The Sun.
London, England, 1862-05-24 00:00:00

CHURCH RATES.

Mr. S. ESTCOURT gave notice that he would make a
motion to the effect that steps should be adopted to settle
the disputed' question of church rates. (Hear, hear, and
laughter).
SUPPORT OF PAUPER LUNATICS IN DUBLIN.
Sir E. GROGAN asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if
he had received a statement from the Lord Mayor and Muni-
cipal Council of Dublin, on Sept. 29, 1861, praying that the
citizens of Dublin might be relieved from the support of
lunatics not belonging to the Dublin district, and that addi-
tional governors for the Richmond Lunatic Asylum might
be selected from the Municipal Council ?
Sir R. PEEL said that he had received some communi-
cation on the subject in question, but he did not consider
that there were any circumstances in the case of Dublin
district that required such exceptional regulations as those
suggested by the hon. member.
MR. JUSTICE BOOTHBY.
- -

Mr. CHILDERS asked the Under Secretary of State for
the Colonies what action her Majesty's Government had
taken in regard to the petitions from both houses of Parlia-
ment in South Australia, praying her Majesty to
remove Mr. Justice Boothby from the bench of
South Australia ; and whether there would be
any objection to produce the correspondence between Go-
vernor M'Donnell and the Duke of Newcastle, on the sub-
ject of those petitions ?
Mr. C. FORTESCUE said that his noble friend at the
head of the foreign department had received papers on the
subjecf, and that a selection of these documents would be
made and presented to thelouse.
DISTRESS IN IRELAND,
Mr. MAGUIRE drew the attention of the house to the
distress prevailing in the south-west of Ireland. He said
that cases of the most harrowing description occurred in
the district to which he referred. (The hon. member then
cited several cases of distress in Skibbereen and other parts of
the south-west of Ireland, and inferred from them a general
statement as to the destitution of the district in question.
Sir R. PEEL said that the Government had adopted all
the means in their power to ascertain the actual state of
the south-west of Ireland, and from the result of that in-
quiry they were satisfied that the statements of the hon,
member (Mr. Maguire) were very much exaggerated. There
was much exaggeration in reference to Irish matters.
He thought the house should place more reliance on the
information obtained by Government than any obtained by
agents for newspapers, upon Which the hon. member (Mr.
Maguire) relied in the statement he had made to the house.
He repeated that he much regretted the distress that pre-
vailed in the south-west of Ireland, but he was happy
to inform the house that in that part of Ireland the green
and cereal crops were in a very prosperous condition. He
did not deny that distress existed in Ireland, but he con-
tended that, contrasting the state of the country some
years ago with its present state, there was an im-
provement. He strongly deprecated placing implicit
reliance on the reports in Irish newspapers as to the condi-
tion of Ireland, as they were generally too highly coloured
and founded on inaccurate information.
PUNISHMENT IN CASES OF PERSONAL
VIOLENCE.

Sir M. PETO called the attention of the house to this
subject. He said that the punishments inflicted by magis-
trates for this class of offences were most capricious. In
some cases they were deservedly severe, and in others they
were strangely light. Looking at the importance of the
subject he thought it was a matter that should be taken up
by the Government.
Sir G. GREY said that the law necessarily placed con-
siderable discretion in the hands of the magistrates, and he
did not think that, in reference to the general question
involved, it was necessary to go into the particular cases
cited by the hon. baronet (Sir M. Pete).
EXPENDITURE ON NATIONAL DEFENCES.
Sir It. CLIFTON drew the attention of the house to the
immense expenditure for national defences in time of peace,
and moved for papers respecting the armaments of France.
would LouIrdPALMERSTON said that no thinking person
for a moment suppose that, in the present state of
the continent of Europe, this country should be deficient in
military and naval preparations. He denied that he had
exaggerated the forces of the Emperor of the French; but
while he had no objection to produce extracts from French
official documents, he could not undertake to communicate
confidential reports to the house.
LONGFORD ELECTION
Cul. GRE VILLE called attentiontothe.withdrawal of
the Longford election petition, and to the
statement made
by Sir R. Peel some weeks ago to the effect that thatelection
presented a scene of violence and intimidation
fied the Government in employing a considerable
which
military and police. He himself was present on the
mtore
eojdouycsetaei--f
sion, and never saw an election conducted in
orderly manner—and he called upon the Chief Secretary
either to substantiate the charge or admit that he wase
taken. The hon. member then moved for papers relating
to the Proceedings in Longford at the last election.
-
Sir It. PEEL observed that the statement he had made
was founded upon the information which had then reached
him, and which he believed, and several members of the
house blew, to be founded on fact. He had been informed
that but for the intimidation resorted to on the occasion
Colonel White would have been returned by a majority of
30 ). In one instance, 25 of Colonel White's supporters
assembled at a place called Arvagh, the night before the
election, where they were attacked by a mob of 600 persons,
headed by a priest, and all but two were prevented from re-
cording their votes. It was true the petition had been with-
drawn ; but he was of opinion that if it had been prosecuted
the case would have been made out to satisfy the require-
ments of the act of Parliament. He declined to produce the
correspondence.
Lord R. CECIL considered that the character and dignity
of the house were involved in the question. He thought
that when a Minister of the Crown from his place in Par-
liament made charges affecting any portion cf her Majesty's
subjects, he was bound to substantiate his assertions when
they were denied, by r roducing the documentary evidence
on which his statements rested.
Mr. NEWDEGATE did not see what the electors of
Longford had to complain of; inasmuch es, but for the
I:hreactantiona taken by the Government, it was not quite clear
would have had a free election. If the executive
had nth:adoptcd these precautions they would have been
inexcusable.
After some observations from Major O'REILLY,
Mr. CONOLLY denounced the motion as a muck run by
a certain section of the Irish members against the Chief
Secretary.
Sir G. GREY defended the of the Government
to withhold the papers, u were
confidential.
In the course of the diseussionb.i ellohlialiociel rowed, Mr. Mon-
son, Mr. Lefroy, and Lord C.-Hatniltend
d the house.
Lord PALMERSTON said it was hisresBefirra conviction
the
that great violence and intimidation had prevailed
at
late Longford election, though perhaps not more than at
many other elections which he could name, It would be