardof thaving
exttost
ienpgpaorrrtaionnget=t:
inuL;hes_
number of voters throughout the country, w
it uiry when
to the franchise, and with a duo
which
0
must form a most material element in our
q tioneseet
of those seats.—wear, hear.) Takingl sto increase'
we are called upon to decide upon the
tshPePse°ras a test
sepses n•
„;', their
eti.feptrheeszr=ftra
gut. asth ea
tdeisift"tehle' dtpe gaeceee
n. o f
ng such claims depend thl'oee
relative claims, and maki
tion which they at present possess—taking, -eon
of counties and hce
siderable number of censtituencies.ll.,.hhie
their present relative representation, I find among a CO
• leajgbil On city or Webtrairamr, with 6 go

14,800 -the, town of Liverpool, with a constituency of
find
borough 'of Lambeth of 13,000. I further
and these three places supported the tall )wing amount
°,f Population, viz Westminster, 211,000; in Lam-
beth, 251,000; iu Liverpool, 376,000—e4e1a of these
places represented by two Members. There is, also,
Ces`'''rY, with a constituency of 20,000—supported by
Population of 323,000; Marylebone, with a conttiu-
neY 01:19 700 treed by a population of 370,000;
tee ,„ , —supp
tower Hamlets, with a constituency of 23,000.
i'dtlPPorted by a population. exceeding 500,000; Mid-
i el*X, with a Constituency of 14,600; Manchester, with
eeattittiuncy of 13 900—supported by a population of
3160
--°0; South Lancashire, with a constituency of
21,650, with a
population of between 500,000 and 600,000.
We Must also consider that where there is a clustitu-
'een"Y of oceupyirg tenants—we will say of 501.—as
regards the material of a constituency they may be said
to rack with the 'lO/. franchise of •• a borough. Taking,
then, into Con.ideration what may be truly celled the
prominent eleinents of nattenal weelth, which must not
e(ented Inour inquiries upon this subject, her Ma-
TY', Government have resolved to recommend tho
east to apportion the two other Members to the
i▪ "thern division of the county of Lancaster.—(Sear,
ear.) Sir, I have been-told' that -the votes that have
eettl lost haye been lost to the towns, and that they
°tight to be given t 0 the towns. Her Majecty's Go-
vernment are lutlyelware that this is an objection that is
easy to make, hut most difficult to sustain. Now no
one more adinires the en.'rgy of the great towns than
rayse!f. Ido not wish, however, to mix up either their
Present proud position or their future fortunes with the
degraded members. of S. Albans or Sielbury.—(dear,
hear.) Sir, I cannot think
the
Members taken from
those boroughs could either sustain their energies or
add to their value. 'Let the House recollect that, in re-
commending the apportionment of those four seats, we
are including in these two county constituencies scores
of towns four times larger than either Sudbary or St.
Albans.—(Hear.) If you take the surplus population of
South Lancashire and the West Riding of Yorkshire,
you have upwards of 1,400,000 persons who are directly
or indirectly represented now by only four Members.
We propose that they shall be in future represented by
eight Menibers—that is our proposition.—(Cheers.)
And if you look at the population of any of our greatest
boroughs and constituencies brought under our conside-
tatictl, you will not find one of them that equals the
surplus political population of the West Riding or South
leencashire; and' on will not find any two, or any three,
or anyifotti' of those great constituencies, eqnel to that
United population to which I have referred. We propose,
then, in regard to South Lancashire, for the same reasons,
in order that the minority, whether it bo agricultural
or▪ manufacturing, may be truly represented, that South
Lancashire shall be also divided —(Hear, hear.) South
Lancashire'consists of two hundreds—the hundred of
Salford and-the hundred of West Darley (as we under-
stood). re the former we find the flourishing city of
!ifattcheateri In the latter we find the famous port of
Lire•
rpool. Therefore, there is here a natural and
be that
line of demarcation. The result will
that in 'the constituency of Salford there are
tie
42.°°0, and in West Darley .9,500. There are some
details witterespect to this divis on which I might men-
tiee if the House would sanction them; but I think the
house will excuse them at present. I have thus endea-
'toured VS- place before tho House the intentions of the
Government; and to show the various considerations
which hu4e induced her Majesty's Ministers, with the
Inmost impartiality, to recommend this plan to the House.
rery opinion founded upon popular support that has
been expreasect upon this a übject has received every re.
'Peat and attention from her Majesty's Government.
On the whole,' then, desirous to do that which I think
will be most advantageous to the community, we have
thought proper, in reference to the pledge we gave, in
Pursuance to the duty which we owe to that Sovereign
whose power we acknowledge, to bring the proposition
before Parliament. Whatever may be the result of it,
we are confident that we have only done our duty as
Ministers of the Crown in submitting it to the conside-
ration of, this House.—(Hear, hear.) It is obviously a
question 'of the greatest importance that the Constitu-
tional number of the House of Commons should be cone-
Pleted—(lleee,
hear)—and that the continuous and sys-
tematic deficiency of our number, which is perilous to
the welfariol the' country and to the honour of this
Rouse, should be removed. If these propositions are
Ib@Med, We believe that public opinion will sanction
and that they will contribute to the welfare of the
1,714°°113', and tend to the increase of the strength as
c 1 as the lustre of the House of Commons.—(Cheers.)
Mr. GLADSTONE said that he did not feel disposed
tee_i_ctlaute to her Majesty's Government acy sinister ob.
iret in the introduction of this measure. Neither would
th charge the Right Hon. Gentleman' with having taken
boa amimi by surprise, or with having tampered with an
tl man courable-undertaking; because the Right Hon. Gen-
the had•leith perfect correctness, stated the terms of
announcement which he made upon a former occa-
sion, Ile had likewise done him (Mr. Gladstone) the
("lour Of referring to an objection which he had been
trmitted to make at the first moment of the announce-
eheeeit of the present proposition. He did not suggest to
stoeu°llse that it was wrong on the part of the Govern-
er:" to introduce a measure of this nature because they
awe suspected of an intention to procrastinate the die-
°• What he had stated was this—that it was the
teeilYto,fithe House to obtain a pledge from the Govern-
intted'aat no measure but one of urgency should be
of p teed by the Government in the present session
eeen"aatnent, and that the measure of the apportion-
etru °F the four vacant seats, by any latitude of con-
seeieit!°ll, could not bo brought fairly within this de-
GenT,4°O. He would not join issue with the Right Hon.
