The Sun.
London, England, 1837-12-07 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1837.

awful because it had been kept in complete obscurity, had not
fallen upon them.—( Hear, hear, and a laugh.) For his part,
he ( Sir R. Peel) had never seen the declaration which so
much alarmed the Noble Lord, that it was the intention of
certain parties to question the elections of Ireland on the
mere ground that the parties returned differed from the ma-
jority of the English representatives. With respect to the
other ground for alarm stated by the Noble Lord, he (Sir
R. Peel) had certainly seen statements calculated to excite
an alarm that some of these petitions were presented with a
view to prevent certain Members from taking part in the deci-
sion upon election petitions. Of course the Noble Lord re-
ferred to the correspondence which had recently taken place
between two persons, calling themselves " An Elector" and
" A Non-elector," in the Morning Chronicle. It was, doubt-
less, this correspondence which excited the Noble Lord's ap-
prehensions of the fatal result of " a cluster of petitions," to
use the Noble Lord's expression, and the declaration upon
which the Noble Lord had built his well-founded alarm, was
viewed with the more apprehension, and accepted the more
implicitly, because it proceeded from an organ which advo-
cated the Noble Lord's own politics. As to the other decla-
ration, he (Sir R. Peel) had never seen it ; and he heartily
rejoiced in the hope that the apprehension of it was ill-founded.
He regretted, however, that the Noble Lord had suffered
himself to be disturbed by vain apprehensions of this kind, alai
ta be induced even to hold out a threat that be would suffer
himself to depart from the ordinary course of Parliament in
respect to its privileges, and to delay to bring on the conside-
ration of its disputed seats beyond the usual period named for
so doing. He hoped the result would operate as a caution to
the Noble Lord—(a laugh)—not to give faith to vague com-
munications in newspapers ; and that, holding the situation
which he did, he would not again throw impediments or ob-
jections in the way of bona fide petitioners to the House of
Commons. —( Hear.) There was one subject in connection with
this topic to which he wished to advert before be sat down.
tie referred to the Bill brought in by the Hon. Member for
Liskeard, relating to the trial of controverted elections, and
which had now passed its second reading. He hoped that the
course this evening pursued by the Noble Lord in reference
to these election petitions might be understood as a promise
that they would not proceed hastily with that Bill.—(No, no,
from the Ministerial Benches, and hear, hear, from the Oppo-
sition.) Why, if the present mode of trying election petitions
was considered so far satisfactory that the election petitions
now before the House were to be tried by it, he could see no
occasion for bringing on that Bill. He believed that it was
understood that no business of importance would be dune after
the present week until they re-assembled after the recess. So
general, he thought, was this understanding, that the Hon.
Member for Bridport positively refused to defer his motion
respecting the Danish claims to any day after Friday, so im-
pressed was he with the notion that immediately after that day
there would be a general flood of Members out of town. If this
were the case, the Hon. Member for Liskeard could not hope
to obtain that attention to his Bill which the subject of it
demanded, and, therefore, he ( Sir Robert Peel) hoped that
the Honourable Gentleman would consent to defer the future
stages of it till after the recess. If, however, the Hon. and
Learned Gentleman did not think proper to accede to this
suggestion, he ( Sir R. Peel) would give notice that he
would on Friday next, without at all entering upon the
merits of the Bill, but merely because the House would not
after that day be in a state to do it jus:ice, move that it be
postponed till an early day after the recess, and take a division
upon his proposal.—( Cheers from the Opposition.)
The Clerk tl e proceeded to read the list of Election Peti-
tions, the first of which, that for the county of Roxburgh, was
fixed for the 6th of February.
Sir R. PE EL tone to call the Noble Lord's attention to
the fact, that if they only took four election petitions in a
week, it would be sixteen weeks before they were all disposed
of. He suggested whether it would not be better on some
days to take three petitions.
[At this period Mr. C. Buller, who had been out of the
House, entered, and took his seat amidst cries for " Mr. Bul-
ler, Mr. Buller."]
Lord J. RUSSELL did not think they should be able to
get through more than five petitions a week.
Sir R. PEEL, observing the Hon. and Learned Member
for Liskeard in his place, repeated the observations he had
made during his absence in reference to the Controverted
Elections Bill.
Mr. C. BEJLLE R. had heard no reason from the Right
Hon. Baronet, except the threat of his opposition, which
should prevent him from pursuing the course he (Mr. C.
Buller) had originally intended in reference to a matter to
which much public interest was attached, and on which be
might say public ju-tice to some extent depended. —( Hear,
hear.) He should be very sorry to prevent the Right Hon.
Baronet and his friends from going out of town, but at the
same time be must say that he really did not so particularly
want their attendance in this matter.—( A laugh.)
Sir R. PEEL said that the notion of leaving town had not
originated with his Sir R. Peel's) side of the House, but with
Gentlemen on the other side. He had stated that so general
was this impression amongst Gentlemen on the opposite side
that the lion. Member for Bridport had declined to postpone
Lis motion on the Danish claims beyond the present week.—

