The Sun.
London, England, 1823-06-13 00:00:00

• •
nesaed 'before. lie arqntly eulngiatal the.aireccii of . his Soble
Friend (the Maniniartif 'fitelifield), on the preceding night,
which had clearly demonstrated the revoluthinary character.
t*f the present system. lie had shewn that persons of the
Highest rank and most ancient families here faat.losing-,the
Patrimony to which they had been born, anti werain many in-
stances unable to claim the 9tlvantages to which they were en-
titled by birth. Such beingytlie fact,- perseverance in the same
course must eventually reduce the House of !Artiste the situa-
tion of being liable to be called "the Housed Paupers." The
Constitution was therefore attacked by that of which he. Com-
plained, . for such a body as he :had supposed the.other.,Houetz.
might becqme, would not be fitted to transactilfat portion of
the public business which sow now Ject to the lionaeolleords.
But thy' House of ,Lords, besides a third estlite,riVKA a Cotirf of
Justice, before which, as a derhier resort, questions of property
he fitting that midi ilttekhint thtittld
Wire to be tried. Would it
be decided by a body who batmen tlespdiled of their wealth ?
it French Gentlernan of great tteateness, e‘s appeared from his
*erica, had come to England some time ago to study the forms
of British .Indicature. He lied ,eipecially. admired the , he-
reditary Aristocracy of England, as giving advaniages to
this country whidlt could ' nearer. be -realized in France.,
as that was etfectually prevented by the law which re.
uired the property of an individual deceased to be equally
divided alining all his sons. The measure now in operation,
went to destroy the hereditary aristocracy of the country, not
less effectually than would. such a, law ors that. of' France. Ile
proceeded at much length to describe the pf&setit depressed
state of the country. It was veiy. well for aliniltteill to say,
that if it were necessary, the country was in a situation to go
to war. Ile believed that it would be found exceedingly difil-
cUlt to raise enough in the present currency. by additional taxes
to carry on a wnr throUgh one or two campaigns. list assuming
that we were not called. upon to go to war at presenti he main:
tamed, as his Noble Friend had done on the preceding day,
that this was the time for regulating our.. affairs, so that we
might be prepared fur whatever might occur, for that nation
Was in a lamentable state which did not hold itself ready to act
its part in a war should it he. necessary. Ile read from an an-
cient Scotch law' a recognition of the principle On which he
contended. That principle had been also adopted in a French
degree, and had been acted upon. Hall thettintracts in France
had been regulated in, relation to the altered value of the as:
sigmas, might it not be possible to effect What he contended
for, an equitable adjustinent, be effected td etifinteract the
evils resulting from the change of 'etirrencY In England. Stith
'it principle had, in his opinion, been sanctidnOtt when the it
of the lath Charles 11. was framed Weenie all differences with
respect to the property of the City ref London in 1(P16. Thai
unparalleled calamity which, according to Stdarc, or those who
had continued his history, btu) coveittlit3o acrea with the ruins
of houses, of which no fewer than. 13,290 were destroyed.
Commissioners were then appointed to adjust the claims of
the sufferers. Now, if' the principle of an equitable ad-
justment were acted upon in .France, and in England after
the Fire of London, when the claims tei he satisfied were ne-
cessarily so difficult of proof and so &Infused front the de:
etruction of title-deeds anti other documents in most instancei,
he could not but think, that it might not, be possible to act up
on it with advantage. His Lordship went into a variety of '
statements to shew the necessity which existed for having re:
course to the measure which he had recommended. The prin:
ciple he maintained was of very ancient date, for it appeared
from Crasar's Commentaries and his Life, that after the wet'
between Ctesar and Pompey, money became sir acaree through
all Italy, that the people could not pay, their debts, even
though they stripped themselves of their all. Inconsequence
of thia state of things, Commissioners or Arbiters were clic:kelt
to effect an amicable adjustment between the parties.
hoped this Net • Would have some eflect on one Honourable
Alember of that }liaise, at least (3lr. 11. llanko;), who hail
published " 'The Citfi and Constitutional liihtory of 'tome,"
who had spoken in ;aorta to this effect :—" Caisar having un-
dertook this operation; itthlth was a wise and, salutary mea-
sure," 'or something like it: After this he' trusted that Hdrt.
Gentleman would not hesitate to Vote for the.cquitable adjust,
meat now suggested. In France the Prineipla had been adopt.,
ed not only by the French Iteedintittaista, hot in the time of
Louis X15.'., us also during the regency of the Duke of
leans. His 'Lordship considered this countrY to be at present
in a melancholy situation. In his opinion, therdistresa. of the
agricultural part of the community could not be exaggerated.
Ile could not anticipate relief from them: Wain any ,MOderate
period, and eventually it could OnlY ,otrOlded turoottil
still greater 'calamity to others a, dituunition hi* Inti Part food,
' if no remedy were applied of the kind which he had euggeited.
If a seareity.of- grain were experienced, would be Much
to be deplored, its it would have, the eft:ttet of driving the
English people to imitate the Irish •by Hyingt, upon potatocx.
