The Sun.
London, England, 1837-03-17 00:00:00

CANADA.

The Earl of RIPON, having noticed the state of
Canada, wished to know if it was the intention of Go-
vernment to proceed with reference to the affairs of that
colony by way of Resolution simply ; or to invite
the consideration of their Lordships to any specific legislative
enactment that might be sent sent up from the other House of
Parliament. Since that period there bad been documents
laid upon the table of the House, and it also appeared from
the votes of the other House of Parliament, that certain Re-
solutions had been submitted to that branch of the Legisla-
lature, which resolutions he (Lord Ripon) presumed were
to be taken as explanatory of the views taken by his Majesty's
Ministers, or as the foundation of some measure which it was
intended to submit to Parliament on the subject. The ques-
tion, therefore, which he wishe4l to ask his Noble Friend was,
what was the mode in which it was the intention of his Ma-
jesty's Government to bring that subject before the House of
Lords ? And whether they intended to introduce it into
their Lordships' House by way of Resolutions, or was it to be
considered when a specific measure, founded thereon, might be
sent up from the other House of Parliament ? He should be sorry
to say anything calculated to embarrassthe Government or Par-
liament on the subject; but having himself had something to
do with the relations between this country
,and the province
of Canada, he felt some anxiety to know the course which his
Nlajest)'s Government intended to adopt. It was obvious
that there were two courses which might be followed—
either that the House of Commons, if it concurred in the reso-
lutions now before it, should send them up to this House, and,
wish their Lordships to assent to them, or that, having agreed
to the resolutions, it should proceed to pass a Bill, and send
that Bill up to this House in the usual way. Prima
,facie it
appeared to him that there would be considerable advantage in
adopting the first alternative, because, looking to the way in
which this proceeding might affect an independent Legislature
in one of our Colonies, and the solemn mode in which the
attention of Parliament had been called to the subject, it would
seem to be correct and judicious to proceed in a way calculated
to secure the acquiescence of those int:Te..ted in the subject on
the other side of the Atlantic, in a series cf resolutions having
the sanction of both branches of the Legislature. At the same
time he felt that that course was not free from difficulty, be-
cause if the resolutions of the House of Commons should be—
which, however, he hoped they would not—such as this House
would not agree to, and such as it would only adopt with im-
portant amendments, the whole advantage to be expected from
that course of proceeding, so far as regarded the purpose of
influencing the judgment of the Legislature of Lower Canada,
would be lost. He had no difficulty in conceiving that many
persons might be prepared to vote for a specific measure who
would not assent to a previous.declaration of principle, in which
they might not concur. He wished to ask, therefore, whether
his Majesty's Government had made up their minds as to the
course they would pursue ; but if his Noble Friend thought
that the slightest disadvantage or inconvenience would arise
from answering his question, he begged he would riszt reply to
it. So much then for the question he had to put. He should
now proceed to the motion of which he had given notice. The
information for which he intended to move was, an account of
the expenses of the Commission which had been sent to Lower
Canada. He sought this information upon general and upon
special grounds ; general, because it was obvious that the ex-
pense had a considerable tendency to increase. Amongst the
various productions which were springing up in these days in
the profusion of the political soil, nothing was so remarkable
as the luxuriant crop of Commissions, and he thought a mo-
derate degree of vigilance in watching the growth of that
species of production would not be misplaced, because other-
wise it might be found that the crop of Commissions hadgrown
into a crop of evils. The special grounds upon which he
moved for this information was, that he entertained considerable
doubts as to the necessity of appointing that Commission at
all, and had also doubts as to the propriety of the mode in
which it was composed. He was sure there was no lack of in-
formation on the whole subject in the office over which his
Noble Friend presided, and of which it had been his (Lord
Ripon's) lot to have the charge. There was a gentleman who
was a sort of quad representative of Lower Canada, M. Vigie,
and certainly the voluminous documents which that gentleman
had supplied to the Colonial-office, showed that no man could
work harder for the salary of 1,3001. a year, which the As-
sembly of Lower Canada was so obliging as to pay him. There
was also, in this country, many persons who were never back-
ward in laying their opinions before the Government ; but,
above all, there was an individual to whom his Noble Friend
could never have applied in vain for the mnst accurate and
precise information that could possibly be drawn from any
source—he meant Sir James Kempt, who had presided as
Governor in the colony, and bad shown himself as competent
to guide the Civil Government in the Council Chamber, as to
guide his Majesty's troops in the field. He (Lord Ripon) was
at a loss to account for one anomaly in the constitution of the
Commission, and that was the combination in one person of
the offices of Commissioner to inquire, and of Governor to
administer. He bad foreseen that this would place the Go-
vernor in an awkward position, and the result of the Commis-
sion showed that his doubts were unfounded.

