The Sun.
London, England, 1854-02-08 00:00:00

NEW BILLS.

The Irish Fisheries' Bill, the Registration of Medical
Practitioners' Bill, and the Coasting Trade Bill were
brought in and read a first time.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.

The following bills were read a second time, and
ordered to be committed :—Amboaga.te, Nottingham,
and Boston, and Eastern Junction. Railway (Amend-
ment of Acts, &c.) ; Ambergate, Nottingham, and
Boston, and Eastern Junction Rail way (Extension into
Nottingham, &c.); Ambergate, Nottingham, and Bos-
ton, and Eastern Junction Railway (Working Arrange-
ments with Great Northern Railway) ; Birkenhead
Dock Company ; Brighton, Cuckfield, &c. Roads ;
Chesterfield Market ; Darlingt,on and Barnard
Castle Railway ; Glasgow Waterworks ; Harrow
Waterworks ; Havering, Dagenham, &c. Sewers ;
Imperial Gas Company ; Kingswood Roads ;
Kirby Lonsdale, Kendal, and Milo thorpe Road ; Lan-
cashire and Yorkshire, East Lancashire, and Man-
chester and Southport Railway Companies ; Madras
Railway Company ; North and South Western Junc-
tion Railway ; North Metropolinan Railway ; North
Yorkshire and Cleveland Railway ; Port Gordon Har-
bour; Shipley Waterworks ; South Staffordshire Rail-
way ; Stockton and Darlington Railway ; Sydenham
and Farnborough Railway ; Thames Improvement ;
Wadsley and Langset Road ; Waveney Valley Drainage ;
Wellington Docks (Southwark) ; Whittle Dean Water-
works ; Bowling Waterworks ; Bradford Waterworks.
•- METROPOLITAN (DEPTFORD PUMPING
STATIONS) SEWERS.

On the motion for the second reading of this bill,
Mr. WILLIAMS objected to the second reading, as
the existing Commissioners of Sewers, who were the pro-
moters of the bill, had not the confidence of the rate-
payers, while the Secretary of State for the Home De-
partment had already announced his intention to
bring in a general measure for reorganising the board
upon a new principle. The object of this bill
was to authorise the construction of a main
sewer from Battersea Fields to Deptford Creek,
at a cost of 700,0001., but the house should be
told that some time ago a much better scheme was
proposed and approved of by the most eminent en-
gineers of the day, for constructing a sewer from
Vauxhall to Woolwich marshes, at a cost of only
241,0001., which had been abandoned through the
Opposition of the existing commission. Under these
Circumstances he should move that the second
reading be postponed until this day week with the
view of ascertaining whether the Government were pre•
pared to give a pledge that the provision of the bill
should not be enforced until the new commission was
appointed.

Mr. FITZROY said the object of the bill was to en-
able the Sewers Commission to purchase land at Dept-
ford which, under any circumstances, would be required
for the sewerage of the metropolis, no matter what scheme
might ultimately be adopted, and no good purpose would
be secured by Parliament postponing the second reading.

After a few words from Mr. A. PELLATT, the amend-
ment was withdrawn, and the bill was read a second
time, and ordered to be committed.

PETITIONS.

Mr. ROEBUCK presented a petition from a Fire-
office, praying for a reduction of the duty on Fire In-
surances.

ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS.

Mr. BLAND wished to ask the Secretary for Ireland,
Whether it be the intention of the Government, in the
proposed measure for transferring jurisdiction from
leclesiastical to Civil Courts, to include those in Ireland.
Sir J. YOUNG replied in the affirmative.
MR. HUDSON.

