The Sun.
London, England, 1862-06-25 00:00:00

THIRD READINGS.

The following bills were read a third time and passed :
Vale of Clwyd Railway ; Burton-upon-Trent Railway;
Hereford Hay and Brecon Railway ; South-Eastern Rail-
way (Tunbridge and Dartford) ; Lancashire and Yorkshire
Railway ; Oldham, Ashton, and Guide Bridge Junction
Railway; Bridge of Weir Railway; Bala and Dolgelly
Railway ; Corwen and Bala Railway ; and Manchester)
Sheffield, and LincOlnshire Railway.
NEW ZEALAND BILL.

The Duke of NEWCASTLE moved the second reading
of this bill, the object of which was to clear up all doubts
relating to the powers of the New Zealand Legislature. He
had intimated to the colonial Government the desirability of
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Central Legislature, but this was a matter in which the
Imperial Legislature could not interfere, as it had handed
over the administration of its affairs to the colony.
Earl GREY said it was understood, when the constitu-
tion was granted to New Zealand, that it should provide
for the cost of its own Government. There was now in the
colony a military force of several thousand men at the ex-
pense of the mother country,who,if she was responsible, ought
for her own protection to have control over
the affairs of the colony. He did not desire
the withdrawal of the Imperial protection, but
he did object to a vote of such a meagre description as the
present.
After a short discussion, in which the Earl of Desert,
Lord Taunton, and Lord Lyvedon took part,
The Duke of NEWCASTLE said he would give the
noble lord (Lyvedon) as many of the papers relative
to New Zealand as would, under the present circumstances,
be safe for the public service, and with respect to the
observations of the noble earl (Grey), he begged
to remind them that the present measure was
ene merely to remedy certain local defects, and not one for
an alteration of the constitution of New Zealand.
The bill was read a second time.
PUPLIC HOUSES (SCOTLAND) BILL.
On the report of the amendments to the Public Houses
(Scotland) Act Amendment Bill being brought np,
The Earl of MINTO moved that the bill be re-com-
mitted to a committee of the whole house.
NEW ZEALAND BILL. _

The Duke of NEWCASTLE moved the second reading
of this Bill, and stated that the object of the measure was
to correct certain mistakes committed by the General As-
sembly of the colony in regard to the New Provinces Act.
The Bill before the house gave increased power to the
Governor at the expense of the superintendents of pro-
vinces.
Earl GREY thought that Great Britain, who maintained
a large force at her own expense for the protection of New
Zealand, ought to have a more effective control over the
causes which made such an outlay imperative. He agreed
with the Duke of Newcastle that the system of elective
superintendents was mischievous.
The Duke of RICHMOND moved that two persons
named Isaacs and Preston be ordered to attend at the bar
of the house for having obtaining signatures to a railway
petition by false pretences, and for having, when examined
before the Select Committee, left little doubt on the minds
of the Committee that neither of them were speaking the
truth.

The motion was agreed to.
The house adjourned at ten minutes to eight o'clock.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.—YESTERDAY.
The SPEAKER took the chair at 20 minutes past 12.
POLICE AND IMPROVEMENT (SCOTLAND)

BILL.

The house went into committee on this bill.
Clauses to 14 were agreed to.

On clause 15,
Sir M. STEWART said he believed and hoped the bill
now before Parliament would never pass into law. He
would have opposed the bill going into committee, but he
thought he should have had no chance of success. Many of
the provisions of the bill were monsi roue and thoroughly non-
sensical. His objection to the bill was that it tied proprietors
of land and occupiers in towns hand and foot, and placed
them at the mercy of a body of commissioners and magi-
strates. The only safeguard was that the commissioners
might have the good sense to throw away 200 or 300 of the
clauses, and to look for one here or there that might work.
He did not believe that Scotch members generally had read
the bill.
The LORD ADVOCATE said he could only account for
the strong language used by the hon. baronet by the fact
that he himself had not read the bill. He believed the bill
was regarded in Scotland as one of the most important sani-
tary measures ever introduced. If there were nonsensical
clauses in the bill he wished the hon. baronet had pointed
them out to him. He thought the bill was exceedingly
well drawn up, and that it would work well. The difference
between it and Lord Rutherfurd's bill was that Lord
Rutherfurd's bill could only have been worked as a whole,
whereas this bill might be adopted in parts.
Clauses up to 83 were agreed to.
On clause 84, _ _ _

Mr. BLACK proposed to add "provided further, when
in any burgh, under the provisions of any Police Act, a
higher rate of assessment is now and has been in use to be
levied upon lands and tenements above a certain fixed rent
than upon lower rented lands and tenements, it shall be in
the power of the commissioners, in laying on the assess—
ment under this Act, to continue the same relative rates of
assessment, if they think proper.
The amendment was negatived and the clause was
agreed to.
On clause 88,

Mr. C. EWING proposed as an amendment after the
word "may," to insert " if they think fit, exempt from the
police assessment under this act all premises which shall
be let at a rent not exceeding £3, or such lower sum as they
may think fit for that purpose, and that in respect to pre-
mises let at any higher rent, they may also."
The committee divided—
For the amendment......
Against it
Majority —4B
The amendment was lost and the clause was agreed to.
Clauses to 177 were agreed to.
On the motion of Sir M. STEWART, clause 178 was
struck out.
The remaining clauses of the bill, making 466 in all, were
then agreed to with some amendments.
Sir J. FERGUSSON brought up a new clause giving the
Commissioners of Supply power to petition the sheriff for
extension of boundaries, so as to be co-extensive with the
burgh boundaries.
The LORD ADVOCATE opposed the clause.
The committee divided—
For the clause
Against it 4l
Majority..
The clause was therefore lost.
The bill then passed through committee, and the sitting
was suspended at 10 minutes to 4.

At 6 o'clock the house resumed,
CONDUCT OF PRIVATE BUSINESS.'

Mr. R. HODGSON asked the chairman of the commit-
tee on standing orders whether he intended to move for the
appointment of a committtee for the purpose of ascertain-
ing whether any alteration could be made in the conduct of
private business, so as to diminish the expense now in-
curred by promoters and opponents of private bills.
Col. VT. PATIEN replied that on Thursday next he
would move: for a committee to inquire into the ex-
pediency of revising the standing orders, and he would
submit to that committee a proposal for the reducticn of
certain fees now paid in connection with the private legis-
lation of the house.