The Sun.
London, England, 1836-08-09 00:00:00

am.
that 21 less than 800 or 1,000 persons have been corn-
during
is
the last fOur or five years under this law.
e ls no doubt but that these unstamped publications
?"4" lu'creased to an extent which it is impossible to
seerita',,, with correctness ; but it has been computed,
_a_y,
.t .ose persons who are most conversant with the
Palf.ct, that during the twelve months the sale has
me. s last
•easeu from aO,OOO to 2,50,000. This I know, that
Yuen Mr. Cleave's printing-house was entered, under the
Iprovisions of the Act, on a day previous to that of pub-
lication, it was discovered that 40,000 copies were prepared
for publication, and the press was employed in throwing off
several hundreds by the hour. Now this Bill, my Lords,
s intended to
ditni, • • put an end to this state of things, and, by
116 11Vg the duty, to diminish the temptation. It pro-
vides to give that protection for collecting this branch of
the revenue which is given for the protection of other
branches of the revenue, and which will be found effectual
for the purpose ; fest. nothing else can be found effectual.
It proposes that on information a warrant can be issued,
empowering tho officer to enter the premises of the printer
fl the day, and to do so by breaking open the door, if ne-
lessary. Thus I think these publications will be greatly
lessened by this measure, because, on the one hand, it dimi-
nishes the, temptation to issue them ; and, on the other
ihand, it vins the Government with sufficient power to
enforce, the law. lam perfectly satisfied that this will be
the e:feec of the proposed change in the law ; and I have,
therefore, only to observe that if this Bill do not pass into
a law, the present state of things will necessarily continue
andbecome worse, and these unstamped publications will
increase. Besides, it' on the present occasion your Lord-
mhips should think fit to reject this measure, the effect will
be to throw the whole trade, which expects the proposed
remission of duty, into a state of disturbance, whilst I am
persuaded, as I have already said, that if you sanction it,
it will extinguish the present unstamped publications. I
thought it necessary to refer thus briefly to the existing
state of the law, and to point out the consequences of not
Passing this measure into a law. I now move that the
'louse resolve itself into a Committee on this Bill.
The motior, having been agreed tn, clauses 1 to 9 were
agreed to.
On clause 10 being proposed,
Lord Is'iNDHURST entirely agreed with the Noble
'Viscount, in the importance of Parliament taking some
steps towards checking the evil resulting from the existence
of Iles tamped publications, and that it was the duty of
Parliament to do everything in its power to prevent the
violation of the law which took place with respect to them.
He did not rise, therefore, for the purpose of opposing this
,441 ; but lie stated to the Noble Viscount sometime ago
his objection to the clause then under consideration. The
objection which he felt to this clause applied equally to that
Which succeeded it, and to schedule B in the Bill. By
these clauses it was provided that the names of every one
or the proprietors, however numerous, together with their
description and place of residence, should be registered
at the Strop-office ; and not only their names but the
shares or; interest which they might have in a News-
Paper. And it was further provided that if any transfer
of a share or interest, or any part thereof, took place,
that transfer should be registered, and these registrations
renewed every year. Now a system more arbitrary, in-
quisitorial, and unjust, was never yet proposed, and
that without any necessity, as he should convince their
~liordships. Before he adverted to the manner in which
Lordships'
clause was likely to operate he wished to direct their
aaordships' attention to the existing law with respect to
!the proprietors of newspapers. According to the law as
it now existed the printer's and publisher's name must be
tegistered at the stamp-office. It was also necessary that
two of the proprietors who held the largest shares should
likewise he registered. Previously to the year 1798, it was
extremely difficult to bring an action or to lay an indict-
ment against any Newspaper in consequence of not being
able to ascertain against whom these proceedings should
be directed, and it was for the purpose of obviating these
difficulties that the 38th Geo. 111. was passed, containing
the provision by which the printer's name as well as the
Publisher's was required, and the register of the names of
the two largest proprietors also required. That law was
bow- in operation for a period of forty years, and, so far as
,regarded the operation of it with respect to prosecutions,
had been uniformly found effectual. There was no in-
stance where a party anxious to exercise the right, either
by briraging an action or by indictment, did not find defen-
tants, against whom such a proceeding could be instituted.
