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

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LONDON, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 1847.

The House of Commons met 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
w( re 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 6RAWFORD, 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. BORTHWICK supported the second reading of
the Bill.

Sir R. IL Ixamts 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 detidedly in favour of the Bill.
Lord EBRINGTON and Mr. NEWDEGATE were both In
favour of the measure.

Mr. MARSLAND was in favour of giving the labouring
classes more tim.p 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. SiAw and Mr. LABOACIIERE 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. BIUGUT 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
Against it
The House then divided upon the question " That the
word now' stand part of the question"—when there
appeared—

For the word " now" .. 195
Against it
Majority —loB
Ater which the House adjourned.

Our expectations as to the generosity 2nd humanity
of Parliament in sanctioning the second reading of
the Ten Hours' Factory Bill have been virtually
realised. The consequence of that emphatic decision,
especially considering the magnitude of the majority,
108, must inevitably be the final acceptation of the
measure. Like the Honourable CILARXES VILLIERS,
in regard to the abrogation of the corn-laws, Mr.
FIELDEN is at length witnessing the triumph of the
cause which he has so consistently, so continually,
and so energetically advocated, and he is witnessing
its triumph in the scene of such boisterous and re.
peated discomfitures, namely, the Legislative Cham-
ber at Westminster. Somewhere about this time
twelve months ago it was our pleasant duty to offer
our congratulations to the Honourable Gentleman
the Member for Wolverhampton on the success
of the principles which his eloquence and ardour had
at one time almost singly sustained against a for-
midable and apparently unconquerable .opposition. It
is now our agreeable duty to tender equally cordial
gratulations to the Honourable Gentlesrnan the repre-
sentative of Oldham. Throughout an opposition,
than which there has never been a stormier, Mr.
FIELDEN has maintained his position unflinchingly,
unscared by contumelies, undaunted by numbers, un-
appalled by the most inimical divisions. He has
laboured not at the behest of any potent or influen-
tial party, not for the furtherance of his own pecu-
niary interest, not for the acquisition of any mere-
tricious popularity—but for the poor, for the helpless,
for the destitute women and children of Great Britain.
Aided by the philanthropy of Lord ASHLEY, and a
worthy corps of fellow-labourers in those fields of
suffering and abandoned humanity, Mr. FIELDEN I
has striven against ridicule, against argu-
ments, and against the combined influence of a
powerful, because opulent, body of opponents.
Happily, however, his exertions are approaching their
termination ; the boon for which the voices of so many
thousands have appealed in vain, is in a fair way of
being granted by the Legislature. Having declared
themselves so decidedly in favour of the compulsory
restriction of labour hours, the representatives of the
people cannot with any decency retrograde in their
movement of benevolence.

In the success of the Ten Hours' Bill our gratifi-
cation is altogether unalloyed. By its approval no
individual interest is sacrificed for the advantage of
the minority, no political engagements are broken, no
one principle is abandoned for the trial of some
merely specious legislative experiment. We have
observed that no individual interest is sa-
crificed for the advantage of the minority,
and we enunciate that opinion deliberately, from our
conviction that the emolument of the masters cannot
in any degree be diminished through the diminution
of the time allotted for work to the female and infant
operatives. Under the existing regulation the ener-
gies of those operatives are incessantly crippled by
their constant vigilance and occupation; and we are
persuaded that it would baffle the arithmetical cape-