The Sun.
London, England, 1849-06-06 00:00:00

his (the Lord Chancellor's) absence, had hs not known
how perilous any delay would b 3 at the present period
of the session.

The Marquis of LANSDOWNE expressed the great
satisfae, ion he felt at hearing from his NAle and
Learned Friend that he thought himself justified in in
troducing such alterations into the Bill as did not affect
its spirit—[Lord BrtouGuam-4` Its pricciple"]—altera-
tions which had insured the support of his Noble and
Learned Friend the Lord Chancellor, and of the best and
most learned authorities in that House. So amended and
so altered as he had no doubt the Bill would be, he felt,
with his Noble and Learned Friend opposite, that it was
of the utmost importance that it should advance without
any delay, and should become the law of the land before
the end of the present session. Dry as the details of the
Bill might be, they involved considerations of a most
popular character, involving as they did the most inti-
mate relations of society, into which they would intro-
duce the most sound and practical amendments. For,
when he was told that no means now existed for sepa-
rating the honest from the fraudulent debtor, who was
preying on the resources of the community and making
bad debts every year to the amount of 49,000,000/. —an
amount sufficient to shipwreck the fortunes of any other
country, and attended with a salvage which did not ex-
ceed a fourth or fifth part of th it 1 trge sum—he could
not but feel that an attempt to remedy such a state of
things, founded as it was on the experience of various
bodies of men from all parts of the country, all uniting in
approbation of it, was an obi. ct of the highest public im-
portance to the country. It was also a matter of the
highest social importance ; and one of the provisions of
this Bill, which he viewed with the highest approbation,
was that in which a mode was prescribed for separating
debtors into three cl asses—the virtuous debtor, whose
bankruptcy arose from unavoidable losses and misfortunes;
the unfortunate debtor, whose conduct was, neverthe-
less, satisfactory ; and the spendthrift, the outcast, the
speculating, and the fraudalent debtor, whose conduct
was not satisfactory, and whose bankruptcy did not arise
from unavoidable misfortunes. The Commissioners were
hereafter to distinguish in their certificates the bankrupts
who were not to blame for their misfortunes—those who
were unable to meet their engagements, but whose con-
duct was not blameworthy—and those who preyed on
the interests of society, and sacrificed individuals, and
even bodies of men, to their own dishonest and nefarious
projects. Such a change in the law would work a bene-
ficial effect in the constitution of society itself. Consi-
dering, therefore, that the machinery of of this Bill, ap-
proved as it had been by his Noble and Learned Friend
who generally sat on the Woolsack, was a machinery
which would be attended not only with economy in its
own administration, but also with a larger economy to
those individuals who were to be benefited and saved by
its operation—considering also that it would be subject
hereafter to any improvements which experience might
suggest, he did hope that it would be received as a boon
of great value by the commercial interest; and, hoping
so, he trusted that the House would pass it through all
its stages with as much speed as possible. He gave his
entire concurrence to the Bill, and thought his Noble
and Learned Friend entitled to public gratitude for the
laborious attention which ho had bestowed upon it.
Lord WHARNCLIFFE heard with great satisfac-
tion the statement of the Noble Marquis in reference to
the B;11 before the House, and he hoped the Govern-
ment would give the measure its support in its passage
through the other House of Parliament. One of the
advantages of this Bill was, that it would effect a saving
of 12 0001. a year in the machinery connected with
bankruptcy.
Lord CAMPBELL would only say, that both in form
and substance, this Bill was a great improvement upon
the existing law last session, and he had no doubt but it
would effect great good.
Lord BROUGHAM said he had, in the former draft
of the Bill, given to the Commissioners the power of im-
prisonment for a year. He bad, however, at the sug•
gestion of Noble Lords, taken away this power. Ho did
so, and chiefly on the ground that the committal of the
bankrupt would arise from his own stbtemen% The
Commissioners would still have the power to refuse the
bankrupt protection, in the event of his conduct meriting
this exercise of the Judge's power. The creditors would
then be enabled to deal with him, and thus justice
would be obtained.
The Bill was then recommitted, and the report re-
ceived.
INCUMBERED ESTATES (IRELAND) BILL.
On the motion of Lord CAMPBELL, the Incumbered
Estates (Ireland) Bill was read a first time, and was
ordered to be read a second time on Monday next.

CANADA.
Lord BROUGHAM wished to know whether the
Noble Earl (Grey) had ri ceived any report of the Go-
vernment of Canada having cut down the classes of
claimants for losses, during the rebellion in that colony,
to two—namely, those who had been convicted, and
those who had been imprisoned, at the period of the re-
bellion in question.
Earl GREY said his information on the subject re-
ferred to was received from a source which was equally
open to the Noble and Learned Lord, namely the news-
papers. He must decline giving any other answer than
this to the question put by the Noble and Learned Lord.
Lord BROUGHAM—Did Lord Elgin send any dis-
patches home on the subject?
Earl GREY—Lord Elgin sent home some news-
papers containing the debates in the House of Assembly,
on the subject, and to these debates he (Earl Grey) was
referred.