(Hear, hear, from the Opposition. )
Lord JOHN RUSSELL said, that however desirous Mem-
bers might be to get out of town as soon as possible, he thought
that as a matter of public business it would be of more
importance to go on with this Bill before the recess. The
object of this Bill was to see whether they could not de-
vise a better mode of trial for election petitions. He
(Lord John Russell) thought they could, and he nave notice
that he sbonld move the insertion of a clause, making it im-
perative on Election Committees to appoint a Commission to
take evidence.—( Hear, hear.)
After a few words from Mr. GRATTAN and Sir R. PEEL,
the Roxburgh and Canterbury petitions having been fixed for
the 6th of February, the Longford petiticn having Leen named
(as we understood) for the Thursday following, viz. , the Bth
of February,
Mr. GR ATT AN hoped a more distant day would be
fixed. Many of his tenants had been struck off in a most
unjustifiable manner.—( Hear, and a laugh from the Opposi-
tion.) He should, therefore, move as an amendment that this
petition be considered on Tuesday the Bth of March.—(Loud
laughter.)
Lord JOHN RUSSELL asked .the Hon. Member for
Meath whether he would press his motion, for he did not see
any grounds on which he was entitled to the demand which
he made.
After a few words from Mr. H. GRATTAN the amend
ment was withdrawn, and the criginal motion agreed to.
PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE.

Lord JOHN RUSSELL wished to know from the Hon.
Gentleman (Mr. Blewitt) whether he did not consider it
better to reserve the discussion of his resolution until to-
morrow, when the Hon. Member for Limerick (Mr. W.
S. O'Brien) would present a petition bearing on the saute
subject ?
Mr, BLEWITT—If I am to understand that I shall have
precedence to-morrow evening I shall agree to the Noble
Lord's proposition.
Sir R. PEEL—I think the Hon. Gentleman should stipu-
late for his taking precedence of all other motions. He is
perfectly entitled to do so.---( Loud cries of " Go on, go on.")
Mr. BLE WITT then proceeded—Sir, in rising to move
the resolutions of which I have given notice, I can assure the
House I feel deeply impressed with the responsibility—( Cries
of " Oh, oh I" from the Opposition)—of the duty lam now
. .

called upon to discharge. Humble, however, as my position in
this House may be, I cannot stand tamely by and see its dignity
insulted, its authority despised, and its just rights and privi-
leges set at defiance. Sir, my attention was first called to the
grievance in question by the remittance to London from the
country town near which I reside of a sum of money for the
avowed purpose of expelling from this House the Hon. and
Learned Member for Dublin. Sir, it did appear to me that
this was a most foul and atrocious aggression upon the free-
dom of election and the liberty of the subject, and such as I
could not have anticipated even from the utmost virulence
of political or party feeling. I had, indeed, heard that a
Committee:oad been formed in London, for purposes which
I could not but deem unlawful and unconstitutional ; but
until the sub:cription to which I have alluded came under
my notice, I had no conception of the mischiefs th,tt might
result from the formation and objects of the Committee.
Sir, if the Honourable and Learned Member for Dublin
is to be expelled from this House by the combined and
collected resources of Conservative opulence, why not
the Noble Lord on the Treasury bench, and all his Right
Hon. coadjutors ? Why not each and every one of the Hon.
Members on this side of the House ? Even you yourself, Sir,
arc not safe in that Chair, to which the unanimously-approving
voices of the House have elected you. Sir, I beg to call the
attention of the House to the form and language of my reso-
lutions. They are framed upon the principle, that immutable
principle of justice in a free country, that no man should be
presumed to be guilty, nor condemned without a trial. My
first four resolutions are declaratory of what I consider to be
the law upon certain points. My last seeks an inquiry into
whet have been the circumstances of a particular transaction
alleged to have taken place, but of which the House has no
judicial knowledge, in order to ascertain whether those circum-
stances have been such as to bring any and what parties within
the scope and operation of the law. It is just possible, Sir,
that I may not, on this occasion at least, gain credit with some
Hon. Gentlemen for that pure honesty of intention to which I
lay claim ; and as I cannot introduce them into the recesses
of my heart—( A laugh)—l must be content if I can only ob-
tain from them a fair and dispassionate hearing. This, Sir, I
might demand as a right, but I am quite willing to accept it
as an act of the kindest and most considerate courtesy.
Sir, to support the first of my resolutions, I shall have to
prove that it is a breach of the privileges of this House to im-
peach, or wilfully and deliberately call in question or other-
wise than by a petition, the right or title of any Member to
a scat in the House. I request attention to the precedents
and authorities which I am about to cite, and which I shall
do as shortly and succinctly as the nature of the case will
admit of. I well know the value of your time. Let the
House hear me but with patience while I speak to the pur-
pose, and I promise that its indulgence shall not be abused.
The Hon. Member here entered into a variety of legal and
historical details, in order to establish the points he had
stated. He then continued :—The House is now threatened
externally with a species of molestation at which every true
grdpr
lover of his country looks with horror and dismay.
A self-constituted tribunal has heen risen up—an imperium In
imperio_
p raaernnednd
telyryient
rendering
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jiunPrtifiesrdriciiceatlllpioteinnligt, Wild
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knowledging e
apparently
controlling aa nt
judges of the land, the Lords spiritual and temporal,
Kings and Queens, all the high and mighty of the kingdom,
have been told successively, in the plainest and most indig-
nant terms, that they shall not interfere in any matters affect-
ing the House of Commons. I shall be glad to hear by
what ingenuity of argument any Hon Member will attempt
to convince the House that a self.elected Committee of pri-
vate individuals are entitled to do that which is forbidden to