Lord GLENELG entirely agreed with his Noble Friend
as to the importance of this subject, and he most readily ad-
mitted that the observations which his Noble Friend had made
could come with greater propriety from no Noble Lord than
from him. He might also observe, that the knowledge which
his Noble Friend possessed of the position and interests of
Canada, the weight to which his opinions were entitled on
such subjects, and no less the candid and friendly manner in
which his Noble Friend had brought the matter forward,
would naturally induce him ( Lard Glenelg) to receive with
the utmost respect any thing that he said. With respect to
the question put by his Noble Friend, he (Lord Glenelg) was
nct insensible of some of the difficulties to which he alluded ;
but he could state that the course intended to be pursued was
that first alluded to by his Noble Friend. There were, as he
stated, resolutions now before the House of Commons expla-
natory of the general views of his Majesty's Government, and
preparatory to further measures. Some of those resolutions
had been already passed, and he hoped the others would be
likewise agreed to ; in which case he believed the resolutions
would be communicated to their Lordships' House. With
regard to the expenses of the Commission, he saw no objec-
tion to the production of the accounts called for by his No-
ble Friend, and should cordially accede to it. His Noble
Friend had said that he did not wish to raise any discussion on
the subject. He had, however, made some observations rela-
tive to the composition of the Commission. His Noble Friend
would not suppose that he (Lord Glenelg) was wanting in the
respect due to his observations, if he thought it better to avoid
any discussion until the subject was regularly before the House,
and therefore declined entering upon his Noble Friend's ar-
guments. He was only desirous that the subject should be
fully before their Lordships, and he would then endeavour to
sntisfy his Noble Friend both of the necessity of the Commis-
sion and that its composition would be defended on grounds
that would fully exculpate the Government.
The Earl of ABE RD E EN observed that although some of
the resolutions has been agreed to in the House of Commons,
the consideration of the others had been adjourned until the
evidence taken before the Committee of 1834 should be ob-
tained. The Government had thus placed themselves in an
awkward predicament, for they had virtually acknowledged
that they had proposed those resolutions on defective evidence.
As he understood that evidence was now before the House
of Commons, he would suggest to the Noble Lord that, lest
their Lordship's deliberations should be suspended in the
midst by a motion for additional information, it might be as
well to send a message to the House of Commons, requesting
it to communicate that evidence to their Lordships.
Lord G LE NE L G said he was prepared to prove that the
information already before Parliament was sufficient to justify
the resolutions without the evidence alluded to ; but as some
Members thought that evidence ought to be before the House,
it was not for the Government to withhold anything that would
tend to the elucidation of the subject. He had no objection
to the message suggested by the Noble Earl.
After a few words from Lord BROUGHAM, the mot:,..n
was agreed to.
Lord REDESDALE presented a petition against the abo-

lition of Church-rates, from the parish of Gillingham, in
Norfolk. _

MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS ACT.

The Municipal Corporations Act Amendment Bill went
through Committee, and the Report was Ordered to be re-
ceived on the Friday after Easter.
Their Lordships then adjourned.