. in respect to the merits of the proposition
to man
just made, but he would strictly confine himself
so the
Roo.
question whether the subject opened by the Right
00. Gentleman to the House was one which the
Rouse should consent to enter upon. Instead of meet-
ing the motion with a mere negative, he would suggest
that the House should pass, in the usual phrase, to the
order of the day. If the Right Hon. Gentleman had
Succeeded
question ucceeded in showing that this was a of consti-
tutional urgency, then the House should give leave
to introduce hie measure, but if he had fatted in proving
this fact, then he (Ur. Gladstone) thought that the
house should refuse bias the permission he asked. It
was proposed at that moment, and in what has been em-
Phatically called a moribund Parliament, and by an Ad-
ministration which did not plead the title of pre-
sent confidence and who was about to ask for
tth-at• confidence by an appeal to the people,
"Introduce a measure which he (Mr. Gladstone)
Contended bad no plea of urgency to recommend
t_t The Right Hon. Gentleman admitted that there was
°,?.tnagicai or cabalistic virtue in the number 658. He
_aa•.wr. Gladstone) would go further, and say there was no
or principle of the constitution—no solemn decision
Tt'arliament, nor anything beyond accident and the
duration of about forty years, which the Right Hon.
Gentleman called' prescription—to recommend this num-
ber to their especial notice. There was a popular error
upon this subject, when it was supposed that 658 re-
Presented a great balance of interests, and that it was
se e duty of Parliament at once to complete that Whatnum-
they found by referring to the Acts of Par-
eialtent was this. By the Act of Union with Scotland
tme stipulation entered into by this country was that
Scotland should have forty-five members, and by the Act
of Union with Ireland the latter country was to have 100
cumbers. But these Acts set no limits to the total num•
her of the members of the House of Commons. The Right
lion. Gentleman referred to what he called the danger of
remaining in this continuous and systematic deficiency.
IF, then, there be a systematic and continuous de-
ficiency, where, he would ask, was the alleged prescrip-
tion? Sudbury hattnot been disfranchised very recently.
It had been disfranchised since the year 1844. Since
that time eight years had elapsed. They had had three
Ministcies—all parties in the state had successively been
in opposition, and not a single member of any of these
parties in opposition, including that which now sat op-
posite, had' called upon the House to vindicate this sa-
cred peeeeeiption,'or had appealed to this constitutional
number—(Hear, hear)— or had said one single word
passed through the ordeal of
Upon the necessity raisingthey
hdthis number to the standard,
and that although
.1
Y intervening a general election in theof
(Hear, hear)
They had had 656 instead.6sB Members returned to
Parliament. The Right Hon. Gentleman towards the
close of his speech had saidt a condition
19f things like
that was' dangerous to' ie coonrsredmenaced - the
honour wa
of the House. That the and menaced
time he had
it 61
heard such a view, and he had heardwith regret, ex-
pressed of a reduction of their numbers, which was
likewise consequent upon accident, as. the originally
fixed number was
likewise consequent upon aocident.—
_
(Hear.) It was purely nquestion of convenience and
policy,
But setting aside any
and nothing else.
whether the private opi.
Mere opinion on that whether
their opinHonourableion
as Gentlemen, or
h
Mon of Right
wn—the point he put to t ern
as Ministers of the Cre
l'as this: that the Right Hon. Gentleman was bound, in
(,),rder to make good his case, to show that there was
prescription attached
constitutional or prh
bad shown, on
to that number. On the contrary,
that that
reeference to the' great Legislative instruments,h
Right Hon. Gen-
e% did not exist in them; and the 4tluer4f/t.constitutional
7riul failedshow that it was the
Mow,to • to the House
"r► he couldnot make any
oonsetee and
t_ e
eee.
" -en
this - having proved its being h
stitetimi , upon
hand, be hoped that
the tionaaittumber. On the other
same view as that
which he Gentleman who took the
endeavour-
t; 14 . (Kr. Gladstone) was nowhumbly
not
n '"orartie d, would remember that they were
starldin ground of mere etiquette or
Punctilio.
g -upon an
He agreed withy
the Right Hon. Gentleman
would have
been unconstitutional if the Government
lietconling into office had pledged itself absolutely to the
roduction f n numer of ad
the
. o any give
nto dissolve Parliament. But what wasmeasures, right and
eOnatitutional to expect from them, and what they had
(T
eti: as a pledge, was,' not the fixing a certain numbero
e Measures---three, four, or any other number—the lay-
tng down of a principle, the entering into an engage-
ment which was definite, and strictly understood. He
might contest the Right Honourable Gentleman's
Construction of that engagement and the latitude of
tte 'cope ea understood by the Right Honourable Gentle.
e,
-tan* He at once conceded to the Right Hon. Gentleman
that there was not the slightest intention to escape from
it. But the principle of the understanding was, that no
nietttlires, except those of immediate urgency, should be
submitted to the House of Commons.--(hear, hear.)
That was variously stated on various occasions. At the
aacee time it was said that none lent necessary measures
were to be submitted to the judgment of the House of
COMMOns. On one occasion the Right Hon. Gentleman
carried his language so high as to say that the Govern-
ment would not introduce any measures except those of
absolute and indispensable necessity. He did not wish
to stand by any one particular expression or another,
for he felt that the substance of the understanding was
clear in the mind of every Hon. Gentleman who heard
him, and that he was not stating it toe strongly when
he said, that the understanding asked and obtained was
that no measures but those of immediate urgeee,y should
bo
eobmitted to Parliament, 1,;,illi„ did that uulor-

THE

standing rest upon a narrow ground. Oa the contrary,
it was stated and obtained in vindication of a principle
of the highest importance and a practical object of the
highest moment. It was in vindication of the constitu-
tional principle that a Government at issue with the ex-
isting Parliament upon a cardinal point of its policy was
bound to take one of two alternatives—either to resign
office (a course which no one recommended under the cir-
cumstances), or else to appeal to the people. But there
was another object which Parliament • had in view, and
that was to discharge its solemn duty to that great prin- ,
ciple of commercial policy which they were bound to
see well brought home to haven, and at the earliest
moment.—(Hear.) It was a fallacy against which every
man ought to guard, that because with the present Go-
vernment in power, the principles of the commercial po-
licy of the country tad not been altered by any potitive
measure, they were to rest sa isfied. It would be uo
fulfilment, but an abandonment, of th, it duty to be con-
tented that the matter should so remain. It bad been
admitted on the other aide that it was a solemn duty upon
them all to bring the matter to a speedy and final issue.
