The Sun.
London, England, 1849-03-01 00:00:00

IRISH POOR-LAW.

Sir LUCIUS O'BRIEN wished to ask the Noble Lord
at the head of the Government if it was his intention to
submit his plans for Ireland as a whole, or in parts, as
he, for one, could only vote for the third and fourth pro-
positions.
Lord JOHN RUSSELL said some of his proposals
were of a temporary nature, while others were of a per-
manent character, and it was his intention to separate
the two.

Mr. B. OSBORNE asked the Noble Lord if he had
any objection to say whether he would bring his plans
on to-night.
Lord J. RUSSELL replied that he would, provided he
could do so before nine o clock.
Mr. BRIGHT said the Noble Lord the Member for
Bath had a motion on the paper for to-night which it
was understood was to be disposed of without a debate.
Now he (Mr. Bright) intended to address some observa-
tions to the House on that motion, and he believed other

Hon. Ideukci inteutled Lo dO the Salne and he
therefore put it to the Noble Lord whether he
had not better postpone his motion and allow
the Irish question to come on, which was one of great
importance, and of a far more pressing nature.—(Hear.)
Could not some arrangement be made by which the
Noble Lord's motion could be brought on in a week or a
fortnight.—(Hear.)
Lord ASHLEY said he had already postponed his
motion more than once. He really could not consent to
the Honourable Gentleman's proposition.
Mr. J. O'CONNELL said he had twice postponed
motions to enable the pablic business to be proceeded
with, and he appealed to the Noble Lord at the head 01
the Government whether he ought not to intercede with
the Noble Lord the Member for Bath to induce him to
delay his motion.—(Hear.)
Lord JOHN RUSSELL did not see how he could
very well do so, the Noble Lord having already con-
sented once or twice to postpone his motion.—(Hear.)
IMPRISONMENT UNDER THE HABEAS
CORPUS SUSPENSION ACT.
_ _

In reply to a question from Mr. E. B. ROCHE,
Sir G. GREY said it was true that six persons had
been arrested and confined under the powers granted
by the Habeas Corpus Act. They were originally con-
fined on the debtor side of the prison, as an indulgence,
and not by any direct order from the Lord-Lieutenant,
but in consequence of some letters which were known to
be written by them appearing in the newspapers, the
matter was brought under the attention of the superin-
tendents, and they directed that they should be confined
in the criminal ►ide of the prison. Two had given a
pledge that thoy would not write any further letters to
the newspaper, but the other four had refused to do so.
The six prisoners were, however, confined in the best
cells of the criminal side.
TURNPIKE TRUSTS.

In reply to Mr. 058613. NE ,
Mr. C. LEWIS intimated that Marylebone and other
metropolitan turnpike trusts would come under the ope-
rations of the Act of which he had given notice: yester-
day to introduce.

AGRICULTURAL DISTRESS.

Mr. DISRAELI laid upon the table of the House the
resolution of which he had previously given notice with
respect to agricultural distress.
Upon the motion of an HON. MEMBER, the Clerk read
the resolution, which was to the following effect:—
That the whole local taxation of the country for
national purposes, was raised mainly, if not exclu-
sively, upon property; that it bore with undue
severity on the occupiers of land; that it was
injurious to the agricultural interests of the country
and was otherwise highly impolitic and unjust; that the
hardships of the apportioment, which was greatly ag-
gravated by the fact that more than one-third of the

whole revenue derived from the Excise was levied upon
agricultural produce, exposed us, by recent changes
in the law, to direct competition with the
untaxed produce of other countries ; that this
burden of taxation greatly balanced the price
and limited the demand of British produce and injuri-
ously interfered with the trade and industry of this
country; and that a Committee of the whole House be
appointed to take into consideration such measures as
might be required to remove the grievances of which
owners and occupiers of land justly complain, and with
the view to a more equitable appointment of the public
burden.

DIVISION OF ECCLESIASTICAL DISTRICTS.

Lord ASHLEY moved that an humble address be
presented to her Majesty, praying her Majesty to ap-
point a commission to inquire into the practicability and
mode of subdividing, into distinct and independent pa-
rishes, for all ecclesiastical purposes, all the densely
peopled parishes in England and Wales, in such
manner that the population of each, except in particular
cases at the discretion of the Commissioners, shall not
exceed four thousand souls.'The Noble Lord said, seeing
that it was the wish of the House that brevity should
be observed on all occasions, and as he believed no
opposition would be offered on the part of the Govern-
ment to his proposition, he should compress what he had
to say into the smallest possible compass. He knew ho
should thereby expose himself to much disadvantage,
because he should be compelled to omit much in-
teresting matter, which he should have wished
to present to the House, and possibly to the
charge hereafter, if nut having probed the evil sot-
ficiently deep ; yet he should adhere to the determina-
tion ho had followed, and occupy as small a portion of
the time of the House as was consistent with the im-
portance of the subject with which he had to deal. At
the outset he wished to state without reserve that his pro-
position would not, tither directly or indirectly, involve
any grant of public money.—(Hear, hear.) He be-
lieved he expressed the sentiments of thousands when he
stated that though they admitted the principle of
making demands upon the public purse when occa-,
sion rt qnired; that with respect to this matter
they were not disposed to seek any pecuniary
aid—nay more, they should be disposed to resist any
such demands until such time as the Church should have
exhausted the whole of her resources.—(Hear, hear.)
Therefore assenting to the proposition would not involve
any increase of the present amount of local taxation in
the form of church-rates. Moreover he wished it to be
understoood that the Commission would be instructed to
all existing rights, all existing incumbencies, which
would only be dealt with as vacancies occasioned by !
death or otherwise. No one who had looked at the con-