The Sun.
London, England, 1862-03-19 00:00:00

I sN4PERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS-YESTERDAY.
Vie LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack

at five o'clock.
THE REVISED CODE.

Lord GAGE presented several petitions against the
Revised Code.

Lord CHELMSFORD presented petitions from Essex
and other places against the Revised Code.
The Bishop of ROCHESTER presented petitions from
places in his diocese to the same effect.
Lord REOESDALE presented several petitions from
Wiltp;hire and Gloucestershire.

T. he Bishop of CHICHESTER presented petitions
against the revised code,

The Marquis of BATH also presented similar petitions.
Petitions against the revised code were also presented by
lord Cranworth, Lord Wynford, the Marquis of Nor-
onanby, and several other peers.
Lord ST. LEONARDS gave notice that on a future
day he should call the attention of their lordships to the
system of examination proposed under the Revised Code.
Lord OVERSTONE, after presentin?; petitions, said he
hoped their lordships would continue to discuss the provi-
zions of the revised code for the purpose of improving it,
and so arrive at a result which would give general satis •
faction

'WRITS OF HABF,A.S CORPUS IN HER MA-
JESTY'S POSSESSIONS ABROAD.

The Duke of NEWCASTLE moved the second reading
of this bill whi'zh was the remedy for certain inconvenien-
ces that arose during the proceedings that took place in
connectio:a with the case of the fugitive slave Anderson.
The bill proposed that in any of her Majesty's possessions
where there was a court similar to that of the Court of
Queen's Bench in England, writs of habeas corpus should
not; be issued in this country.
After a few words from Lord CHELMSFORD and the
LORD CHANCELLOR, the bill was read a second time.
OFFICERS' COMMISSIONS BILL.
Earl DE GREY and RIPON moved the second reading
of this bill, Which was to relieve her Majesty of a great
deal of labour. The measure proposed to relieve
he-r Majesty from the trouble of affixing the royal
Sian manual to all commissions of officers of the
army, militia, and the volunteer force. The labour of sign-
ing these commissions had greatly increased of late ; and
in order to relieve the Crown from the purely formal pro-
ceeding, it proposed that, under certain regulations, all
commissions in future should br, signed by the Commander-.
in-Chief and the Secretary of State for War.
The Earl of DF.jtBY thought the bill was one that
should be looked, at carefully before it passed the house.
lie was aware of the unnecessary labour which was now
thrown or. the Crown, and therefore he did not offer the
slighteFA objection to the bill; but he would suggest to the
.noble earl that when the Secretary of State for War signed
the commissions, he should state that he did so in pur-
suance of her Majesty's sign manual.
Earl DE GREY said the suggestion of the noble earl
should be attended to. The bill was then read a second
time.