That could bo done by an appeal to the people by
dissolution; and, therefore, in risking a dissolution it was
not for any party object, but it was because, if there
was one duty more incumbent than another at the pre-
sent time upon that large majority of the Helve of
Commons who had on repeated occasions testified their
opinions in favour of, and given their cordial, tedll'i'w),`,l
to the principh sof free trade—it was that they should
not be contented, whatever might be said of, the ex-
istence of the Ministry, to leave these principles to
exist upon sufferance—to the chapter of aecideuts, that,
tt..ey should leave them es matters now stood, in the
guerdiaeship ?fgeutlemen whose owe, inclinations, with.
(Hear,
out doubt or disguise, were opposed to them—
hear)—but that they should expedite the process which
the Prime Minister had justly and fairly proposed;
namely, the process of obtainieg the deliberate judgment
of the constituencies with regard to the principles of
their commercial legislation; and having so obtained
it,
that they should then . find them in a condition, to lay
down a course of policy by which they meant to be
guided, and that if they found the public averse to the
policy which they had hitherto pursued, then that they
should (reality and finally own that state of facts, so that
at length this great controversy might be at length defi-
nitively ended, and the machinery
_of the constitution
might fall into its usual course and order. 'this was
a question which was not applicable to the merits of
the Right Honourable Gentleman as to other pro-
posals, and not involving any animadversions of an
acrimonious character on his conduct. It was a
question strictly relating to the introduction of a
Bill and to the inquiry. as to whether that Bill
ought to be entertained at all. Inasmuch, then, as he
bad clearly shown there was no constitutional ground or
claim for the introduction of the question at the present
moment, he thought it right also to point out the great
inconvenience attending its introduction. It was a
sound canon of Parliamentary practice, that, except
under immediate urgency, the eve of a dissolution of
Parliament was the worst moment,for the introdtietion
of measures like this affecting the constituencies, for it
was a moment at which local pertialitiea and personal
interests were most alive, and at which it was most diffi-
cult for Members of the House of Commons to give a
deliberate and dispassionate judgment. But, beyond
' that, this was a question with regard to which two
essential conditions for its consideration entirely failed
them. The first was, although the scale of the subject
was a small one—although it might appear not a serious
matter what should bo done with so insignificant a
fraction of their representation as that of four
seats out of 658, yet it was plain It was a
question of the highest importance, and de-
serving the most serious consideration ; . and,
above all others, it ought to be approached once for all,
and then should be finally settled. Those seats ought
not to bo held up to the people as a prize for every man
to snatch at. The matter ought to be decided, not in
a provisional and unsettled state of things like the pre-
sent, but when they had got an Administration in full
possession of political power. The Right Hon. Gentle-
man had himself already seen and mentioned some in-
dications and dispositions of all parties unrepresented, or
not sufficiently represented, to catch at the possession-of
those vacant seats. These were claims which ought not to
be decided haphazard, nor by accidental divisions, in
consequence of parties being nearly balanced, nor in a
*disorganized state of the House of Commons. But the
proposal ought to be made with the authority of a
strong Executive; and, once seriously entered upon,
it ought not to leave the table of the House until a
definitive conclusion had been arrived at. There were,
moreover, great difficulties in the case which the Right
Hon. Gentleman had hardly adverted to, which per-
haps he bad found it necessary to pass by. When they
saw the multitude of parties who could make ,a plau-
sible claim to those seats, they were bound to consider
what was due to them and to the feeling!) which they en-
tertained. He did not say they could' please them all,
but they were bound to satisfy them all that they had
had a fair hearing of their case; and he pet it to the
Right Hon. Gentleman whether this moribund Perlin
ment was in a position to give a fair hearing to all their
different claims. The Right Hon. Gentleman had alluded
• to some of them—to the universities—and he stated the '
case of the universities of Scotland as entitled to respect
and approbation; but the upshot of the Right Honour-
. able Gentleman's speech was, that for want of machinery,
for want of degrees, he had foregone the idea of enter-
taining the claims of that university. But the members
of that university could say that the degrees were but
the certificates of attendance, and that these could be ob-
tained by some other means; and that if the conditions
for conferring the representation on the universities of
Scotland were fixed, these conditions could be readily
satisfied. He did not prejudge; but if all the parties
were to be fairly heard, they could hardly sa-
tisfy the universities of Scotland that they should
be passed by because there was no registration
of degrees iu existence amongst them. Ho said
the same with respect to the inns of court; and
also with respect to another class of claimants—the un-
enfranchised towns.—(Hear, hear.) lie did not enter
into the question whether the university and the inns of
court, as representing the elucetion and intelligence of
the country, or the unenfranchised towns or the old
constituencies should receive those seats. 'But this be
did say, it was their duty carefully to examine and in-
vestigate the question—to enter upon it when they had
a free choice—not to precipitate the determination of
it. The late Government had proposed to bestow them
upon Burnley and Birkenhead. He had never examined
these particular claims; be said nothing about them;
but it would bo rather hard if they passed them by,
and if they legislated at a period when they could not
possibly have time to entertain them. Nor could they
expect that the people of Burnley or Birkenhead would
be satisfied with the verdict of the House of Commons
if they were determined, without any consideration of
their claims, to go to an issue upon the question at a
time when it was impossible they could entertain
those claims. There seemed to be in the Right Hon.
Gentleman's mind something which he had not stated—
some secret about the constitutional number of the Meats
hers of that House which he had not been able to fathom.
All he could say, then, was, that, having consulted their
history and the kiwi on the statute-book, it appeared to
him upon the clearest evidence that there was not any
constitutional virtue attaching to the number 658. Any
opinion that there was such was the purest fiction that
ever entered the mind of -man. It was a matter of no-
toriety that during
.the last eight years—during three
Administratious, with a general election intervening—
they had fallen short of that supposed constitutional
number; and such being the case, he put it to the House
was it necessarily a matter of constitutional importance
to proceed with this measure—while, on the other hand,
he had shown it was not a constitutional practice on the
eve of a dissolution to proceed with measures which were
not of immediate urgency. So far, then, from the pre-
sent time being advisable, Wises the worst and most in-
convenient that could be selected for the decision of the
question, while he had proved that their decision could
not give satisfaction to many claimants upon the fran-
chise whom they were bound to hear, or to the public at
large, who view with much interest the disposal' of a'
question pertaining to the representative system of this
country. He moved that the House do pass to the.
orders of the day.—(Cheers.)
