The Sun.
London, England, 1840-02-04 00:00:00

had read the Journals be would have found hundreds—it
was the constant Parliamentary course for that House to
stop an action by commitment, and in all cases that course
had been found efficient.—( Cheers.) It was sup-
posed that the House was pursuing a very harsh course—
it was pursuing a strictly Parliamentary course, and if it
happened to be a wrong course, it was a course which all
Courts of Justice followed. The Court of Chancery never
permitted the acts of its officers to be questioned by any
other Court. He happened to have a brief in his
band on which was the name of his Honourable and
Learned Friend opposite ( Sir E. Sugden). In that
case a man was taken under an attachment from
the Court of Chancery. He complained of that,
brought an action, and laid his damages for 8,0001.,
but his Hon. and Learned Friend persuaded the Court of
Chancery to prevent that man from going on.—( Loud
cheers.) The House of Lords constantly stopped actions
by commitment. What would be the Sheriffs' position if
they yicided obedience to the House ? Would the Court
of Queen's Bench direct the Coroner to take
them? Whether the Coroner (turning to Mr. Wak-
ley) would have an appetite for that be did not
know (Loud laughter)—but he would suppose the
Coroner came to that House, and stated that he had writs
epithet the Sheriffs, to enforce the payment of a
sum of money which had been refunded by them
to Messrs. Hansard. That House would tell them
not to execute that writ. What would be the next
step ? The Court would grant an attachment
against the Coroner and the House, would desire the Ser-
geaat.at-Arms, if any person attempted to molest the
Coroner, to take them into custody, and therefore, instead
of the officer taking the Coroner, the Coroner would take
him.--( Cheers and laughter.) How was the Court of
Queen_s Bench to go on next? Why, they must stop,
and by that means alone would the privilege of the House
be maintained. That House was backed with every con-
stitutional power; it bad preserved its privileges and its
powers against a corrupt Court and a tyrannical House
of Lords ; and yet that House would, if it agreed to this
motion, surrender its constitution.—( Cheers.) That
was what it would do, and that under colour of
relieving two poor Sheriffs who had got into
difficulty. Let the House look at the largeness of
this question. The House, when it had Members deter-
mined to protect the people in the maintenance of its pri-
vileges, had prayed the Crown not to prorogue Parliament.
but to adjourn it, for its privileges were concerned.—
( Loud cheers.) Let not the Sheriffs suppose—let not
their advisers suppose, that that House was not armed with
power sufficient to render the maintenance of its privi-
leges effectual.—(Cheers.) The House could continue
the imprisonment ; and it would only follow the
example of previous Houses if it retook them in a
new Parliament.—( Cheers.) His Hon. and Learned
Friend had suggested legislation on the subject. He
(the Solicitor-General) should be glad if legislation could
be made effectual, but he was afraid not. He would ex-
press no positive opinion, because he would be sorry to
desert the hope that some mode might be found out. If his
Hon. and Learned Friend could suggest any course he
twould hail it with great joy, provided he did not destroy
he constitutiou and character of that House. Their first
duty was to preserve the Constitution entire, which they
would not do by sacrificing that House.—(Loud cheer-
ing.) His humble advice to the House was—" Mani-
fest to those who now treat you with contempt,
not in the way of anger—not in the way of resentment,
but like a high tribunal charged with a great and solemn
public duty ; satisfy those who are disposed to treat you
with contempt. What is the extent of your power until
