The Sun.
London, England, 1847-02-18 00:00:00

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LONDON, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 184

The House of Commons mot at twelve o'clock.

Lord DuNcAN, in reply to the attack made upon him
last night in the House of Lords, by the Earl of LUCAN,
explained that the charges which he was supposed to
have made against the landlords of Ireland were all con-
tained in the Blue Book published by the authority of
the Government ; while at the same time he stated that
his constituents would not be satisfied to pay taxes for
the relief of the poor in Ireland, unless a similar tax
were levied upon the Irish landlords.
The adjourned debate upon the Ten Hours' Bill was
then resumed by
Sir A. L. HAY, who opposed the measure, as one
fraught with danger to the manufacturing districts.
Mr. BERNAL supported the measure.-

Mr. SHARMAN CRAWFORD, believing that the opera-
tives themselves were in favour of the Bill, would give it
his support.
Mr. DENNISTOUN felt convinced that if they passed
this measure, they would, before many months had
elapsed, find it necessary to retrace their steps.
Mr. FERRAND most energetically supported the mea-
sure. He had never met with any manufacturer who
dared fairly meet his work people, and argue the ques-
tion at issue.

Mr. P. BORTHWICIE supported the second reading of
the Bill.

Sir R. 11. Limas considered the supporters of the
measure had every encouragement to go forward,
Sooner or later the passing of such a measure was ine-
vitable.

Sir G. STRICKLAND was decidedly in favour of the Bill•
Lord EBRINGTON and Mr. NEWDECILTX were both in
favour or ',He measure.

Mr. MARSLAND was in favour of giving the basouriug
classes more time for relaxation, but he was adverse to
the interference of the State in the matter.

Mr. T. DUNCOMBE designated the eleven hours' pro-
position as absurd. The operatives were in favour of a
Ten Hours' Bill, and that was the measure he should
support.

Mr. B. ESCOTT proposed to adjourn the debate, a pro-
poposition, that was met with loud cries of " Oh ! oh !"
from all parts of the House.
Mr. SHAW and Mr. LABOLTCHERE both opposed the
adjournment.
Sir R. PEEL maintained his former opinions, and
would give the Bill every opposition in his power in its
future stages.

Lord G. BENTINCK would vote in favour of the Bill.
Mr. BRIGHT seconded the motion for adjournment.
On a division, the motion for adjournment was nega-
tived by a majority of 275, the numbers being—
For the adjournment 7
Against it
The House then divided on the motion for the second
reading of the Bill, when there appeared—
For the second reading 195
Against it
Majority for the second reading —lOB
The Bill was then read a second time, and ordered to
be committed, after which the House adjourned.

The patriotism and genius of Sir ROBERT PEEL
happily relieved the closing discussion upon Lord
GEORGE BENTINCK'S railway proposition from the
vveaciness and frivolity which would have been other-
wise inevitable. Never were the illusions of a
political charlatan more thoroughly expcsed than
were those of the diseased imagination of the repre-
sentative of Lynn, in the masterly speech delivered
by that Right Hon. Baronet. Without descending
to the enunciation of a single epithet that might be
construed as invidious, the ex-Premier overwhelmed
the miserable scheme then under the consideration of
Parliament with a deliberation more crushing than
the most vehement invective, with an enumeration of
facts more forcible than the most impassioned dis-
play of rhetoric, with a simplicity superior to
vituperation, and a logical explicitness that
almost amounted to direct satire. As it would
he impossible to do justice to the arguments of Sir
ROBERT PEEL
without extending our commentaries
to a length from which we are at present altogether
precluded, we shall abstain from entering upon any
detailed synopsis of his oration, and content ourselves
with referring to the report published elsewhere.
Anything more lucid in arrangement, or more posi-
tive in deduction, could not well hare been desired
than the arrangement and the deductions which cha-
racterise this remarkable speech. The Right Hon.
Baronet restricted himself to the examination and
negation of the Railway Bill introduced by Lord
GEORGE BENTINCK. He expressly evaded the ques-
tion as to the most advisable measures to be adopted
by the Legislature for the moral and physical re-
demption of Ireland, and, considering the almost
idiotic extravagance of the plan then lying upon the
table of the House, it would have been equally inap-
propriate and injudicious to embarrass the immediate
subject of debate by plunging into a labyrinth so ex-
tensive and intricate. There was the political char-
latan, with his legislative nostrum, tarrying the
pleasure of the Commons and waiting, from the de-
cision of the popular representatives, either for his
triumphant installation in office, or for his ig-
nominious dismissal. Any complication of the
actual question would have been mal•a-propos
and unfortunate. Besides which there would
have been a mournful incongruity in the IMO..
ciatiou of the soundest opinions of statesmanship
upon the present condition of Ireland with anything
so irredeemably silly and preposterous as the Bentinck
proposition. Sir RonEaT PEEL, therefore, confined
himself to the utterance of his views upon the merits
of that proposition.
In deliberating upon the propriety of lending thepublic
credit to the extent of 16,000,0001., the ex-Premier
veryt naturally directed the attention of the represen-
tatives
Financial
in Parliament to the financial condition and
inancial prospects of the country at the moment
that extraordinary
act of munificenceis demanded.
HThoeusßight
then . accumulation Baronetespecifally reminded the
have latterly tended to ofetteer xig!ncies which
ments of the Government in reg:'rhde t motvhe-
o e
,mployment and distribution of the national