The Sun.
London, England, 1854-02-11 00:00:00

COLONIAL POSTAGE.

Mr. HANKEY wished to ask the Secretary of the
Treasury, whether any progress has been made in the
proposed measure for the reduction of the colonial post-
age to an uniform rate ; and if he can give any informa-
t* on as to the time when such reduction will :probably
come into operation ; also, whether he can give any in-
formation as to the more frequent postal communications
from this country to the Australian colonies.
Mr. WILSON said those two qnestions were of very
great importance. With regard to the first, he had to
inform the house that the Postmaster-General, at a very
early period of last year, took steps, with the sanction
of the Treasury, for the purpose of getting the concur,
rence of those colonies over the internal affairs of which
we had no control. The plan then proposed was to
charge 6d. for each letter to the colonies, ld. of which
was to be paid here, and ld. to the colony, the remaining
4d. to go for the ocean carriage. With regard to more
frequent communication with Australia, the Postmaster-
General was now endeavouring to effect measures which
would give us a monthly mail between Australia and this
country.

THE ESTIMATES.
Mr. DISRAELI—The noble lord has fixed this day
week for taking into consideration the navy estimates.
It would be convenient for the house, however, if the

army and ordnance estimates were also laid on the table,
so that the house might be able to consider the whole
arrangements for the public service at the same time.
Lord J. RUSSELL—The army estimates will be laid
on the table to-night, with the view that on a question
of so much importance the house may have an insight
into the whole amount proposed by the Government.

PARLIAMENTARY REFORM.
On the motion that the house at its rising do adjourn

until Monday next,
Lord JOCELYN took the opportunity of repeating a
_ _

question to the noble lord the member for the] city
of London, which he put on Monday last, viz.,
whether, in the undisturbed state of our foreign

relations, it is the intention of the Government

to recommend the house to proceed with the mea-
sure proposed to be introduced on Monday next,
for amending the representation of the people of this
country. On Monday the noble lord answered him
in a manner which he would not characterise as discour-

teous, but which was certainly curt. (A. laugh.) He
thought, however, that the present aspect of our
foreign affairs justified him in repeating the question,
and therefore he begged to do so, expressing a full hope
that the noble lord would give him an explicit and candid
answer. (Hear, hear.)
Lord J. RUSSELL said the question which was now
put to him was somewhat different to that which was
asked on Monday night. On Monday night he under-
.
. .

stood the noble 10-rd to ask him- whether he in

tended to propose to ask on Monday next for
leave to bring in a bill of Parliamentary reform, but
the noble lord had now put upon the paper a

very difficult question, viz, whether the Government
intended to proceed with the measure when it was

brought in. Well, his answer to that question was
this. On Monday he should ask for leave to bring in a
bill to amend and extend the representation of the
people in England and Wales, and if he was successful
in obtaining that leave, he should propose to
proceed with the second reading of the bill on
the 13th of March. This arrangement would in
no way interfere or interrupt the questions which
might arise with regard to the naval and military esti-
mates, which must shortly come before the house—
(hear, hear)—while he certainly did not anticipate, that
when the 13th of March came, there would be any rea-
son for not proceeding with the measure. (Cheers.)
Mr. HUME said, if ever there was a time when the
people should rally round the Crown, it was now. It
was an act not only of wisdom, but of policy, that the
Government should not shrink from bringing forward
their measure.

Mr. DISRAELI said he and those friends with whom
he acted, thought that this was not the time in which
domestic agitation should be encouraged, nor in which
the energies of the country should be diverted from the
perilous aspect of our external affairs. He could not
help thinking that the course which the ministry were
about to adopt, was a reckless course. (Opposition cheers.)
He (Mr. Disraeli) and his friends would not share that
course, nor divert the energies of the country from the
position of our foreign relations, and they did not there-
fore intend on Monday next to offer any opposition to
the noble lord's motion. (Hear, hear.) Such opposi-
tion must naturally lead to protracted debates, when
the attention of the house should be given to the
means of carrying on the war in which we were now
engaged. But if, on the 13th March, which was now
announced for the second re,ding of the noble lord's bill
—if, when that period had elapsed, the noble lord had
not seen occasion to come forward and confess the
error of his ways—(laughter)--if he then asked them
to consent to his bill, of course, then, there could
be no further opposition on their (the Opposition) side ;
they must give the measure all the attention itidemanded,
and if the attention of the house and the country should
be diverted from more important questions, then upon
the noble lord must rest the responsibility of bringing
forward such a measure, and bringing forward such a
measure at such a time. (Cheers and counter cheers.)
Mr. BRIGHT said, until war had taken place or was
inevitable, it would be a bad precedent to give such an
excuse for putting off a reform bill. With respect to the
charge of the right hon. gentleman (Mr. Disraeli) that
the course proposed by the noble lord was a reckless
one he believed if the right hon. gentleman and his friends
were now in power they would be doing the very same
things as the Government were now doing, namely,
doing their best to stave off a war. (Hear, hear.)
And though the right honourable gentleman deprecated
" agitating " the country on the subject, the press which
advocated the policy of the right hon. gentleman had
for months past, and until Parliament met been
" agitating " the country on a certain great delusion, far
more dangerous than any that could grow out of a re-
form bill.
Lord J. MANNERS denied that his right hon. friend
was actuated by any party motives in the notice which
he had given to-night. The people did not wish to see
the vigour of the coming war impeded by internal divisions
upon domestic questions, and perhaps that was the reason
why they heard so little out of doors upon the subject
of Parliamentary Reform. He therefore hoped the
Government would reconsider the determination with re-
gard to the new Reform Bill, andpostpone its discussion
until a future session, when the aspect of our foreign
relations might be more cheering than it was at present.
The motion for the adjournment of the house was then
agreed to.
PREVENTIO OF BRIBERY—TRIAL OF
ELECTION PETITIONS.
Lord J. RUSSELL said—l rise, sir, to ask leave to
bring in two bills on the important subjects of bribery and
treating, and the trial of contested elections. Everyone
knows the practices which have prev ailed of late, tending
to degrade all the parties concerned in them, as well as to
lower the character of onr representation. (Hear, hear.)
The right hon. gentleman whom I see opposite to me pro.
posed last year to consolidate the laws on the subject of
bribery, and I had the great advantage of being able to
study the proposals which he made on this subject. In
explaining the course I wish to pursue, I have first of all
to remark that it is a very difficult task for the Legislature
effectually to arrest the progress of bribery. With respect
to those offences in which there is any person directly in-
terested, such as assault or robbery, you have a person in-
terested, or at least impelled by his feelings to seek
for redress, on whose assistance you may rely for car-
rying into effect the objects and intent of the
law. But with respect to other offences, such as that
of smuggling for instance, all the parties engaged in
them have an interest in concealing the acts of each
other—the person who sells the goods, the smuggler who
convoys them across the water, the customer who buys
them, are all participators in the crime, and are all desi-
rous of concealing the acts which they have committed.
It is very much the same with respect to bribery. The can-
didate who engages in its practice, the agent whom he em-
ploys, and the person who receives the bribe, may all ob-
tain the object of their wishes, in the scat in Parliament,
the profit received, the money obtained, and are all inte-
rested in concealing the facts. (Hear, hear.) lam happy,
howeves, to say that in reference to that subject we have
certainly made considerable progress in the last few years.
The acts which have been passed to transfer the investiga-
tion of corrupt practices, where they extensively prevailed,
from the committees of that house to the places them-
selves where the offence was committed, and also the
acts by which the persons chiefly concerned, the can-
didates and their agents, and the porsolui who have re.