your privilege is vindicated ? Do not discharge those
Sheriffs until they restore the money." He could limit
them to no other period;of imprisonment than that ; if they
thought fit to pay the money, and to rely on the Coutt
of Queen's Bench, let them do so, but let not that House
sacrifice; its duty. He lamented much the imprisonment of
any man for fifteen days, or even one, but he did not see
how the House could discharge the Sheriffs at that moment,
with the money in their pockets, defying the House, and
not even condescending to make an apology.—( Hear.)
Forsooth his Hon. Friend had said they ought not to be
asked to make an apology, for they had done no wrong.
What would have been the constitution of either House of
Parliament at the present moment, if its members had
always been so delicate? Why, the Speaker would not
have been in that Chair, nor would that House have been
exercising its functions at the present time.—( Cheers.)
Certainly, unless the House meant to detain the Sheriffs
until they had entirely submitted, he would say, " Don't
detain them an hour longer." Further, had he been in the
House when the motion was made for the commitment, he
would have said, " Don't commit them, if you don't mean
to vindicate your privileges, and to make their commitment
available for your constitutional rights."—( Hear.) He did
not know whether he had conveyed to the Heuse his own
view of the means by which that course of commitment
was to be effectual. When his Hon. and Learned Friend
opposite said this would fail and that would fail, he (the
Solicitor-General) would ask them to look back and to an-
ticipate the future by a well-grounded view of the past.
Would any man tell him that the powers which had
hitherto been effectual were now to fail ?—( Cheers.) He
was prepared to vindicate the privileges of Parliament by
Parliamentary authority. He was prepared to produce
authorities on any part of the case that was challenged.
He did not wish to occupy the time of the House by re-
ferring to Journals and other things, there being no parti-
cular part challenged. Of this (said the Solicitor-Gene-
ral) I am quite sure; you are now in the direct course of
precedent and Parliamentary law.—( Hear, hear, hear.)
You may go out of it if you please. Your ances-
tors found it effectual for maintaining the privileges
and constitution of Parliament—if you do not, it will be
your fault, and because you do not follow their example.—
(The Hon. and Learned Gentleman resumed his seat amid
loud and continued cheering.)
Sir EDW. SUGDEN then rose to address the House,
but in consequence of the noise occasioned by several Mem-
bers leaving, and the numerous cries of" Adjourn, adjourn,"
it was some time before the Honourable and Learned
Gentleman could proceed. He was quite willing, if it
were the pleasure of the House, to postpone the
few remarks he had to make to another occasion.--( Cries
of "Go on.") It was impossible for him to allow the
able and passionate appeal of his Hon. and Learned
Friend, the Solicitor-General, to pass without observa-
tion. His Hon. and Learned Friend had met the question
very fairly, and had made an explicit statement of what the
inevitable result of the present proceedings must be.—
(Hear, hear, hear.) The imprisonment of the Sheriffs
was to be perpetual unless they paid back the money.
Supposing the Sheriffs obeyed the House, the course
must be the committal of the Judges who would attach
the Sheriffs. Another case might and would arise where
the military must be called nut, not to maintain the law
and preserve peace, but to beard the Judges. And this in
defence of an alleged " privilege," which yet was denied
and opposed by the great majority of the people of Eng-
land.—( Cries of " No, no.") He repeated his assertion.
—( Cries of " Oh, oh," and cheers.)
Mr. PR YME moved the debate be adjourned, which
having been agreed to,