That this was an evil he was conYificed,,ana it had afrorded
him pleasure to and that it had been T401;1474 as *such in that
noose. In COaCiasion, his LOrdallip Sai4ill4 414,' nut under-
stand the objections raised against the, adjttstipent.wbieh he was
about to proptise, us he desired nothing to be done yhielt, wits
not really and truly equitable. 114 concluded by inovlng, as
an amendment to the motion before the tiouse, the addition of
the following words : " Anil to consider further of the expe-
diency of providing some eeetedy for the said . eVile ; and,
among others, to consider of the preetitability of establishing
an equitible adjustment of contracts."
lilt. Secretary PL'Ele, after the full debate Which. this strlie
ject had received in the last two, nights,.' and after We repeatea
discussions which had previously taken place, felt thrtt it
would be quite unwarrantable in him to trouble„ the Hindi
with a atingle preliminary obeervation, anti that his centldct
would be exceedingly. reprehensible, if. he were not at once
considerations which must
to addreas himself' to those main
' proposed that, at
influence every one on this important occasion. The Ilon.
lir 11eef for Essex had proposed, on the 12th June, that a
Committee should be appointed to entertain a number of the
nd cocomplicated inquiries that could occupy
body of lie um. tnlheostainfeTiticonnt°olS ay
of any
this taifitel of the Session, the Committee should "lake into its
comadefation the various changes whiciaiad.taken.place in the
value Of the currency since 1793, and the effects produced by the
reformation of the currency_ on the money income of the coun-
try derived from industry." He confessed that if he were in
the Cdminittee he should not know what was meant by "the
effects produced on the money income of the country derived
from industry," nor how that Income derived from industry
was td be distinguished from income Wowing nut of other
sources. The Committee was also '6 to consider of the opera.:
tion of the taxes pressing on the arionied income; but. abofe
all, it was to inquire into the effects produced by the change
in the currency on the money contracts of the country."—
Now, he would ask, was it FOSSible to consider of all these
subjects, and to come to any decitsion on them in the course of
the present Session ? They rdighl prolong the Session two
months if . they pleased, and suit to come to any decision
VII all these questions would be impracticable. He begged
to remind those who favoured this motion, that the
donts° hail three times in three Sessions decided that it
would not interfere' with the 'treasure Of Mit In ordinary
cases the diction of 'the House' aguitat a )particular motion
was not to be considered any bar te, the bringing forward of'
that motion again. But the present was no' ordinary ease.—
Individuahr had been induced to regulate chef, ebncerns by the
dettrin?natibn which the House had avowed, and now to take
a different course would be to shake all confidence in them,
and to make the public feel that no' dependence could be placed
on their Reeolutions. Ile would now apply himself to these
considerations. First, Did the general interests of' the country
require a revision of the currency; and, secondly, Had indi-
vidual interests been so injuriously and unjustly affected by
the ref6Yrnation of the cuirrettey, as to Lipid the House
ax, a duty the task of attempting to effect an' espaitable ad-
juitment of contracts which had been made. By the gene-
ral interests of the country he meant those of the manu-
facturing, the commercial, and agricultural classes. Now,
was there any ailing in the' tirosent situation of the manu-
facturing and contmercial inteiestit which required a revision of
the currency? He might even ask the same question with re-
spect to agriculture. With respect to the manufacturers, was
it possible for the Honourable ()exult-111ms opposite not to ad-
mit that their former predictions (much their satisfaction he
had nOtloubt), had been falsified by the eVeni? Ile wax inclined
to think that many persons in this caner*" were disposed to
be too desponding.
Ve were hypochondriac, and apt to think
our Constitution worse then it was, and while the resources
and )lower of England were the edniiration of all the world,
we often supposed ourselves reduced to a state of despera:
den, and involved in difficulties to which no remedy could
be supplied. He Would ask the Members of that House to
look at the state of °ter commerce anti manufactures; and
see if they presented not decisive indications of the greatest
prosperity. Ile knew that some Gentleman mig.lit get up
and answer him by stating that ho was connected with some
part of the ciaintry which was not in tt flourishing state with
respect to corethierce otr.manufactaires. But he wished to take
mime general standard by whiCh they might judge of the
present from the former state of the country. lie, with this
view, would direct the attention of the House to the year
1817, a period antecedent to the passing of that much abused
law, the Act of 1817.--(Hear, hear!)—He undershoot that cheer
from the Learned Gentleman. He kneat that he meant to'inti-
mate that the same causes were then in operation which were
now felt. This he (Al r. Secretary Peelymost fully admitted, but
where then were the groutide fethe'clamour raised against the
Act of 1819 ? Before the owing of that Bill the swene'evils
had been felt. and these lie contended were of necessity
produced by that state a timings which followed the Bank
Itet"ictit'n Act at. 1797. TO show what the situation of the
country had been in IklY7, he would refer to a most able
speech then made by the Honourable and Learned Gentle-
man opposite. To this he should turn as to a valuable re-
cord of the distress which then existed in the manufacturing
distriets. The argument now walla that the change in. the' ,