The Sun.
London, England, 1837-05-24 00:00:00

WAY.

Sir J. Y. BULLER, in moving the second reading of
this Bill, expressed a hope that the Hon. Baronet the 'Mem-
ber for Wigtonshire would not, after the strong opinion ex-
pressed by the House on a former measure with reference to
the prohibiting of travelling on railways on Sundays, think it
right to take the sense of the House as to the rejection
of a similar clause in the present Bill which had lact.en
inserted by the Committee.—( Hear, hear.) If he did,
he (Sir John Y. Buller) would feel himself compelled to vote
against it, as he was persuaded that a local Bill was not the
proper means to bring a question of such importance forward.
He (Sir J. Y. Buller) felt convinced that the adoption of such
a course 'would be detrimental to the measure brought forward
by the Hon. Baronet. When that measure again came before
the (louse, he (Sir J. Y. Buller) would do all in his power to
support it; but on the present occasion, if the Hon. Baronet
persisted in retaining the clause, he should feel himself com-
pelled to vote against it.
Dr. BO WRING wished distinctly to know from the Hon.
Baronet whether it was his intention to abandon or insist on

the clause
Sir ANDREW AGNEW said that it was his determina-
tion to divide the House on the subject.
Dr. BO WRING said that such being the case, he felt it his
duty to move that the clause be omitted. He was in hopes after
the strong opinion which had been expressed by the House,
the Hon. Baronet would not have considered it necessary to
waste its time by discussing the propriety of the clause, or have
rendered it necessary for him to take the course he was now
adopting. If on a former occasion the retention of the clause
was to be considered a grievance, that grievance was consider-
ably increased iu the present instance. So far from railroads
tending to the desecration of the Sabbath, they were the means
of enabling many persons who had hitherto not attended
Divine worship to do so. The Railway between Ardrossan
arid Saltcoats had tended materially to effect so desirable an
object. On the whole, be trusted the House would reject
the clause.
Sir R. BATES° N supported the retention of the clause.
Mr. AG LIONBY said the arguments and illustrations of
the Hon. Baronet were the best to show that the clause was
unnecessary.—(Hear hear.) If the good feeling of
the people of Liverpool and Manchester prevented the
ear-lieges from running during Divine Service, surely they
might expect that the good feeling of a people much morn
religious and strict would work in a similar way.—( Cheers.)
There was already a Bill on the general question be-
fore the House. Let the question be settled by it.—
( Cheers.) It was unseemly to attempt to introduce the
clause in every particular Bill where he had the good fortune
to get the Committee to go along with him.—( Cheers.)
Sir R. PEEL said legislation upon this subject ought to
depend upon some general and fixed principle.—( Loud cheers. )
If it was right to put an end to all Sunday travelling upon
dui oaus, let the House make it a fixed rule, and let it be in-
troduced into every Bill.—( Cheers.) He did not think that
it would tend to encourage piety if the people found that on one
railroad they were allowed to travel, while on another probably in
in the same county they were stopped. He gave no opinion
upon the general question—he merely said that there ought to
be some specific enactment applicable to all. He would not
then discuss the main question, but, in his opinion it would
tend to no good if the question which was decided in the ne-
gative a few nights ago, were now by a chance majority carried
in the affirmative. If the Common Law in Scotland prevented
travelling on Sunday, where was the use of any special enact-
ment which could only tend to weaken the effect of the Com-
mon Law ? He wished the Sabbath to be better observed, but
lie would prefer that it should be done by the religious feeling
of the people.—( Loud cheers.) He deprecated the daily dis-
cussion on this subject and trusted that an early opportunity
would be taken of setting the question at rest.
Sir ANDREW AGNEW was sorry that the Right Hon.
Baronet had not been in his place a little earlier, as he would
then have heard the Clerk at the table read the petition, pray-
ing for this clause from the General Assembly of the Church of
Scotland. In that Assembly there were many Scotch lawyers,
who must necessarily be well acquainted with the Common Law
of that country, yet they petitioned for this special enactment.
He could assure his Majesty's Ministers and the House, that
this was a question that was not to be put down by authority.
There was one universal wish throughout the country that
railroad travelling on a Sunday should be put a stop to. He
had no general Bill before the House that had reference to
Scotland, but the people of Scotland were against Sunday
travelling. He was sorry that the Right Hon. Baronet, the
Member for Tamworth, did not support the view he (Sir
Andrew) took of this subject.
Mr.. A. TREVOR rose amidst loud .cries of " Oh, oh,"
and " Divide, divide." He could assure the Hon. Gentlemen
who amused themselves by crying " Oh, oh," that he
was determined to proceed.—( Hear, hear, and laughter.)
He thought it. would be better for the Hon. Baronet to
withdraw his present motion, and move for leave to bring
in a Bill for the doing away with travelling on Sunday,
so that the House might come to a decision on the subject.
Although he was free to confess that the Hon. Baronet went
further on Sabbath legislation than he was prepared to accom-
pany him—(Cries of " oh, oh," and laughter)—at the same
time he was disposed to give him credit for the conscientious-
oess of his motives. He respected the Hon. Baronet's mo-
tives, but he carried the feelings by which he was actuated too
far.—(Oh, oh, and a laugh.) lie regretted he did so, because
by so doing he defeated his own ends.—( Hear, hear, hear.)
He therefore trusted the Hon. Baronet would withdraw this
motion, nod give notice of a Bill, because he (Me. Trevor).
should be extremely sorry to record his vote in company with
Hon. Gentlemen opposite—(Great laughter)—who he could
not help saying, in manner very little befitting their high sta-
tion, derided most unjustly—and if the word were not unpar-
liamentary, he would add indecorously--measures that were
brought forward with good intentions.—( Hear, hear, and great
laughter.) In conclusion he trusted the Hon. Baronet would
see the necessity of withdrawing the clause.
Major CUMMING BRUCE thought tile Hon. Baronet
had been unfairly treated with regard to this clause. It had
been stated that it was the intention to involve a general dis-
cussion on the subject of Sunday legislation by the introduction
of the clause. Such was not the ease : the only obj:ct was to
place railroads on the same footing as other conveyances. lie
trusted that the Hon. Baronet •would withdraw the clause.
If he divided the House upon the subject, he should feel com-
pelled to vote with him ; but he thought that ke would best
promote the object he had in view if he would not press the
clause further.
Sir GEO. CLERK joined in the request of the two Hon.
Members who had preceded him, to the HQn. Member for

