The Sun.
London, England, 1840-05-01 00:00:00

IRELAND.

The Marquis of WESTMEATH wished to ask
the Noble Viscount (Melbourne) opposite a question.
A new and intense system of agitation had commenced
in Ireland for the purpose of severing that country
from Great Britain. The Noble Viscount must of
course be aware of the motives assigned for that
agitation, which were that the other House of the Le-
gislature had thought fit to entertain a Bill brought in
by the Noble Lord (he believed) the Member for North
Lancashire. He believed the Noble Viscount
would not deny that ho had the support of
the Honourable and Learned Gentlemen who ex-
cited the agitation, and who on this occasion
and most others professed that he alone understood the
interest of Ireland, and what might be considered justice
to that country. The nature of the Bill would be best
understood by reference to the three volumes of
Reports on fictitious votes in Ireland, which lay on
their Lordships' table, and which exposed a catalogue
of systematic crime never exceeded, if even equalled,
in atrocity by any book in the English language,
except the Ncwgate Calendar.—(Laughter.) The
Irish public were informed that, unless the Legisla-
ture ceased to entertain that Bill, the Union between
the two countries was to be repealed. The gentleman
to whom he referred had many times professed his ob-
ject of repealing the union, and since he had publicly
avowed that object, the Nob!e Viscount opposite had
been accused in that House, and bad not denied the
charge, of offering. to that gentleman a very
high legal office. The gentleman himself fre-
quentiy boasted that such a situation was offered to
bins by the Noble Viscount, and as that boast was not
contradicted, he must suppose that it was well founded,
The gentleman took upon himself to call to account
every Member of the House of Commons who did not
choose to follow in his wake in that blind support of the
Government, without which, as everybody knew, Go-
vernment could not exist five minutes. He felt called
upon to ask the Noble Viscount whether he would avow
the confederation which existed between him and
the Honourable Gentleman, and whether, in con-
formity with the oath which he, in common with
every other Peer of that House, had taken, he
had told his Sovereign what would be the effects of the
refusal upon the empire at large, and what would be
the effects of the present agitation upon Ireland itself ?
He wished to ask the Noble Viscount whether the law
officers of the Crown had been hstructed to attend
those, meetings, either themselves or: by their agents,
for the purpose of instituting prosecutions with respect
to them ? Those meetings had been advertised to take
place, in the Irish Papers ; and, therefore, it was im-
possible for her Majesty's Government to say they were
not aware of them.

Viscount MELBOURNE was quite aware of the
system of agitation which the Noble Marquis had said
had lately commenced in Ireland. That agitation was
certainly not new ; it was an old system of agitation
'newly revived, and it was not quite so intense as it had
been on former occasions.—(Hear.) With respect
to the question, whether he disapproved of it or not,
he had only to say that he had always disapproved of
proceedings of a similar nature. With respect to the
confederation to which the Noble Marquis had referred,
as there existed no such confederation, there could be
no intention of continuing that which did not exist.
With respect to the advice that had been given to her
Majesty on the subject, that was a question on:which he
could not give a specific or precise answer.—(Hear.)
The Marquis of WESTMEATH said that it was
only necessary to refer to the newspapers to see that
such confederation did exist.
Lord HOLLAND rose to order—lt was a
most disorderly proceeding, to refer to newspapers
when questions were put in that House.
The Marquis of WESTMEATH said if he was a
member of her Majesty's Government, he should be
exceedingly sorry to get rid of questions such as he had
put in such a meow.
BUENOS AYRES.

Vise/mat STRANGFORD wished to know from the
Noble Viscount, whether he had received any commu-
nication from France ancouncisg their intention of dis-
patching a considerable military force to Bueynos Ayres.
Viscount MELBOURNE replied that no such in-
timation hall been received.