The Sun.
London, England, 1854-03-03 00:00:00

MENAI STRAITS.

Mr. STANLEY asked the First Lord of the Admiralty,
if the attention of the Admiralty had been called to the
erection of stone weirs for the purpose of making oyster
beds within the tidal stream of the Menai Straits, thereby
causing obstruction to the free navigation of the Straits.
If any naval officer had been sent down to report upon the
same, and if any report had been made to have it presented
to the house?
Sir J. GRAHAM replied that the attention of the Ad-
miralty had been called to the subject, and a survey had
been ordered, which would be acted upon when reported.
SHIP WRECKS.
Mr. SANDARS asked the First Lord of the Admiralty
what orders were issued to the captains of her Majesty's
vessels in respect to the assistance to be rendered to Bri-
tish vessels in distress at bea ; and whether the masters or
seamen who do render assistance to such vessels were
allowed to make any charge beyond the expenses incurred
by them in rendering that assistance ?
Sir J. GRAHAM replied in the negative ; except in
special cases which were specified by the issued orders of
the Board of Admiralty no additional charges could be
made.

POSTPONEMENT OF THE
REFORM BILL.

Lord J. RUSSELL said—ln rising to move that an
order of the day should be read for the purpose of postpone-
ment, he wished to take the unusual course of ex-
plaining his reasons for doing so. At the opening of Parlia-
ment her Majesty was graciously pleased to recommend a
further amendment in the law relating to the representa-
tion of the people to the consideration of Parliament,
and on the 13th of February he moved for
leave to bring in such a measure. (Hear, hear.) The
13th of March was fixed for the second reading of the bill,
and soon after an hon. baronet gave notice of his intention
to move as an amendment that the present was an inop-
portune moment for proceeding with such a measure. He
could not tell what the motive of the hon. baronet really
could be in giving notice of such an amendment—(hear,
hear) but in the existing state of affairs, the Govern-
ment thought it right to consider the expediency of
a postponement, and it appeared to them that their
were two good reasons for taking that course. (Hear,
hear.) The first was the state of public business, and the
second was the present state of our foreign relations.
(Hear, hear.) The house had already voted the estimates
for the two services, and as early as Monday next, it would
be the duty of his right hon. friend the Chancellor of the
Exchequer to submit the means by which it was proposed
to raise those estimates to the consideration of the
house. It was obvious, therefore, that the exigencies of
public business would preclude his moving the second
reading of the new Reform Bill within a week after • the
financial statement of his hon. friend, but there was yet a
stronger reason than that for postponing the consideration
of the bill. The house was familiar with the existing
aspect of our foreign relations, it was in possession of all the
negotiations which had been carried on for securing the
peace of Europe, but up to this moment all these
negociations _had failed in their purpose, and a final demand
had been made by France and England upon Russia, that
if she did not immediately evacuate the principalities, or
at least within a time specified in the demand it would be
taken as a declaration of war. (Hear, hear.) The answer
to that demand might be expected by the end of the
month, and of course if it should happen to be in
the negative, which was not at all improbable—(hear,
hear)—it would then be the duty of Ministers to
oome to Parliament with a message that her Majesty
was no longer at peace with all the continental powers of
Europe. (Hear, hear.) Under these circumstances the
Government thought it advisable to postpone the second
reading of the Reform Bill until the 27th of April ; for, in
the meantime, the bills for reforming the representation
of the people of Scotland and Ireland would be brought
in, and the house would be in the best possible
position for discussing the whole question, or the amend-
ment of which notice had already been given, should it
then be necessary. (Hear.) He had therefore only now
to move that the order of the day for the second reading
of the bill be read, for the purpose of being postponed.
Sir J. V. SHELLEY was greatly disappointed at this
announcement—it was bamboozling the reformers of Eng-
land, and the noble lord would have acted more wisely if
he had gone to the country upon the measure if it had been
negatived in the second reading, which appeared to him to
be the main reason for the postponement. The reformers
of England would in future have no faith in the noble lord,
but that there might be no further disappointment, he
called upon the noble lord to state positively whether he
intended to proceed with the bill after Easter, or was it
to be thrown over until the next session. (Hear, hear.)
Sir E. DERING wished to say a word or two, as he
had been referred to by the noble lord. In giving notice
of his amendment, he had no wish or intention to
throw difficulties in the way of the 3overnmnt, but

the present, he thought, was not the proper time for
proposing so extensive a measure. (Hon., hear.) No one

,
was more ardently in favour of an efficient measure of
Parliamentary reform than himself ; _ but while war was

impending over the country, it would not be fitting to
raise dissensions upon a purely domestic topic. (Hear,
hear.) It would, therefore, be his duty to move the
amendment of which he had given notice when the motion
was made for the second reading of the Reform Bill on
the 27th of April. (Hear, hear.)
Lord. A. LENNOX said ho looked upon the speech of
tht.! ilo iio :ord tho I**,l the oity i L0nd.771, a filo
funeral oration of reform, in which the noble lord the
member for Tiverton played the part of mute. (A laugh.)
Mr, LABOUCHEBE did not think the postponement .