After a short pause, during which no Member rose,
the House divided, when there appeared--
Fur the motion
For the amendment
Majority
The proposition of the Government was accordingly
Ant.

. . . ,
them that, then be yielded. But Government- said, "It
is true we are beaten, but it is in a House of Commons
thst is not ours, and that, we believe. does not properly
represent the people of the country."--(Har.) To that
he replied, if you pass the Bill you are shattered and
shaken by your positron, you will he, unable to do that
which is right in the next Parliament in consequence of
your false position. The Right Hoaourtible Gentle-
man was hampered by his position—he was bound by
one set of opinions, while he was et )j') al! he could to
maintain the opinions of Gentlemen behind him. The
Right Hon. Gentleman was not, at the ,present moment
iu a straightforward course, and he could tell the GO-
vernment they could not on that account govern.; the
couutry. The Right non. Gentleman may be in a ma-
jority on the Bill, but he was in a minority as far asahe -
House was concerned; be could not, therefore, maintain.
right principles—he could not govern the - country on
fixed principles. Ho did not care who came :forward and
told hinnGovernment were right on this question, and
that they had a majority in that House—stilt it was clear
Government were pleying a false gimp,
their authority
was sheken, and they e.Juld not ti ) ivtee: was, right. In {
n
a eerecitutioal poiot of view he contended
_Government
ought to withdraw not only this 8.11, bet every dill ex-`!
ceps the Mutiny Bill and the Bills requisite for the army
aid navy. services. The 11011i9 bee passed in.contidence
the greater portion of those measures, and therefore the
best thing the Right Hon. Gentleman could chi for him-
self and: the country was to bring the matter te'aclose-,--
to withdraw this Bitl—and then if the cenntry *as wit:-
lieg•to have it, they would enable Gonernment not only
to carry:that 818. but all other Bill. for supporting the
peculiar views of the party to which the Right lion.
Gentleman belonged. , , . •
Mr. NEWDEG ATE repeated that a great number of.
the eupporters of Government were shut out from the
late division. <As far as the measure was c )ne.erned, he
again stated that the House,, by a great mejority, had
already determined . that some such ineasere of defence
should pass, and be therefore.trusted her Majesty's Go-
vernment would persevere; for if the Han. Gentlemen
had wished the session to be brought to a close, why did
they not select some opportunity. before of defeating the
Government? • _ ,
Mr. REYNOLDS thought the Hou. Member for
Sheffield had explained the division satisfactorily, and
had shown that 462 Members was a large portion of that
House. He would account for . the opposition he in;'
tended to offer to the Bill. Ile had to,aan told, if the clew:
were rejected, it would endanger the Bill; that was. B'
strong inducement for him to endeavour to
,get that
clause rejected. The Hon. and Learned Gentleman- (Mr.
Whiteside) had been very eloquent in the laudatioe of a,
militia., Why, then, did the Hon. and Learned Gentle-1
man not extend the benefit .to Iceland? Why shotild
England have a militia and not Ireland? - Ha- bad'
always heard, at least from cooks, that what was'
sauce for the goose was sauce for the gander; but
here all, the sauce was given to thogoope, and none to
the gander—(Laughter.) Ireland, however, though left
out of the Bill, was included in the more important part -
of it—for Ireland would have to pay her share of the
burden—(Elear. hear.) The non. Gentleman hero re--
ferred to the Kafir war, and adverted to the item in
the Budget of 600,0001. for the expense of that war.
He had lately askei a friend who had just returned from
liafirland what notions the liafirs entertained of "Chris-
tianity. His reply was, that one part of the Refire- con-
sidered Christianity meant brandy and tobacco' for it was
through the agency of brandy and tobacco that conver-
sions were attempted to be made. Another part 'of the
corn,
Kafiri' considered that Christianity burningmeant
stealing of cattle, abusing women, and slaughtering one
another. Now he would ask the House, was it not time •
to put, an end to all this bloodshed and expense? He
contended that a Militia Bill was not. needed,
and that Government were not justified in inflicting
it on the country. He thought the bounty
would be a premium on emigration to Anserica.
The men were to be drilled for twenty-one days, and
then to be set at liberty to go where they liked. That
was called providing for the defence of the country.
He might-refer the Committee to the authority of paiey
for the reasons why that celebrated:philosopher thought
a regular military force preferable to a militia for the
defence of the country, • He had not heard a single ar-
gument from Bon. Members opposite in favour of the
Bill. -If the public ,prints were to be believed, no one T
.could apprehend any danger from France: .11e) presi-
dent seemed to be occupied in consolidating his power,
in promoting schemes fur the improvement of France by
railroads, drainage education, and other peaceful works,
and in breaking down, that terrible band of men, the
leaders of the Red Republicans. It was quitetrue that
the present Bilf. had been supported by large majorities,
but majorities were not always in the right; and it
ought not to be forgotten that- thern,were many lieute-
nants of counties in that tia who wcaild have a greatHea
deal of patronage under the Bill, if. it became law.. lie
thought the Bill unwarranted ,'aacl. uncalled-fore
, Mr. SANDARS said he bad voted for the second •
reading of the Bill—:though he did not, approve of all its
details—and he had done so on the ground that addi-
tional defences were . necessary. hits, impression had
been that the beat mode Of,providing that defence would
have been by an addition to the regular army and by
voluntary corps; but the speech of the. Noble Lord the
Member for Tiverton had convinced him .that the best
mode would be the means proposed by the present mea-
sure. He did not at all approve of the compulsory
clauses, and he had to suggest to
the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman the Secretary for the Home Department whether
it would not be advisable to get rid of these clauses. He
felt satisfied that it would be impossible to carry into
effect these clauses in the part of the country he came
from (the West Riding), and would recommend their
withdrawal.
Mr. MOWATT said that without the compulsory
clauses there would be no means of ensuring any force
at all. He was one of those who thought that our de-
fences were not in a satisfactory state, and that we
were not sufficiently protected against probable danger.
