The Sun.
London, England, 1853-06-29 00:00:00

For tho amendment.
Against

For the amendment..
Against . .

THE BALLOT.

.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS--(YESTERDAY.)
ROYAL ASSENT.
The Royal assent was given by commission to the fol-
lowing bills :—lncome Tax Bill ; Bail in Error Bill ;
Hackney Carriages Bill ; Drummond's (Duke de Mel-
fort's) Restitution Bill.
Several private bills also received the Royal assent.
The Lords' Commissioners were—the Lord Chancellor,
the Earl of Granville, and Lord Stanley of Alderley.
Their lordships assembled at 5 o'clock.
Lord CAMPBELL presented a petition from Mr.
Birch, of Dublin, complaining of a rule of the Court of
Queen's Bench in Ireland respecting the delivery of an
abstract of the record to the Chief Justice, owing to
which an action he had brought for libel had miscarried,
and praying that some measure might be passed for the
purpose of remedying this grievance. The noble and
learned lord admitted that the case of the peti-
tioner was one of hardship, but said he thought
the inconvenience arising from the rule of the court could
be remedied without legislation.
Lord ST. LEONARDS bore testimony to the learn-
ing and high character of Chief Justice Lefroy.
After some depreciatory remarks from the Earl of
DONOUGHMORE respecting Mr. Birch, and some ob-
servations in reply from Lord CAMPBELL, the subject
dropped.
The Earl of HARROWBY presented sever al peti-
tions against the opening of the Crystal Palace on
Sundays.
JUVENILE MENDICANCY (No. 2) BILL.
The Earl of SHAFTESBURY moved the second
reading of this bill pro forma, in order that it should be
referred to a committee.
Lord MONTEAGLE, protested against the principle
of the bill, which would, he said, enable parents who
wished to get rid of their children to easily effect their
object, for they would have nothing to do but to send
them into the streets to beg and then they could be
taken before a magistrate, who had power to send them
to some reformatory institution.
Lord CAMPBELL thought that, if the bill passed,
it would do more credit to the noble earl than any of
his measures. (Hear.) He was perfectly shocked to
see so many little children begging in the streets and
sweeping dangerous crossings ; and he believed
their mode of life was calculated to make them
become thieves and robbers. (Hear, hear.) He would
even suggest that if the noble earl inserted a clause pre-
venting children under a certain age appearing in the
streets at all he would confer a great benefit upon the
community. (A. laugh.)
After some further discussion, the bill was read a
second time.
CHURCH BUILDING ACTS AMENDMENT
BILL.
This bill was read a second time, on the understanding
that the discussion upon it should ,be taken in com-
mittee.

Their lordships adjourned shortly after half-past five
o'clock.

HOUSE OF COMMONS-(YESTERDAY.)
SHERIFFS' COURTS (SCOTLAND) BILL.

The house then went into committee on this bill com-
mencing at clause 28.
Mr. CRAUFURD moved a proviso, extending the
small debt jurisdiction of the courts to 251. instead of to
121. as now proposed.
The LORD ADVOCATE objected to the amend-
ment on the ground that if carried it would be fatal to
all law reform in Scotland.

After a few words from Mr. CHARTER'S,
Mr. HUME supported the amendment. He com-
plained of the narrow views which the Lord-Advocate
took of Scotch law refoim. Whatever credit the learned
lord might have as a lawyer, he would get no credit
among the people of Scotland as a law reformer.

WA.LISOLE having attended the committee
during the wholo of the sitting, was prepared to support
the bill. He should therefore support the amendment.

Mr. S. WORTLEY was faymirable to the extension
of summary jurisdiction in the • Sheriffs' Courts, but ho
thought the constitutional course was to take the bill as
it had been sent down from the Select Committee to
pass it in that shape and see how it would work. As
the committee had repudiated this particular proposition
ho should oppose the amendment.
Mr. JN. M'GREGOR supported the bill as it stood.

Mr. COWAN thought the bill as it stood would be a
mighty boon to the people of Scotland, and he should,
therefore, support it.
Mr. A. HASTIE supported the amendment. He
bore testimony to the great attention which had been
paid by the right hon. gentleman the member for Mid-
hurst (Mr. Walpole) to this bill while on the select com-
mittee, and he thought the warm thanks of every Scotch
member was duo to that right hon. gentleman. (dear.)
Col. BLAIR defended 'the opinion of the Select
Committee, and should, therefore, oppose the amend-
ment.

After a few words from Mr. C. Bruce, Mr. Danlop,
the Lord-Advocate, and Mr. Hume, the committee
divided, when the numbers were—

. 14
82
Majority —6B
The proviso was consequently lost, and the clause was
agreed to.
Clauses 29 to 40 were speed to.