Wigton not to press the clause.
Sir A. AGNEW said that his Hon. Friend had offered him
a premium if he would not press the clause, viz., that of intro-
ducing a Bill to prevent the travelling upon all railroads on
Sunday. That temptation was too great for him to resist.
In withdrawing the clause he trusted the people of Scotland
would not consider that he had deserted their cause. He begged
to give notice that he should on an early day move for leave
to bring in a Bill to prevent travelling upon all the Railroads
in Scotland on a Sunday.
Mr. R. STEUART wished to be distinctly understood
that they, on that side of the House, in requesting
the honourable Baronet to withdraw the clause, had not
bound themselves to support a BM to prevent travelling
upon all railroads on a Sunday. The Hon. Baronet opposite
had stated that it was his wish that the religious feelings of
the people shOuld be respected. Li his ( Mr. e;teuart'e) opinion,
the course the Hon. Baronet had adopted had done more to
injure truly religious feelings, than the travelling on any rail-
road on Sunday.—(Cheers.)
Sir R. PEEL said that in advising the omission of the
clause, he bad not given any promise to support a Bill for the
prevention of travelling on Railroads on the Sabbath.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUEItfeIt bound,
not for the convenience of himself, or his colleagues, but
for the zccommcdatiou of the House, to request that
Hon. Members who had motions to night, would allow them
to be postponed, in order that the discussion on the Church-
rate question might be proceeded with. The first motion was
that of the Hon. Member for Dundalk, end he would put it to
him whether it would not be more convenient for him to post.
pone that motion titan to proceed with it, to the detriment
of the discussion upon the question of Church-rates.
They would have to propose a vote in a Committee of Supply