Locr'd MOR—PETlTbrought in the Municipal Corpora-
tions (Ireland) Bill, which was read a first time.

The House then adjourned.

PARLIAMEN TAR V BUSINESS.

Leave of Absence was granted to Lcrd Francis Eger-
ton, till 10th May; Mr. John Steuart, till Easter; Sir
Hugh Campbell, till Easter ; Mr. Rice Trevor, till
Easter ; Sir Stratford Canning, till •35th March ; Mr.
Wilson Jones, till Easter ; Mr. Burr, till Easter ; Lord
Viscount Lowther, one month ; Mr. Dawson Darner, one
month ; Mr. Brownrigg, till Ist March ; Mr. Maher, till
Ist May; Mr. Maxwell, three weeks; Mr. her, till
Easter ; Mr. Fazakerley, till Easter ; Sir Ronald Fer-
ga;on, till Easter ; Mr. Fitz Gibbon, one month ; Mr.
Henry White, one month ; Lord Viscount Duncan, till
Easier ; Sir Robert Bateson, till Easter ; Mr. Cayley,
s.x weeks.

CONTROVERTED ELECTIONS.
Act (2 and 3 Vic. c. 38) read; Mr. Speaker laid on
the table his warrant for the appointment of Members to
serve on the General Committee of Elections:—Warrant
read, as followeth : Pursuant to an Act passed in the Ses-
/ion holden in the 2d and 3d year of the reign of her pre-
sent Majesty, intituled, " An Act to amend the jurisdic-
tion for the trial ,of Election Petitions," I do hereby ap-
nnint Thomas Greene, Esq., Member f.,r Lancaster;
'William Miles, Esq , Member for the Eastern Division of
Somerset; the O'Connor Don, Member for the County of
Roscommon ; William Ord, Esq., Member for New.
castle-upon-Tyne; Edward Strutt, Esq., Member for
Derby ; and John Young, Esq., Member for the County
of Cavan—to be Members of the General Committee of
Elections for the present Session.
Given under my hand, the 3d day of February, 1540.
CHARLES SHAW LEFEVRE, Speaker.
Mr. Speaker then proceeded to read over the alpha-
betical list of Members; when Sir Francis Burdett,
William Ralph Cartwright, Esq., Edward Bolton Clive,
Esq., Sir Rufane Donkin, Abel Rous Dottin Esq.,
William Fielden, Esq., Thomas Houldsworth' 'q
William Gore Langton, Thomas Marsland, EAq"
James Oswald, Esq., Edward William Wynne Pendarv%s"
Esq., Right Hon. Sir William Rae, Right Hon. Si;
R chard Hussey Vivian, Right Hon. Charles Williams
Wynn, severally claimed to be excused from serving on
Election Committees, on account of their being upwards
of sixty years of age.
Sir John Campbell, Attorney-General, was excused
from serving on Election Coasmitteess until after Easter ;
and Lord John Russell, the ;Right Hon. F. T. Baring,
and Lord Viscount Palmerston, during the time they may
bold their respective offices.
The following Members appeared to be temporarily dis-
qualified from serving on Election Committees :—Thomas
Alcock, Esq., Sir Thomas Cochrane, and the Hon. Henry
Manners Sutton, as being petitioned against.
And the Hon. Hugh Cholmondeley, Hon. Charles
George Noel, George Frederick Muntz, Esq., Thomas
Wilde, Esq., Edward John Hutchins, Esq , Sackville
Lane Fox, Esq., Right Hon. Thomas Babington Macau-
lay, Henry Tufnell, Esq., and Benjamin Wood, Esq., on
account of their not having been returned fourteen days.

A MISTAKE.—When George 111., of blessed
memory, was being proclaimed throughout Ireland, the captain
of a yeomanry corps in a southern county, anxious to evince
his loyalty, turned out with his " raw materiel" in the market-
place, to burn the quantity of powder prescribed for such occa-
sions. The preliminaries went off in good style. The " carry
arena," " prime and load," &c. were faultless. Expectation
was on tiptoe for the finale. When lo ! the gallant comman-
dant, to make the thing more impressive, substituted—" Fire a
volley"—for the solitary word that usually trod on the heels of
—.4 present." He spoke to an auditory thoroughly Irish, and
confident that Ire a caulla" (off with ye) was the order of
the day, and accordingly off they pelted, " with shouldered
arms and charged fusils,' under the impression that the noble
captain's command was obeyed to the very letter.
EFFECTS OF DRUNKENNESS.—On Saturday
arom drunkenn es man named Gs, reen
in St. , while in a state of madness, arising
f, cut his throat, and other-
wise mutilated himself. He was conveyed on a stretcher from
the E division station-house to the hospital.
His Excellency Count Sebastiani does not pur-
pose leaving Manchester House, for Paris, until after the
Queen's nuptials. His Excellency and the Countess Sebastiani
r e expected to take their departure about the 25th inst.