For years he had entertained—he might almost say
the conviction—that this country was exposed to the
risks of aggressions of a warlike character, and that
these were risks which ought not to be allowed to
bang over them. In the course of the, debate many
military authorities had been referred to, but ho had not
heard Boy ono assert that . these militery autho ri tiehs
could not provide for the. defence of the countrY if the
expenditure of the 16,000,0001., voted for military pa--
poses were left to them uncontrolled-by political consi-
derations. His justification in voting against the present
Bill was the manner in which our regular forces were
distributed in different parts of the world. We seemed
to distribute our forces at our extremities, and to
leave ourselves exposed- to a home thrust at our heart.
An additional reason why he, voted against the measure
was his opinion that the present Government were not
the persons to bring forward this measure, more WA'
eially after such a defeat as they had that night -was-
tained. . . . .
After a. few words from Mr. Crawford, Mr. Brown,
and Mr. G. Thompson against the Bill,
- The Committee thee divided, when there app
For reporting progress B5
Against it . e. •• •.•
156
Majority against the motion. —7l
On our return to the gallery we found
Mr. HUME moving the omission of the clause, and
complaining of the contrast which the conduct of the
Chancellor of the Exchequer and of his party on that
occasion presented to the course' which they had pursued
on the Opposition benches.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said
the Hon. Gentleman had stated that he (the Chancellor
of the Exchequer) had on former oceasions always been
ready to oppose every proposition for the expenditure of
public money. But that was net
so; for. wherever the
credit, the honour, and the security of the country were
involved, he had never opposed
propositions for expen-
diture.—(Cheers.) As ho was not prepared to oppose
public money t
-- Pay the dividends to the
publicgn
creditor, so he prepared not ran ts"
erepared to:oppose any
disbursement of public money
no
would say nothing more
for the defence of the
country.--(Hear, hey.)
on the clause, which had been under discussion during
two nights. He believed-that
declaration of opinion'
what the public then re
• • --(Cheers.) the vales by of their
representatives.
auired was a
mi... Limo said that the honour and the interests of
the country were not at stake on that occasion. - The
Right Hon. Gentleman
,had utterly failed to'. establish
any such pesition--(Laughter, and dice et. -' Oh, oh")
;---and it was oa that ground that he (Mr, flume) opposed
Fee would b
the measure.
e one or the first to support
any propoaal which whsbased;: on the necessi of main-
s the public credit. 13 t the measure before, hem
was only a means of endangering that a t credit.--(Dear,
hear.) All profligate Governments exhausted the public
Unnecessary experiditure;__
resources by (Laughter, and
general marks of disapprobation on the: Ministerial
benches.) If libu. Gentletomen opposite' went on in that
way he abould be obliged., b move again that the Chair-
man should leave the chair, 1,..
"'" WAS:not, to be
bullied.---(Hear, hear, and
' estrog e.!..o)'' If he were told
that he was anxious leh 17._.. the 'public credit, he
size. kie believe -
shoald throw back thee . d he.had done
man topreseree tne- el •
as much as any PA le credit—
credit would.
(Hear, hear)—and their:
if he had- nont-°t' Perhaps be in
the state in which it was
.. interferede--(A
' ' w
laugh.) Those ho know nettling at all about the
the pardoned there. Et matter
were laughing,
but
the Chancellor-of the _ e did not
want to- quarrel with
offers Ho ~ w •imallequer;
he wanted to keep
ble
matter, by le-e- ashamed of
the course pursued in that
been in . the habattlY Members
with whom he hail long
had
il agreed on thalt of voting;
but Whigs and Tories . T., . _ occasion •to
ay moneY• He would divide waste the public money e the
Committee against the proposal to enrol and
tof ' er keep up
80,000
additional men as Par tho P Manent armed
force of this country. .
divided, when there
The Committee then divi aPtiesired—
. ••• ••• 169
For the clause ••
82 :
••• •••
Against it ...
;11e clause' .. "-
. - 87
Majority for
---
The clause was then orderetI to stand pp,rt of the Bill.
On effete 8, which
empow the
ers
.Queen, in Council to
fix the guinea in .the
he different couutics from which the
force is to be drawn, . , information
Mr. M. GIBSON' ask .
ea or as to
He understood that whoy
were strictly liable to serve'
' ild • Idclaim any
one ca . Lou. ex.
poor man with more than
empties]. •
said that cx-nietion -would
Mr. WALPOLE
e 111. Thewords be
'claimed under the 423 of G2org . of this
• with that Act.
chose were in conformity
tlemen were at all ee
Mr. COBDEN doubted if g
efuthn Act in question.
quainted with the provisions
of
clause provided li.
Mr. WALPOLE said that .. for the
enitstment not producing
contingency of the Voluntary
men. If, the ballot Were
the requisite number ef. f a certain ages and-heimPlutt
into operation every person 0
Id b claimed.--t would e
would be liable to serve, and exemption
fer.
under the statute to which he rered
Mr. M. GIBSON thought it would be well to post-
pone this clause until the cotnealsory clauses came under
consideration.
Mr. WALPOLE said there Ras nothing in the obtuse


which made it necessary te,have the list made out before
themeizorttfelsEwßourecoKoreateed ted.
what was meant by " liehirty "
hAtLwPotiOuLerleiapbealete, repeated that persons of certainl apes
and exempt under then42eds
o-atn.Med'Glhrrein6rWlellarll. T thought that unless the ballot were h
ar epcpoourrtd
e o otmo
eint t wort
dl
ids
tnr
ioott sb. e.
Hn cocoa srsgaordy t thee pwriot chederdo
wt oal an
t
fi
theMcel. WALPOLEanse maintained the necessity of
the quotas, to provide against the contingency to which
g
he bad referred.
Mr. BRIGHT asked whether any deficiency in one
district would have to be made up by another? .
Mr. WALPOLE said, that a district which had fur-
Dished its quota would be exempt.
Lord SEymotia end Mr. V. SMITH suggested the post-
ponement of -the clause.
Mr. WALPOLE, in reply to a remark from Mr. Roe-
buck,' said he proposed to insert in the 10th clause is ,pro-
vise to the effect that the volunteers should be men resi-
dent in the particular county in which the quota of which
they formed part was raised.
