The Sun.
London, England, 1865-03-04 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT

HOUSE OF LORDS-LAST E VEXING.
ROYAL COMMISSION.

The royal assent was given this afternoon to the Civil
Bill Courts Procedure (Ireland) Act (1864) Amendment

The Lords Commissioners were the Lord Chancellor,
Viscount Bury, and the Duke of Argyll.
Their lordship adjourned during pleasure.
The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack at
the usual hour.

Lord CHELMSFORD presented a petition from Mr
John Bagwell, a creditor to the extent of £25,000 on two
Irish railway companies, complaining of injuries he had
received from the operation of certain clauses in the Bank-
ruptcy Act.
The LORD CHANCELLOR said he would give the
matter his most serious consideration.

GAME LICENSES (IRELAND) BILL.
This bill, on the motion of Earl ST. GERMANS, was
read a second time.
COUNTY COURTS EQUITABLE JURISDICTION

BILL.
The LORD CHANCELLOR moved the second reading
of this bill.
Lord ST. LEONARDS expressed his opinion that the
County Court Judges were' not competent to give decisions
in equity, as they were simply common law lawyers ;
moreover they had not the machinery at their disposal to
give equitable decisions. He objected to the bill because
it proposed to give too much power to the County Court
Judges, and also that by one of its provisions a sum exceed-
ing a million and a half of money would be taken from the
suitors' free fund. This fund, he contended, belonged to
the suitors in the Court of Chancery generally, and it
seemed to him highly objectionable that any portion of the
fund should be devoted to other than the purpose for which
it was intended.

Lord CRANWORTH declared himself favourable to the
principle of the bill, but was of opinion that the measure
would require considerable modification in committee.

Lord CHELMSFORD thought the object of the bill a
desirable one, but feared there would be great difficulty in
carrying it out.

The LORD CHANCELLOR said he was not astonished
at the opposition of Lord St. Leonards, which, he believed,
arose from a wish to amend, and not to destroy, the bill ;
but he was not at all afraid that the county court judges
would not prove themselves fit to discharge the equitable
functions proposed to be imposed upon them. These duties
would be very simple, and required little more than good
sense and a knowledge of the general principles of law.
The noble and learned lord referred to several returns of
the costs of suits in Chancery for trifling amounts, and
which showed that the expense was so great as to be tanta-
mount to a denial of justice ; thus fully establishing the
necessity for this measure.
The bill was read a second time, and their lordships ad-
journed.

HOUSE OF COMMONS-LAST EVENING.
The SPEAKER took the chair at four o'clock.
ROYAL COMMISSION.

- _
Colonel CLIFFORD, the Yeoman Usher of the Black
Rod, summoned the members of the Upper House to hear
the Royal assent given by commission to the Civil Bill
(Ireland) Procedure Act (1864) Amendment Act.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.

On the motion of Mr. C. FORSTER the following bills
were withdrawn :—Huddersfield and Halifax Railway,
Tredegar, Sirhowy, &c., Water, West Kent Railway, and
Devon and Somerset Railway (Extensions).