The Sun.
London, England, 1830-04-27 00:00:00

FORGERY.

Mr. N. CALVERT presented a petition from
Royston, praying for the abolition of capital punish-
ment for forgery.
Mr. BROUGHAM perfectly concurred in the
prayer of the petition, and WAS glad to find that a

change of feeling on that subject was beginning to
prevail among certain classes who had all along been
opposed to any alteration in the law. For some
time certain classes, and particularly those who were
chiefly interested in that branch to which the pre-
sent -law was applicable—he meant paper money—
were averse to any mitigation of the punishment.
lie had now the satisfaction of stating to the House
that he had received communications and petitions
from •arious bankers in different parts of the coun-
try, which showed that pretty generally this class
had re-formed their opinion on the capital punish-
ment, and were willing to admit the error under
which they had laboured. Within the last few days
he had had a great deal of correspondence with
persons connected with banking establishments. He
had also a number of petitions to present—more
particularly one to which he would call the atten-
tion of the House, as it was from a part of the
country where the trade in paper was the chief
trade carried on; and he found, from these bankers
and merchants, that they were anxious to come for-
sward and entreat the Legislature to pause before
. .

, .
they enacted anew the punishment of death for for-
gery, because they viewed this mode of punish-
ment not only as no security, but directly the con-
trary. They regard it rather as a means for pre-
venting prosecution and punishment, and as tending
to the escape of persons who had been guilty of a
serious offence. They had not cane to this conclu-
sion from any abstract theories, or from any religious
motives, nor from any views of humanity, or any
impulse of feeling; but as practical men—as bankers
and traders —they stated that they considered the
present law as injurious to their interests. They
could have urged their disapprobation of the state
of the law on a variety of other grounds, but they
rather chose to rest it on practical grounds. Such
being the case, and as many petitions against this
measure might be expeced from many parts of the
country, he hoped the Right Hon Gentleman would
postpone this Bill a stage, in order to give the
public an opportunity of stating their sentiments to
the House.

Mr. PEEL did not anticipate any great discus-
sion at the second reading of the Bill, more parti-
cularly as any Member would have an opportunity,
in the Committee, of moving for a reduction of the
capital punishment in certain cases. In the Bill
which he had brought in he had added no new ca-
pital punishment, but had merely consolidated the
statute law of the land, omitt'ng those cases where
the capital punishment latterly had not been carried
into effect. From communications which he had
received on the subject, he had already consented
to postpone one stage of the Bill for a fortnight.
The Bill, however, might be read a second
that evening; and he saw no objection to delay
going into a Committee for that time, if the Hon.
Gentleman was convinced that it would be more con-
venient for those who were desirous to present peti-
tions against it, or to oppose it in the House.
Si: J. MACINTOSH on the understanding that
by assenting to the second reading Members should
not he pledged to the capital punishment, and that
they 'Mould have an opportunity of delivering their
opinions on the subject afterwards, would not op-
pose it.

Mr. BARING presented a petition from certain
licenced victuallers in Hertfordshire, against throw-
ing open the trade in beer.
Mr. C. PALLMER presented a petition from
Kingston against capital punishment for forgery,
Most persons, he said, engaged in trade, as well as
the bankers in the place, expressed a strong feeling
on the subject, and hoped that some measures
would be adopted by Parliament for mitigating the
present severity of the law.