Mr. 0. VILLIERS did not understand why they could
not dispo.so of the volunteer system in the Bill without
referencet° qeotea
bin WALPOLE—If it were not intended to resort
to the ballot, of course there would be no necessity for
quotas.--( Hear, hear.) Is. reply to Sir G. Grey, the
Right Honourable Gentleman added, thet the provi-
done of the Bth clause wouli be necessary only in the
event of having recourse to tee ballot;. and that by the
10th clause they would.: raise a certain amount of
volunteers in .each county, and probably only
the proportionate number which each county ought to
furnish; but he had prepared a proviso to that clause to
the effect that when a county had furnished its proper
number of volunteers, it should also be alloWed to fur-
nish a eupplemental number, with the view of raising the
whole number of men required in the aggregate.
Sir C. WOOD declared himself to be still at a loss to
understand the meaning of the Government.
Mr. WALPOLE—If the Right Hon. Gentleman
'would take the Bill in his hand and examine it he would
see that there were three divisions, and that down to the
end of the 9th-clause it provided that a certain number
of men were to be raised as a militia force; it would fol-
low, therefore, as a matter of course that these men
would be raised in the ordinary way that the militia had
hitherto been raised under the 42d George 111., viz., by
having recourse, to the ballot. For that purpose it was
necessary to fix the proper quota which each county
was to furnish,, giving the Queen in Council the power
to alter those, quotas as might be deemed necessary.
From the 10th to the end of the 15th clause it was
provided that in.the operation of raising the force,
the necessity for the ballot might be superseded by
allowing men to volunteer. And from the Isth clause
the Bill enabled the Crown to have recourse to the bal-
lot, after giving credit to the different counties, subdi-
visiOng of counties, and parishes, for the number of men
they had furnished by voluntary enlistment. The pass-
ing of this clause would, therefore be simply to say,
that if recourse were had to the ballot under the 42d
of George lIL, the Crown should have the power of
fixing the, quotas.
Sir C. WOOD then asked if it were intended that, in
the first instance, a certain number of men should be the
qaota of militiamen for each county in Engtand, to
be raised in that county, either by voluntary enlistment
or by ballot ?
Mr. WALPOLE--The intention of the Bill
of was tot
o
raise volunteers in certain quotas from each
counties in Englandeand to have recourse to the ballot
where they were insufficient to fill up the quotas.
In answer to an observation from Mr. ROEBUCK,
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL said the object of the
Bill was, first of all to raise a gross number of militia-
men; but that gross number was to be distribhose piuted oveo-
r
the country in certain proportions to each. Tt
portions must be ascertained; and the eighth section
provided, therefore, that the quotas should be
fixed by her Majesty in Council. But the quotas being
fixed, voluntary enlistment was what they proposed to
look to is the first instance to supply the required force;
consequently, it was necessary that the quotas should
be established as a preliminary measure to ascertain the
number of militiamen who were to serve for each county.
If they could get the exact number by Voluntary enlist-
ment everything would have been done that was neces-
sary; but if they did not get the exact amber, then the
ballot would, come in aid to supply the deficieney—but
only in that event.—(Hear, hear.) Thus it would be
seen that it was absolutely necessary to begin by fixing
the quota. . It was the very foundation of all their ope-
rations, and without it they could not proceed one step,
either in the way of voluntary enlistment or the ballot.
Mr. ROEBUCK—Did he understand the Right Hon.
Gentleman to mean that in case the Middlesex quota,
for instance, was fixed at 5,000 men, that county would
not be allowed to raise more than tl:at number; so that,
if it proposed to raise 8,000, 3,000 of them would be re.
jested?
The ATTORNEY•GENERA.L—With 'all due sub-
mission to my Hon. and Learned Friend, we should not
reject one.—(Laughter and cheers.)
Mr. M. GIBSON believed the making out of the lists
and the appeals formed one of the worst features of the
militia system, giving rise to a litigation which would
be needless, except under a compulsory system. The
Bth clause, as it stood, ought not to pass, because it in-
volved questions of fitness, see., which would be useless
unless tne ballot were resorted to, and therefore, until
it were decided that there should be a ballot, the clause
ought to be postponed. He therefore moved that the
clause be postponed.
Sir G. GREY said he understood the 80,000 were to
be raised by voluntary enlistment. But, so far as that
wont, the *• fitness and liability" of the men mattered
,sot in this clause, and these words could be omitted.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said the
intention of the Government was that the quota should
be the basis of the increase, endeavouring to supply it
first by the voluntary enlistment, and then falling back
on the ballot. By the clause the number would only be
fixed, not the particular men.
Sir C. WOOD understood the clauses as they had been
explained, but he conceived it desirable that the words
"fit and liable" should be omitted.
The ATTORNEY GENERAL agreed in this opinion,
and to strike out the words. The clause ran thus:—" It
shall be lawful for her Majesty from time to time to take
into consideration the number of men fit and liable to
serve in the militia who are resident in the said
several counties and places, and to ascertain and fix the
number of militiamen who shall, until other quotas
shall be fixed, in like manner serve for each such
county and place, so as to apportion as near as may be
the whole number of militiamen by the Act directed to be
raised among all the said counties and places, accord-
ing to the number of men fit and liable to serve therein
respectively, and the numbers so fixed shall be the
quotas of the several counties and places until other
quotas are appointed in like manner."
Mr. GIBSON maintained that the clause should still
be postponed.
Mr. ROEBUCK argued that the ballot being aban-
doned the clause would not he required.—(Divide.)
The ATTORNEY GENERAL. said the Government
could not be certain that the voluntary enlistment would
succeed to the extent desired, and so the compulsory
clauses were requisite, that they might fall upon the
ballot.
Mr. T. EGERTON thought there was no objection
to the clause as it stood.—(hear, hear.)
Mr. RoxaucK and Mr. MOWITT suggested that while
in one county there was a deficiency, in the next there
might be an overplus of men volunteering, and it would
be a hardship to put the ballot in force to make up the
deficiency in the former.
Mr. WALPOLE said that was provided for by the
discretion reposed in the Crown, and might be further
provided for by a proviso (in the 10th clause) that the
deficiency in such a case should not be made up by the
ballot.
Mr. BRIGHT considered the clause would be as ob-
jectionable as before, even after the Attorney• General's
amendment, and pressed its poetponement. It would put
people to trouble which would be useless, if the ballot
were negatived.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL was willing to divide
on the clause with words " fit and liable" retained in it,
as the omission did not satisfy the Honourable Gentle-
man.—(Divide.)