Mr. HUDSON threw himself on the indulgence of
the house while he made some explanations in reply to
to the charges which were made against hi►n last night.
He complained that the honourable member for Fins-
bury bad been wanting in courtesy, in not having given
him notice of his intention to adopt the charge which
the Times had so freely made against him, or no amoun t
of personal inconvenience should have prevented him
from being present. As it was, he was detained in the
country on business of a publ►c character, or he should
have been present in his seat last night, and he hoped this
preliminary explanation would sufficiently account for
his absence. (Cheers.) The hon. member for Finsbury
accused him with having attempted to corrupt members
of the house; and the Times newspaper had repeatedly
done the same thing ; but, like all the charges which
that newspaper had from time to time preferred
against him, it was either utterly without founda-
tion, or admitted of an exp:anation which could
in no way reflect dishonourably upon himself. It was
true that some things which the hon member read
from a report of the proceeding in the Court of Chan-
cery gave a colouring to the charge, but had the hon.
member taken the trouble at the time he was making
the accusation, to read to the house the letter
which his solicitors addressed to the editor of the
Times on the subject, it would have been seen
that the newspaper report gave quite a different com-
plexion to his affidavit to what it really bore. But the
hon. member, not content with having made this charge
about corrupting members of the house, ventured to
talk of his having been compelled to disgorge a large
Bum of money. Now, although it was true that, by the
decision of the Court of Chancery, he was required to
refund money which he declared upon his honour he had
never received ; yet though this decision placed him
legally in the wrong, it would ultimately turn out that
all through the transaction he had been morally right.
It was fortunate for him, therefore, that there was still
an appeal to a higher tribunal against that decision.
Nevertheless, he courted the inquiry which the hon.
member asked for—nay, he called upon the house to
trace his history from the cradle up to the present time,
and if they found anything in it which was un-

worthy of a gentleman and a man of honour, he would
at once take leave of his seat in Parliament, so
conscious was he of having pursued a strictly
honourable and straightforward course throughout his
whole career. (Hear, hear.) It had been his good
fortune once to bask in the sunshine of public favour
as it was now his ill fate to suffer under the stigma of
Misapprehension and misrepresentations ; but, perhaps,
when he and the hon. member for Finsbury were alike
removed to another and, he hoped, a better world,
posterity would do him the justice of admitting
that at least one portion of his life
,had been well and
usefully spent in the promotion of works of great public
utility. (Hear, hear.) If his 'past conduct had been
actuated by a mercenary motive, he could have found
plenty of opportunities for amassing vast wealth without
resorting to the vile and scandalous means that were im-
puted to him ; but on all occasions, he was rejoiced to say,
he had resisted temptation, and refused to receive shares
on public grounds which others had freely accepted, and
for which now no blame whatever was attributed to
them. (Hear.) But enough—strong in the conviction
that though now he was pronounced to be legally wrong,
he had yet always been morally right. He left the house
to deal with this charge against him in the manner sug-
gested by the hon. gentleman ; and thanking them
would
themfur
the attention which they had given him,
conclude by promising, that, whenever the inquiry
the fullest
heshouldbe quiteready(Haraned7iballeingrlo meet The
it to
possible extent.
• hon• member, who was occasionally moved to tears,
then resumed his seat, and the subject dropped.
SAVINGS BANK RETURNS.
On the motion of Mr. BROTHERTON the following re-
turns were ordered
• " Returns of the total number of deposit accounts open
in savings banks in more names than one on the 20th day
of November, 1852, and the total amount as the credit of
Inch accounts ; distinguishing the accounts opened before
the 20th day of November, 1844, from those opened since
that date : Showing, year by year, in totals for each year,
when such accounts were first opened, and the total
amount then placed at their credit : And, showing the
distribution of such accounts, on the 20th day of November,
1852, into the several classes set forth in the classification
for the annual return to the 20th day of November 1851:
and, the like returns for the year ended the 20th day of
November 1853.
2. Address for return from each Savings Bank in Eng-
land and Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, containing, in
columns, the names of the officers, their respective salaries
said other allowances, if any the amount of security each
;
gives ; the numbers of accounts remaining open • the total
amount owingto depositors; the total amount invested' with
the commissioners for the reduction of the National Debt ,
the rate of interest paid to depositors on the various amounts'
of deposit and the average rate of interest on all accounts, and
the total amount of the separate surplus fund, on the 28th
day of November, 1852 ; the rate per centum per annum
on the capital of the bank for the expenses of management;
the annual number of receipts from depositors; the an-
nual number of payments ; the average amount of re-
ceipts ; the average amount of payments ; the number
and amount of annuities granted; the annual expenses
of management, inclusive of all payments and salaries, for
the year ended the 20th day of November, 1852 ; also the
day or days and the number of hours in theweek on which
lae banks are open for the deposit and withdrawal of
monies : And, like return for the year ended the 20th day
e' November 1853."
ASSESSED TAXES ACT AMENDMENT BILL.
This bill was considered as amended, and ordered to
be read a third time-to-morrow.
The other orders were then disposed of, and the house
l'clloused at oue o'clock.