The Sun.
London, England, 1854-07-19 00:00:00

FINCHLEY ROAD BILL.

On the motion of Lord REDESDALE this bill was read
a third time and passed.
ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH COMPANY.

On the order of the day for the third reading of this
bill,

Lord BEAUMONT said the house could not refuse
the limited liability of this company, which had been
given to all canals, viaducts, acqueducts, railways, and
other great public undertakings. He moved to have a
clause to that effect reinserted.

Lord REDESDALE hoped they would allow the
bill to pass in its present shape, as the standing orders
had been fully complied with. (Hear, hear.) He was
himself favourable to granting limited liability to this
company, though there were four or five other telegraph
companies besides this one, to which Parliament had
refused limited liability. If this clause were inserted, it
would give to this company a year's start before all the
of ALDERLEY said he othLeorrcdomspTaAnsie.
STANLEY
under-
stood this company came under the category of those
to which the house had agreed to grant limited liability.
The clause was then added to the bill, which was then
read a third time and passed.
Lord BROUGHAM rose to move the third reading of
this bill, and was
ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS BILL.
This bill was read a third time and passed.
COURT OF CHANCERY BILL.
The LORD CHANCELLOR in moving the second
reading of this bill, said he had introduced it in con-
nexion with his noble and learned friend Lord St.
Leonards, who was then absent, and it had reference to
causes still pending in the offices of the Masters in Chan-
cery. It was stated in a recent debate that there still
remained in the offices of the five remaining Masters no
less than 893 causes. This appeared a startling fact ;
and in order that the public might be aware of the real
state of the case, he wished to say that he had since
ascertained that, though there were still 893 causes, yet
within the two years, or one year and three quarters
which had elapsed since the passing of the act of Parlia-
ment which abolished the office of the Masters, these
gentlemen had finally disposed of no less than 1,053
causes. They had, in fact, got through more than half
of the arrears ; and he had reason to believe that they
were proceeding as rapidly as possible with the re-
mainder. The object of this bill was to give them cer-
tain facilities for the discharge of their duties whichthey
did not at present possess.
After a few words from Lord BROUGHAM, the bill
was read a second time.

MERCHANT SHIPPING ACTS REPEAL BILL.
This bill was also read a second time.
The Portland, &c. Chapels Bill passed through com-
mittee. The following bills were read a second time :
—Highway Rates Bill ; Saving Banks Bill ; Turnpike
Trusts Arrangements Bill; General Board of Health
Bill.

TOWNS IMPROVEMENT (IRELAND) BILL.
Earl GRANVILLE having moved the second read-
ing of this bill,
The Earl of DONOUGHMORE moved as an amend-
ment, that it be read a second time that day three months,
He objected to the bill, first, on account of its form ; and,
secondly, on account of its details. As regarded the form,
the learned gentleman by whom it was drawn, had taken
the whole machinery of it from the Lands Clauses Con-
solidation Acts. The bill as it then stood, might be
adopted in no less than 237 towns and villages in Ire-
land, and the whole of its complicated machinery would
have to be administered by little shopkeepers, who were
for the most part utterly ignorant of the law, and who,
even if they had some general notions of legal matters,
would be quite confounded by the references to other
acts. The commissioners who were to carry out the bill
might be persons who occupied a house of the value of
only 121. a year ; and it was a strange anomaly that
while persons who were to vote on the question, whe-
ther or not the act should be applied, must be rated at
81. a year, the qualification to vote in the election of the
commissioners was only 41. Thirteen towns had peti-
tioned for the bill, and he had no objection to the pass-
ing of such a measure in reference to them. There was
no urgent necessity for the measure. It was crude, in-
efficient, and did not bear on the face of it what it pur-
ported to be. He begged therefore to move that it be
postponed till that day three months.
Earl GRANVILLE considered that no reason had
been urged for postponing the bill. He admitted there
was an apparent inconsistency in the qualifications of
the two classes of electors, but if the noble lord wished
he would not object to uniformity by reducing the quali-
fication to a rate of 41. With regard to the invasion of
the Queen's prerogative, when the Queen gave her as-
sent to the bill that objection would not apply.
The Earl of DESART said that some of the clauses
of the bill were arbitrary, tyrannical, and inexpedient,
and as an Irishman he must protest against a measure
which was an invasion of the liberties of Irishmen.
The Earl of CLANCARTY said that it was most de-
sirable to improve and extend the provisions of the exist-
ing law- but the qualification required of the electors
by WA bill wax too low. There were fdeveral other ob.