Mr. MOWATT suggested a schedule, with a list of
exceptions and exemptions in the existing militia laws,
which would much diminish the objections to this clause
and to the Bill in general.—(Divide, divide.)
Colonel THOMPSON said it was not necessary to
define the number of men " fit and liable" to serve.
Mr. RICA.RDO asked the Right Hon. Gentleman
whether it was the intention of the Bill to raise the
whole number of the 80,000 in any one county?
Mr. WALPOLE was understood to say that the
wordingtatiolu
got
tf
wasth the cuse
:impossibled i nho
et warrantcould
ausennotht
onnth
iontperroppo.re-
,
aition of the Hon. Member opposite (Mr. Mowatt).
es The Committee then divided, when there appeared--
es For the amendment• 9 9
' Against it... ... ... 216
LI
Majority against it ... --1 7
Mr. BRIGHT suggested the postponement of the
to
The A.TTOBNEY.GENERAL had no Acetic:use
clause, as they would only be getting into confusioh.
omit the words "fit and liable," so as to allow the
to be proceeded with.
was agreed to.
After a lengthened conversation the clause
On clause 9 being read, • ndo report
Mr. COBDEN moved that the Chairma as amended
regress.
The motion was agreed to,
again on Friday. a)nd given to sit
The Turnpike Roads (Ireland
Committee. , Bill assed through
&Ate p
The. Belfast Custom-house, Billelavpsessed through
Committee.
the Deaths, and Mar-
from Foreign Ships
and the e
amended, amen -
fines Bill were considered as
-BiTli,haeoAapthproeitheengsiisotrnatoifooDoe sf e ritteirrs
nights agreed to.
provision for
thrTohoeghCcomommolonistteEon.
AT TORNEY-GEN ER AL
in
a 1341.1 torsintoathe d
Enclosure. Acts Extension Bill passed
On the tuition of the ,
of o. tee perform u-
aleapveei.towaaosegoitroontatobibisrhintogeot
hameees; and for the y lynient of
ties at nisi prius, in the superior _ courts of common law,
and at the judges' c
salaries, and to abolish certain offices in
The Bill was broug
such
those ffi
ounerrtss. by
ht in and read a first time.
The House thenadjournedat Half-past Twelve o'clock.

•
EASTERN COUNTIES RAILWAY.--This company
have just introduced a new system for the convenience of
families and parties of Octane, whereby, at a fixed fare to
travel in private Compartments of the
and fro, they maY
company's carrisgot to the various watering or other places
ou the hue.

LITERATURE.

AURELIA; or. a Bcautis Life in hay. 3 Vols.

Colourn.

There is the charm of novelty in these volumes to
'tempt those 'who are tired of perusing details of
home life, and who weary of being repeatedly in-
formed how the gorgeous heti-vitt is succeeded by
the brilliant ball, and in what manner the votaries of
fashion carry on their pursuits in our native isle.
The heroine is English, however; and although, on
the whole, not a very favourable specimen of our race,
she yet continues to infuse some portion of the in-
tritnic decorum and propriety of Albion into the
reckless society and unsteady morals of the foreign
coteries into which she is plunged. She drew her
fate on herself, it is true, but nevertheleee none can
refuse sympathy to the misfortunes and injuries of
new so gifted and sensitive, and so misrepresented.
4er genuine affections were mistaken for a passing
passion—her enthusiastic admiration of the beautiful
for the affectation of display, and the pride which
prompted her to conceal her miserir s was supposed to
he the triumph, of her successes. One thought sag-
geste itself—that the author, who is laid to be three
parts foreign, bas not pourtrayed to the reader a very
favourable account of foreign men and manners.
While we turn with disgust from the paltry and
mediocre mind of Irivulgio, and feel indignant at the
base and despicable Martinergoea e ask in astonishment,
can this be the true delineation of the character of
modern Italy ? All that is classic and artistic is
shown to surround their way ; the sublime remnants of
the magnificent of old still linger in their shrines of
worship, and adorn their temples of fame. The
beautiful is worshipped on every altar without, but
within the mind is left unruled by discipline and the
heart untouched by charity. If the " garb of old
Gaul" has been superseded by modern innovations,
surely the " fire of old Rome" ought to be still found
burning. Apart from these national reflections, great
information may be derived from the various descrip-
tions of entertainments that take place ; also consi-
derable eloquence characterises the pictures given of
scenery and cities in that fair country. Venice, the
queen of the waters, is shadowed forth with her pa-
laces of yore still crowning with sublimity their pre-
sent ruins. Naples is entered in the majestic stillness
of the twilight hour, and the effect thus produced
on the beholders is ably depicted. Altogether no one
can fail to be interested in the work as aierhule ; for

if not reflecting life's most happy hours, it represents
its most glorious scenes in its most gorgeous hues.
While the adventures of the beauty in the gay scenes
of life in which she moved adorn the tale, it is to be
hoped that her premature and awful death may, point
a moral to„Tall inexperienced and infatuated, rushing
heedlessly into temptation. These descriptions con-
tain great beauty of style and force of language :
" What pen, what pencil might hope to render even a
faint idea of that scene of enchantment! The sun was
sinking in a sea of crimson and gold behind the pro-
montory, gilding Vesuvius with his last rays, and irradiat.
ing the undulating hills and cliffs of Castellemso Sorrecto
and Ulassa with alternate tints of the softest lilao and
rose. In the far background the distant mountains of
Salerno and Amalfi towered one above the other like
Golopean steps, casting their denticulated crests on the
horizon in every shade, from the richest violet to the
deepest purple. At their feet lay the limpid Mediter-
ranean, a sheet of sapphire spangled with tiny sails,
like specks of snow resting upon its waters; bounded
at one extremity by the circling shores of Yortici Re-
sins and bore del Greco, whose gardens and groves of
orange and lime bathe in the very water's brink, and at
the other closed in by the little island of Capri, glorying
in the rich mellow hue which flooded the whole land-
scape, melting every outline and every traced line into
one soft harmonious whole.
" Rosa exclaimed in rapture that to die without see-
ing Naples was not to have lived; and Amelia remarked
that Naples was the only place she knew in the world
where the mere sensation of existence was enjoyment.
