The Sun.
London, England, 1836-02-10 00:00:00

the Hon. Member had expressed himself to no purpose, for
he had totally mistaken the object of the measure proposed by
his Noble Friend.—( Hear.) The Bill of his Noble Friend,
so strongly objected to by the Hon. Member, was a Bill to
free aliens in this country from all restriction whatever.—
( Hear.) All that it substituted in lieu of the atrocious pro-
visions of the existing Alien Act was a simple registration of
the name of the alien. There was no just complaint of
foreigners coming to or resident in the country which would
not be effectually met by it. The provisions of the Alien
Act, as it stood, were contrary to the law and Constitution of
England, and to the general policy of Europe.—( Hear.) It
restricted the citizens of one State from travelling in ano-
ther, and it created what should never be suffered to exist in a
commercial country—obstacles in the way of a free inter-
course with foreigners. By that Act the alien was not alone
obliged to give his residence; but be was hunted about from
place to place, if he ventured to change it without due notice.
All such rubbish was about to be put an end to ; and all that
was required was a simple registration of the name of the
alien. Others might pass for Don Carlos as well as the Hon.
Member, but that would not affect the principle on which the
measure was founded.

Mr. WARBURTON said that one of the great complaints
against the Alien Act was that its provisions could be evaded,
and that no remedy could be had for the evasion. By the
present Bill it was proposed to continue that cause of com-
plaint. A stranger landing in England would be obliged to
give his name at the Custom House, for which he received a
receipt. What security was there in the Bill to compel him to
give his right name ? Persons travelling in a country with a
bad intent never gave their right name. Why not either im-
pose severe penalties or take away the form altogether? He
was for abolishing restrictions on foreigners altogether ; and
he thought that when Ministers had gone so far as they had
done, it was vain for them to conjure up for preservation the
mere ghost of an Act. He hoped they would repeal the Alien
Act completely and unconditionally.—( Hear.)
Dr. BO WRING hoped the measure of despotism intro-
duced by the Noble Lord would not be allowed to pass that
House. If no penalty attached to the infraction of its provi-
sions, they were idle and useless ; if there did, it would be
tyrannical. All restrictions on intercourse were found to be
utterly unavailing.
Mr. HUME would ask the Noble Lord why not get rid of
the entire of the Alien Act as he had abolished almost all of
its obnoxious provisions? He wished England to set the first
example of free intercourse to Europe ; and to publish to the
world that it was a land where men were free to come and go
as they liked.—( Hear.)
Mr. O'CONNELL said that it would be well to bring in
the Bill, and at all events, let it go to a Committee, as it
went to abrogate the worst parts of a very bad law.—
(Hear, hear, hear.) He wished its provisions were extended
to Ireland; but he believed it could not, as the alien law
was different in the two countries. By the law in Ireland
the moment a Protestant was landed on its shores he was
naturalized. The very circumstance of his coming to the
country rendered him no longer an alien. To that he had
no objection whatever, provided the provisions of the law
were extended to those of all other persuasions.—(Hear.)
He hoped a change in the law of Ireland would take place
in that respect. It should be free to all to come and go
in a country like England ; but all he had heard was an
additional argument why the Bill should be suffered to get
into Committee.—( Hear. )
Lord J. RUSSELL had always opposed the exercise of
arbitrary power on the part of the Crown, and had repeatedly
set himself against the system of sending strangers out of the
country on suspicion, without crime being proved against
them. He could not help feeling surprise at the reception
of his measure. He was met by Hon. Members as if he
were about to introduce tyranny and create despotism, whereas
the direct and positive tendency of his Bill was to abolish
them altogether. With respect to the alleged hardship of
simple registration, he felt bound to say, that when the Le-
gislature was endeavouring by every means in its power to
procure as accurate a census as possible of the population of
this kingdom, it was not altogether prudent or politic to ex-
empt foreigners from the obligation of being numbered and
known. It was not quite fair that everything should be known
of the natives of this country, and nothing whatever of stran-
gers. That would be one of the effects of the abolition asked
for. He confessed, however, that he did not think it an end
the attainment of which should be assured by any vexatious
regulations. But it was far less vexatious for an alien to go
to the Custom House, and say whence he came and whither
he meant to go, than to have his luggage overhauled, his pa-
pers inspected, and perhaps his person searched. When, as
happened in late instances, 5,000 refugee Poles and 2,000
Portuguese arrived in this country at the same time, he could
never admit that a regulation requiring a registry of their names
was useless, or altogether to be dispensed with.
Lord I). STUART quite concurred in what had been said
by the Hon. and Learned Member for Dublin. The Bill
should be brought in undoubtedly ; but, as a very general
feeling had been expressed by Hon. Members, that aliens
should be altogether relieved from restrictions, he hoped his
Noble Friend would reconsider the subject, and see whether
he could not meet that feeling by compliance. Whether they
were greater, or whether they were less, they would be always
of a vexatious nature to foreigners. He trusted that Minis-
ters would alter their intentions respecting it.
After a few words from Captain PECHELL, leave was
given to bring in the Bill.
FEES AND GRATUITIES TO OFFICERS OF

THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
Mr. HUME brought forward his motion, " That all pay-
ments made by Members of the House of Commons for the
delivery of sessional papers from the Vote Office ; and all gra-
tuities paid to door-keepers, messengers, and the superinten-
dent of the Members' waiting room, shall cease." The Hon.
Member said that it would be in the recollection of the House
that a Committee sat last session of Parliament with a view to
remodelling the public offices of the House ; to the report of
that Committee, the " Third Report of the Committee on
Printed Papers," he should beg to call the attention of the
Members present. It would be recollected that acting on the
report of that Committee, the House had proceeded to fix the
salaries of the Speaker, the Sergeant-at-Arms, and the other
superior officers. Hon. Members would bear in mind that
those officers were now receiving the salaries so fixed and set-
tled on the recommendation of the Committee. The other
officers of an inferior nature also came under the notice of that
Committee, and they recommended an arrangement to the ef-
fect that the fees received by those different individuals should
cease, and be no longer of force, and that Members of Par-
liament should be put to no more expense in the performance
of their duty to the public. The Committee had come to two
resolutions on the subject, the first was that which he had to
propose to the House ; the second was that in reference to
officers receiving emoluments affected by the first resolution,
the Treasury should be empowered by the House to award
them such a reasonable allowance as they might deem suffi-
cient compensation for such loss, so as to enable the House to
commence on a new scale in the present session. This resolu-
tion he should propose as a sequel to the former, in the event
of the House acceding to his first proposition. The time
had arrived when it was absolutely necessary to abolish the
system of fees and gratuities altogether. With respect to
the first branch of his resolution, the delivery of sessional
papers, he should state to the House the expense. In 1832,
the deliverer of the sessional posts received for the delivery of
the papers of the House the sum of 4,7191. He had a salary
from the Treasury of 14/. a year, and he received in
fees from Members, at 2/. 125. 6d. each, the sum of 1,9571.
Added to this, he was permitted to sell 100 sets of the ses-
sional papers, which cost the House from 201. to 301. a set, at
from 12/. to 12/. 10s. each, making a sum of 1,250/. In
this department the Committee recommended a saving of
2,819/., which would save the fees to lion. Members, and
provide equally for the delivery of the papers. The late oc-
cupant of the office had died since the Committee had made
this recommendation, and his successor was appointed only
provisionally, at least subject to any change which the House
might see fit to make in his appointment. He, therefore, came
before the House without any claim, save what it chose to
allow. The proposal of the Committee was, that the de-
liverer of the sessional papers should be paid 8001. a year,
three clerks 600/. a year each, and that a sum of 1,8001. or
1,9001. per annum thould be allotted to the payment of door-
keepers, messengers, and other inferior officers. He believed
that the arrangement was perfectly satisfactory to the par-
ties, and that they were all quite willing to abide by the
decision of the House in regard to the amount of compen-
sation which it should see fit to award them. With re-
spect to the latter offices, he was informed that some of
them had very large salaries—the door-keepers especially—
varying in amount from 6001. to 9001. and i,OOO/. a year,
according to the liberality of Hon. Members. Such a state
of things should not be suffered to continue. It was incon-
sistent and unfair that Hon. Members should be called on
to pay in the discharge of their duties to the public. The
House should have to decide whether a new and entire plan
should be entered on—a plan by which every servant would
have a fixed salary and a specific duty to perform ; or whether
things should be allowed to continue as they were previously to
the recommendation of the Committee ; always allowing fairly
for individual losses—which with a conversation he had with
the Secretary of the Treasury that department was willing to
make—and to do justice to these as well as to other individuals.
There was nothing like wrong or injustice intended to any one.
Under the old system, all situations about the House were
sold ; he believed, however, that only two persons now existed
who had ever purchased them. These were Mr. Staton and
Mr. Gibbon, who had each paid five hundred pounds for their
their offices. The peculiar claims of these individuals might
form a distinct subject of consideration for the Treasury all
the others might be classed under one head. The Hon.
Member concluded by moving the resolution given in the be-
ginning of his speech.
Major BE AU CLE RK thought that before the question of
reducing salaries came to be discussed, the llouse should con-
sider whether there existed vested rights in any individuals
about to be affected by it.—( Hear.) Ile believed that all the
officers alluded to by the Hon. Member did not agree to the
proposed arrangements ; but as they had no other resource, he
was willing to admit that they were ready to abide by the deci-
sion of the Ikuse, and throw themselves entirely on its feeling.
He should suggest that all salaries at present enjoyed by these
individuals should continue during their respective lives.
Mr. POULTER thanked the Hon. Member for Middlesex
for bringing forward this most important motion. A more
disgraceful practice could not exist—disgraceful to the nation
and not the individuals—than that of private applications for
gratuities. It always raised a conflict in his mind--(Laughter)
—between feeling and high principle.—( Laughter.) He had
paid these fees up to the last Session of Parliament ; but a
sense of duty, not any wish to spare his money, compelled
him to refuse them since—(Laughter)—and he should con-
tinue to do so, on the principle that Hon. Members should
not be obliged to pay for performing their duty.—( Laughter.)
It was making the House of Commons like an opera-house—
(Laughter)—with this exception, that Gentlemen came to it
in performance of an arduous public duty, but they were made