CONSOLIDATED FUND (X 18,000,000) BILL.
This bill was read a second time.
THE INSOLVENT COURT.
Lord CHELMSFORD rose to call the attention of the
house to the case of the clerks and officers of the late
Insolvent Court who had been transferred to the Court of
Bankruptcy under the Act passed in the last session of Par-
liament for amending the law relating to Bankruptcy and
Insolvency in England. Ile went into, at full length, the
negotiations which had passed between those clerks
and Mr. Roche on the part of the present Lord Chancellor
with respect to their claims for salaries, as also to the steps
taken by Mr. Commissioner Law to vindicate their [sup-
posed rights; he prodaced a copy of the Bankruptcy Bill
in its original shari, which had been in Mr. Rolt's hands
when the bill was before the House of Commons, and on
which that gentleman had written a note of the reply, which
the present Lord Chanceller, then in the House of Com-
mons, had given to a question of fact by Mr. Malins, that
the claims of these officials would be attended to. In
consequence of that answer Mr. Malins had been led to
abandon bringing forward the claims further; but yet the
law officer who then promised that their claims would be
'guarded now abandoned them to their fate. The noble
lord had secured the opinion of the law officers in his
favour; he had thrown aside altogether the intention
of giving them their full salaries ; he had tried; to
make them receive half their fees ; be had told them
that the House of Commons would refuse them compensa-
tion if they attempted by petition to obtain it ; and then ho
invited them afterwards to go by petition to the House of
Commons, and told them that the Government would have
a select committee appointed to inquire whether further
provisiran should be made. (Hear, hear.) Remember this,
that the Government was to select that committee. Con-
sequently, the Government would have a majority; and,
of course, with the best intentions, the members would feel
that they were bound by the decision of the law officers,
and the consequence would be a report of the committee
against the officers. There was one little incident which
formed the only bright spot in the whole affair, for when
the officers were apprehensive that if they received their
salaries they might prejudice their claim to further emolu-
ments, the noble and learned lord on the woolsack
said the fact of their receiving their salaries would not pre-
judice them. He asked whether it was not evident
to every honest and impartial mind that the officers
had originally an assurance that they should be
secured in the full payment of their salaries
and compensations; whether the clauses were not framed
with the view of giving them that benefit, and whether they
were not assured over and over again that the clauses were
amply Emfficie:at for the purpose ? Then, he asked, what
was the codelusion from the whole? Who had committed
this err.or ? Whose fault was it that the intentions had not
been carried out ? 'Was it not thelault of the Government,
and were they not bound without delay to introduce a de-
claratory Act to give these officers their rights, which had
been so long withheld from them, and to which they were
justly entitled? (Hear.)
The LORD CHANCELLOR said that, having regard
to his own position, he did not desire that the noble and
learned lord should have used any different tone or exhi-
bited any different manner from that in which he had con-
ducted this attack. It must be evident to all their lordships
that, if he pitied the clerks much, he hated the Lord Chan-
cellor more. (A. laugh.) He brought forward his attack,
not shrinking from charging the Lord Chancellor even with
falsehood—and this is the man with whom he had been for
the last several weeks in daily and confidential intercourse ;
and yet he had not in reference to this malignant assault
communicated even to the extent which would enable him
(the Lord Chancellor) to ascertain the facts, and to come
prepared with the correspondence in reference to this mat-
ter. Such was the nature of the attack which they had
heard, and their lordships could well recollect from what
had passed in that house on former occasions what was the
feeling that had been rankling and had given rise to this
assault. He would ask what motive ho could have for op-
pressing, or being an obstacle to these poor men being re-
munerated. All that he could possibly do for them it would
have been a pleasure and a satisfaction to him to do; and
whatever the noble and learned lord might think, it
would have given him satisfaction to have indulged
their utmost expectations. (Hear, hear.) Ho spoke
with sincerity and truth—and he cared not whether the
noble and learned gave him credit for it or not—
when he said that when he discovered the real circum-
stances it was a matter to him of most sincere and deep
regret. The noble and learned lord had intimated that he
(the Lord Chancellor) had sent assurances to the clerks
that their salaries would be fully paid. He did nothing of
the kind. Personal communication he had with none, save
with one gentleman who came to him on the part of the
provisional assignee, who was desirous that his salary
should be increased to the amount of his existing emolu-
ments. Ile, of course, felt a difficulty in acceding to that,
and the matter was brought before the House of Commons.
But it now appeared that, although it was true the clerks
were paid by salaries, yet they were in the habit of receiv-
ing fees, which were carried to a fund and afterwards
divided among thou, He desired to know, if that fact was
known to the noble and learned lords who acted on the
'earumittee, why they did not correct the expression in the
bill? They were assured by the then Lord Chancellor
that the words were sufficient. He had been desirous
securing to these officers a priority of claim upon
the MIA voted by Parliament, amounting to 0,000 and odd
l'el'e(l3. It must have been palpable, however, to every
person of ordinary understandine• and whose mind was in
a state to be free from anger and the inflammationo
mali-
cious feeling, that the sum of 19,000 and odd pounds,coi
never be matt;
'tT=deut of the moneys voted by Parliament.
The noble
learned lord had so represented the matter
to the house thatt
hatihmlebee'who listened to him must have
thought the return
barnowved for for the purpose of his
(the Lord Chancellor'
pared and laid on t)he,tlateleno_f P. the bill had been pre-
arliTi'ament before the return
was made. (Hear.
Order")—th., grit Perversion of the facts of
the case—("
the case of which this noble lord Version of the facts of
Leon gue
of Commons.
aty WU. in mis-
Ro
representing what took place in tne
us
(Cries of " Order." ) lleac tuall
l'eVreaented to their lord-
ships that he had undertakento alter the frame of
go. the bill
upon the report--
Lord CHELMSFORD—I beg pardon. I never
said
The LORD CHANCELLOR said he fortunately had
sent to him the notes of ;what took place as recorded in
6, gansard," and with reference to the 30th clause, which
related to the salaries of officers of the Insolvent Debtor.'
Court, he was simply reported to have expressed a hope
tbat the committee would allow the clause to pass in itspre-
sent shape, on the understanding that it should be open to
alterr.tion on the banging up
of the report. That the noble
lord had represented GS an engagement on the part of the
Attorney-General hi consider the matter, and to bring it
before the house again on the report. (Hear.) In the belief
that the fund available would be sufficient for all purposes,
and being desirous to secure a priority of claim on that
fund to those officers, the words were originally inserted
and, retained by him. The next insinuation that
as made Was, that the Lord Chancellor, in
dir"eling the'case to. be laid before the law officers, had
actuplig ta4ell Paitv to .prevent the clause in the act
being accurately stated, Did the noble lord not know