" There is a tone of profound and touching melan-
choly which pervades much of the Italian church music,
that renders it unlike all other. Alone it is gifted with
the power of awakening every human sympathy, and
touching every human affection; yet, in grandeur and
solemnity, it cedes the palm to none. No one denies
that Handel and Mendelssohn are sublime. Yet Pales-
trina and Maroellino are:sublimer stilt, but while the
German strikes you with awe, or chills you with fear,
the Italian overwhelms you with all the contending
emotions of love, pity, and remorse. A single hymn
of Palestrina, a single chord of Baia or Baini, nay, the
simplest litany, the evening prayer of the nuns and pea-
santry in a convent church of Italy, thrills through one's
veins and fills one's eyes with tears. Who that listens
to the glorious Missa Papas Marcelli,' or the divine
chant of the unrivalled Miserere' of the Sistine, that
is not irresistibly forced to compare them to the lamen-
tations of the Seraphim, as he feels their accents and
superhuman beauty, and anguish quiver through his
every fibre, till they seem to rend his very heart-strings.
He must be dull and unimaginative, indeed, who can
eave an Italian church unmoved and unimpressed."

TEE DEATH FL AG; or, The Irish Buccaneers.
By Miss Crumpe. 3 Vols. Shoberl.
Miss Crumpe does not appear for the first time
among the female writers who have enriched our lite-
rature during the last half century. We may regret
that the works of one whose advent is, in plural
senses, " like angels visits," are not more fr«ittent ;
notwithstanding that deliberation, in Miss Crumpe'a
cafe, has been for the advantage of those who may
avail themselves of the extensive researches in foreign
archives, by which she hus been enabled to enrich her
romantic narrative of the latter adventures of Prince
Charles Stusrt. " The Death Flag " takes up the
history of the ill-fated prince at the. point where
former narrators leave him, and makes us acquainted
with facts, in connexion with the wild heroes who
inhabited the southern coasts of Ireland in the middle
of the last century, with which we were totally un-
acquainted. Added to the painfully interesting events
in the life of " the Pretender," after his defeat at
Culloden, the author's pictures of rock and rural
scenery,' of ocean life and dangers, and of Irish pro-
vincial character, are among the most exciting or
amusing traits of her vivid genius. None but one
most intimate with the peculiarities of the lliherno-
Alilesian inhabitants of the far south could give such
graphic delineations, as in her portraitures of the
" O'Sullivan Beare," and his retainer " Dan Con-
nell," and none but an acute and refined geniue have
drawn the pathetic seems of. domestic vicissitude
which sustain the anxiety, whilst inducing the sym-
pathy, of the reader for the amiable and lovely heroine
of her story, the youthful " Edith." In short,
" The Death Flag" is a felicitous addition to our his-
toric novel library. The dramatic structure is per-
fect, as the public will soon have an opportunity of
judging; for we believe " The Death Flag" is about
to be dramatised and performed on the stage. The
scenery and incidents change with a rapidity that
prevents weariness, and with a harmony that pre-
serves in the mind the unity of the subject. The
local descriptions are chastely beautiful and true.
Grand in their simplicity, the charms of rocks, hills,
and ocean, of calm and tempest, as described by the
accomplished author, are in the strictest accuracy of
delineation ; and her personal characters are suffi-
ciently varied, without the least of that exaggeration
or caricature which spoils half the dramatis persona
of the historico-romantic echool, and from whiob,
ithhhe
according to the opinions of some, the works of
Magician of the North are not always exempt

TANCES'
ciRCUMS
7HE FORCE OF
In every phase of life we tracpeastltienls'o, r enen
do f
naCirrrcya muss
stances; they come and sweep
ourselves insensibly altered
along with them; we find They oung girl who
and changed by their ipflaence.
pleaded and loyed an ideal picture is not the same that
sits brooding over !b past,
counting its moments with
as mire's venerlition teis the
tde monk
nf hip beads
abneandesa!ini. No;
Wshhaet,
too, is altered by the
back over' the past, has
what wife, looking
mother, or'
found her future carved out? Some there are who,
having centred their hearts' requirement on love, have
found it answered more a thousandfold than they could
have hoped or expected. But how often in our transit
g throu h the world—in our experience—have we not
beard sketched the sunny picture which a woman has
drawn of her youth, and the bitter contrast presented
events. Young, eager, and enthusiastic; full
by actual
I
spirit of joy which the consciousness of
:
othe' Wild
young life imparts, before we have lived through tee
trying experience of others, before we have tasted either
of deep b
cysief or immeasurable joy, she givearber heart,
and she thinks she has done all! Ana- what sacrifice
more can she make? What has a woman to giVe more
precious to man than the love of a young, confiding,
and unsuspecting heart? Full of life—impressed with
a consciousness of her own purity and devotion—she
pours forth all the treasures of her thought at man's
feet; she lets him into all the little weaknesses of her
nature; she unfolds her unmeasurable love; she plans a
happy future; she fancies she hears the joyous tones of
infant voices, in the distant horizen of her life, sweep
past like the tone of a distant bell; she places her' little
joys in them—the happiness they must afford her. In
fancy she rears them to brilliant positions; she makes
them all like herself—good and pure; she gives them
her thoughts, she inspires them with her own elevated
sentiments, and the husband of her choice with undying
love and tenderness! How often—we will hope that it
is not always thus—how often, we say, are these dreams
disappointed! She watches the dying out of love, of
'kindness; she has her children; as lung as they are
young, her pictures still continuo true; they
are her
happiness and her joy ; she loves them nil, watches over
them tenderly, and cherishes each early indication of
goodness and talent. Time, however, dissipates her il-
lusions; circumstances turn out d:fferently from what
she anticipated; the children of reality are not ideal
children; they are human being i
s—someood, others
bad—the fates are determined by the Force of Creu
g
stances, which works out quietly a km" ler each, but
which, which, however brilliant it may be, is not what s
planned! —.Eli:a Cook's Journal.

ROY AL Pum: TECIIIIIC INSTITUION.---iiis High-
ness the Rajah of Koorg, attended by. Colonel Drummond
and a large suite of gentlemen and ladies, visited this insti-
t talon yesterday, to see the oxy-hydrogen microscope,
.and
the experiments under water by the 'liver of the establish
ment, who exhibited the process of blowing up sunken ri
sels• The diving bell (that old favourite of the public)
also made several sub-marine trips, much t 9 the amusement
1 of his highness. , •