On clause 41,
Mr. UUNLE moved an amendment to the effect that
mo retiring allowance should be given to sheriffs' depute.
After a short discussion the committee divided, when
the numbers were--

65
Majority ...................
The amendment was consequently lost, and the clause
was agreed to.
The remaining clauses were then disposed of, and the
house resumed.

The Yeoman Usher of the Black Rod then appeared
at the table to summon the House of Commons to hear
the Royal assent g:ven by commission to certain bills,
for which see Lords' report.
On the return of the Speaker the house adjourned at
a quarter past 4 until 6 o'clock.
The house resumed at six o'clock.
NOTICES OF MOTIONS.
CORRUPT PRACTICES AT ELECTIONS.

Sir J. SHELLEY gave notice that on Tuesday, the
19th July, he should call the serious attention of the
house to the resolution passed by the house on the 11th
of November—namely, that if it shall appear that any
person has obtained, or has endeavoured to obtain a
seat in the house by bribery, or corrupt practices, this
house will proceed with the utmost severity against
such person. And that in connection therewith ho
should call attention to the report of the committee
respecting the Plymouth election, and should move that
the Attorney-General be directed to prosecute Charles
John Mare, Esq., the late member for Plymouth, for
bribery and other corrupt practices. (Groans from the
opposition.)
THE EASTERN QUESTION.

Mr. LA.YARD gave notice that he should bring for-
ward this question on Friday, the Bth July.

Mr. BONHAM-CARTER moved for leave to bring
in a bill to provide that whenever a commission to in-
quire into the corrupt practices at any election for any
county, division of a county, city, borough, university,
or place, in the United Kingdom shall have issued,
under the provisions of the act of the 15th and 16th
Tears of her present Majesty, the votes at the two elec-
tions next subsequent thereupon in any such place shall
be taken by ballot. He said on the passing of the Re-
form Bill it was expected that that measure would have
produced freedom of election, but it wits soon found
that it did not stop intimidation, bribery, and other cor-
rupt practices, and the opinion began to spread that the
ballot would be the only remedy. The great debate on
the ballot took place in 1833, and in 1839 the question
culminated, the numbers who divided being nearly 550.
Afterwards interest in the question declined. During the
last parliament manymeasures were passed for the purpose
of obtaining purity of election. The last general election
was an exciting party struggle, and ao members had
been unseated for bribery and corruption. They need not
be surprised, that after 225 contested elections, followed
by more than 100 petitions, the question of the ballot
should be revived. In 1852 the numbers who voted for
the ballot were 246, and 144 for it ; and in 1853, the
numbers were 232 against it and 172 for it, so that there
was an increase in the supporters and a diminution in
the opponents. Finding that there was such a large
number in the house ready to support the application
of the ballot, and seeing that a large number did not
present themselves at the division, knowing probably
that their constituents were not unfavourable to the
measure, he had thought it right to give an opportunity
to members who might be doubtful as to its applica-
tion generally to try the experiment on a small
scale. He would now state the bounds of the
measure to which it would at first apply. The Lords had
not signified their assent to a commission for Malden,
but he proposed it should be one of the boroughs
in which the experiment should be tried. It contained
845 electors, and 5,888 inhabitants. Last night the
address was sanctioned by the House of Lords for
Barnstable and Tynemouth. Barnstable had a consti-
tuency of 869 electors, and Tynemouth 1,169. For
Canterbury, Kingston-upon-Hull, and Cambridge, there
were commissions sitting. In Cambridge there were
1,984 electors, in Canterbury 1,874, and in Kingston-
upon-Hull upwards of 5,000. These constituencies were
of a variable character, and afforded a fair opportunity
of trying the experiment. Some of these boroughs were
so large that if the commissions reported that they ought
to be disfranchised there wouldbe great difficulty in
disfranchising them. There was certainly a considerable
portion of these electors who were freemen, and they
might withdraw the franchise from them ; but he did
to
not think that the corrupt practices were confined to the
freemen. He proposed that the returning
apopffilyeetrhoef act any
borough should be held responsible
when, from common notoriety, or from a notice in the
Gazette, the borough came under the operation of
the bill ; that there should be polling booths, as at
present, at which the electors should present them-
selves, and that when an elector was identified, the
poll-clerk should present him a card, which the elector
should take behind a screen, and that he should put the
card into a box. He did not apprehend that this was a
perfect scheme, but he was quite ready to hear sugges-
tions
for its improvement.
introduced into the
He thought theoust, would
h
be glad to see some new element_t_houg„ ,
on
wawa,
debs,tes on this question. ge that,