Pe twist be allowed to call their Lordships' attention—
tothey were acquainted with the history of the period—
,Y
tl'e strenuous and vigorous opposition which was given
b the party in opposition (he would not say the Whigs,
for that term might offend), to the Bill when it was
Propos-ed. It was very true that they were then candi-
dates for power and for public favour, which circumstances
' ,
We were to judge alone from the present measure, it was
lithe clear were now changed.—(Hear, hear, hear.) In
kddition to the security to which he had just referred it was
33r"idee under the Bill of 1830, which was a mere exten-
'llon of the former Act, that a publisher of a newspaper
should give security to the amount of 400/., and two secu-
rities of the same amount, to answer any amount of da-
mage=s which might be found against him, either in a civil
44.0 n or in a criminal prosecution. This was the state of
tile law as it stood at present, and he knew no one case
`"here an action of prosecution was instituted with effect
On this ground, or in which the securities so given were
4°t sufficient to meet the amount of damage or the fine
:warded. He now came to the clause which had since
been added to the Bill. It was added at a very late stage
` the proceeding, and not at the suggestion of any mem-
ber of the Government, but at the instance of some indi-
vidual or body of individuals of extreme Liberal opinions,
t.although, if be might be permitted to judge from the na-
ure of the clause itself, he should say they were utterly
Ignorant of the very first principles of liberal feelings.--
(Rear, hear.) He entirely agreed with the Noble Vis-
gcOtint that nothing was more calculated to endanger the
Constitution and law of a country than a weak and feeble
°vernment, which was compelled to yield to the sugges-
tr°ll or any section of its supporters because it knew that an
ectual resistance was vain. He also agreed with the
Noble Viscount that no Government should continue its tot-
tTeritig existence at a sacrifice of principle. He (Lord
"-ndhurst) stated that in the year 1798 the Whig party
Ibl)Posed a, Bill introduced on this subject. It was opposed
Mr, Tierney, Sheridan, Sir W. Pulteney, Mr. Hob-
d`'e, and also by another Noble Lord now no more—an
)Iv:dual of great respectability, and to whom he should
t refer on the present occasion, were it not for the purpose
t calling the attention of the House to an expression used
it that Noble Lord. He alluded to Lord William
; and upon the occasion in question his Lord-
p expressed himself in these words—" He gave his
most decided opposition to the measure. If the editor
rd
the acting proprietor were made responsible he saw no
talon why the other parties who advanced the capital
aaanld be included. It was in his opinion an insidious and
derhanded blow to the freedom of the press." Mr. Sheri-
n
t'Von the same occasion said, " Unless a number of per-
i's were to join in the establishment of a Newspaper it
7,add be impossible, from the amount of the capital required,
ir establish one at all, and such regulations would cer-
:jab' discourage persons from taking shares in a News-
r'4l)". He would be glad to know whether by this it was
eant that if Government paid a paper for the purpose of
I,b„l'li thug the Opposition, the Treasury, by so assisting to keep
c Paper, would be considered a proprietor, and be an-
werable for the consequences." He (Lord Lyndhurst) did
Ilet mean to insinuate anything of the kind. In that dis-
tltssion it was agreed by both parties that the law should not
7 carried one step further than was necessary ; and when
we came into Committee, the names of three proprietors
Pe inserted on the suggestion of Lord Eldon, then the
ludtorney-General ; but Mr. Addington the Speaker, con-
ered this going too far, and he accordingly reduced the
tanber to two. This took place in the year 1798, and the
Act of the 38th of Geo. 111. had been acted upon from
atttime up to the present, and had originally been adopted
scat was
Government in the Bill now before the House. But
a„!was the present Bill? It provided that every proprie-
should be registered, with his name, residence, with the
rant of his share or interest in the concern, or even any
renewed
of such interest, and this registration was to be
p.ewed every six months. If it were proved that these ad-
ditions had been recommended by the quarter to sa'tntin tit
th4tl_ eiresdes reietrt4, ‘Jist.t ciscsassfstaw.R. only afforded ano-
,l:l' instance to show that those persons who were most
thenni_orous for liberty—(Hear)—who cried most loudly for
freedom of the press, the Radicals, root and branch, were
41.1Ztvery occasion where they could exercise power, more
in°lrarY, more tyrannical—more searchingly and unspar-
rY tyrannical—than any other class of men. A daily
.17ori as their Lordships all knew, required a large out-
capital and an immence establishment. The pro-
tritetiorship was not vested in one, two, or three individuals,
11,1 d
oto!‘;as held in shares by a great number of persons, who
'Lung whatever to do with the conduct of the paper.
tro grcat number might reside at a distance from the me-
P°lls--some were women and children. This species of
OroPertv
hls, was made the subject of marriage settlement and
rdi'lged as security for debts. It could be mortgaged and
OP°led r • N iftheir Lord-
be
%,41„s oin a great variety of ways. Now
'0 Passed this Bill every Newspaper proprietor would
seeu,M, e exposed to personal attacks and to actions and pro-
toneLetons for matters with which individually they had no
Personrn, and would not this have the effect of inducing
ves,. s to withdraw their capital, for the purpose of in-
exp`olasit in other speculations, in which they would be less
speet ;-1 to annoyance? He had heard from a most re-
staiitiaanile individual, Mr. Baldwin, the proprietor of the
deter: that the effect of the Bill would be at least to
„
foriv his property to the extent of 50 per cent. But
in obi'n!' was all this to be done ? If a party succeeded
Act, athio". a verdict he had the security afforded by the
'blear 1798. But he would beg the House to view the
I" with regard to the future. Every person was most