The Sun.
London, England, 1847-02-15 00:00:00

CROWN LANDS IN IRELAND.

The Marquis of WESTMEATH moved for various
returns relative to Crown lands in Ireland. He had
urged upon the Commissioners of Woods and Forests,
the propriety of bringing in a Bill to regulate the abuses
connected with these estates, but to the present time
nothing had been done. He now moved for a copy
of all communications that had passed during the last
five years between the Commissioners of Woods and
Forests and the agents and solicitor of the Crown lands
in Kilglass, county Roscommon.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE requested the Noble
Lord to give notice of the motion, which he had not
done, and he would then, to•merrow evening, see if he
could grant the information which he desired.
Lord WESTMEATH acquiesced iu the suggestion of
the Noble Lord.

Lord VIVIAN presented apetition cn the subject of the
Bishoprics of St. Asaph and Bangor.
REFORIi IN TIIE CHURCH.

Earl FITZWILLIAIi presented a petition from J.
Jordan, vicar of Ensham, in Oxford: the :principal
objects of the petition were, that an increase should
take place in the number of those engaged in the
ministry, and that the Bishops should be relieved
of all legislative duties in their Lordships' House.
He (Earl Fitzwilliam) did nut concur in the last sugges-
tion. The petitioner stated that there ought to be four
provinces and fifty-two dioceses, and that each diocese
should not exceed 500,000 souls, and when extended
over a large surface, not more than 300,000. The peti-
tion well deserved the attention of their Lordships.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE said that he was
sure the Noble Lord was aware that there
were many subjects in that petition which did not
properly come within the scope of their discussion,
He would, in a day or so, lay upon the table of the
House a report from a Commission appointed by her
Majesty to inquire into the state of the bishoprics in the
United Kingdom. The subject was one which deserved
the serious consideration of their Lordships.
RAILWAYS—STATE OF THE CURRENCY.
Lord ASHBURTON rose to move for the following
returns :—Capital stock authorised to be raised by rail-
way companies which have received the sanction of
Parliament during the last two sessions ;the amount
raised. laid out, and remaining unpaid ; suins autho-
rised and borrowed by the various railway companies 1
from their commencement to the present time, distin-
guishing the amount borrowed each year, and the rate
of interest paid by them. He said it was necessary that
their Lordships should be furnished with such a return
in order that they might be made acquainted with the
exact condition of the circulation of the country. It ap-
peared that there had been a great drain of
England
o t f ar y stride thfeerwe
bullion on thend barthugkosehf
heE
months past ; a
was any cause for alarm in the country, yet he could
bneoitnghetde uponstatingthata greater drain than ordinary was
the finances of the country. The
Government would be compelled to borrow large sums
of
money on Exchequer-bills to relieve the
distresses of Ireland ; and if this drain took railway purposes,
place forthey could not fail
to have much difficulty in doing so. Last year the Par-
liament advised that no railway projects should be en-
couraged save those required by the wants of the
country; but this year he thought they would do well, and
prevent the derangement of the currency of the country,
by confining their legislation during the present year to
such Bills as were necessary for thepurpose of remedying
any defects or
gap in the Bills already passed, instead of
entertaining
ally new projects. The great drain upon
the Bank of England by railways prevented the Govern-
ment from obtaining money so easily on Exchequer bills
as heretofore; and as money was required for more urgent
purposes, it was not right that they should derange the
finances of the company, and prevent them from being pro-
perly applied to a more legitimate and pressing purpose.
The Noble Lord said he would further move for a
return of the Public Securities held by the Bank of
England ; and of the amount of capital paid into the
Bank of England on behalf of railways, the rate of
interest paid on it, and the periods at which it was ro
spectively paid in and drawn out.
The Earl of CLARENDON said he regretted that
his Noble Friend who had just moved for certrin returns,
had departed from a very useful Custom observed by
their Lordships in not having given due notice of the re-
turns which he intended to move for. He believed his
Noble Friend had moved for returns of a very important
and comprehensive nature, and the Noble Lord bad ac-
companied his mention of them with some very'
important and useful remarks. Although he (Earl Cla-
rendon) had no objection to some of the returns which
had been moved for, but another part of the mo-
tion of the Noble Lord seemed to him to
affect most intimately the great public financial interests
of the country, and as fsr as the returns bore upon
these, he could not assent to their being granted with-
out due notice. Ile hoped the Noble Lord would post-
pone his motion to a future day.
Lord MONTEAGLE questioned very much the ex-
pediency of some of the returns moved for by the Noble
Lord being granted. He did not think the same ob-
jection lay against another part of the Noble Lord's
motion, such as a return for the amount of capital which
the different railway companies were authorised to
raise ; the amount which they had raised ; the amount
which they were empowered to borrow, and the amount
of borrowing power which they retained still unexhausted ;
these were returns to which there could be no possible
objection, for the companies themselves were obliged
by their own acts, to furnish these details to their
shareholders. But when the Noble Lord moved
for returns which would bear upon the rela
tion existing between the Government and the
Bank of England—when he moved for a state-
ment of the transactions between the Government
and the Bank, he did not think it was quite expedient to
grant such a return. He knew nothing more delicate
at a critical period, although the present was not in
his opinion, such a time, yet, at a critical period, he
knew nothing more delicate than to move for the
amount and extent of the public securities at present
in the possession of the Bank of England. This was
not, he admitted, one of those critical periods which he
had alluded to ; but the motion of the Noble Lord
would establish a precedent. Let their Lordships only
suppose a time when the exchanges should be against this
Lord BROUGHAM fully agreed with the Noble Lord
who had just spoken, that it was not expedient to move
for returns as to the public securities. As far as the
motion bore upon railway stock, the case stood very diffe-
rent, and he thought (he returns might be granted.
buying and selling stook out of doors, what were the