The Sun.
London, England, 1847-03-29 00:00:00

EMIGRATION.

Sir JOHN WALSH said 11e-11ad observed that the
Colonial Emigration Commissioners had published in their
`• Colonisation Circular" several extracts from the agents
resident in the colonies, and that all the reports concurred
in representing that there was a very large and in-
creased demand for labour springing up is all the co
ionic's. He, the, efore, wished to know whether the Hon.
Gentleman the Under-Secretary for the Colonies would
have any objection to lay on the table of the House the
whole of the reports from w hich the extracts
had been collected, and w bother there were any
other reports or correspondence with the colonial
authorities which might throw additional light upon
this matter ?
Mr. HAWES said the reports from Canada, from
which extracts had been made, had been printed in ex-
tense, and placed on the table of the House. With re-
gard to other reports from Australia and other colonies,
the extracts which had been made contained all that
was valuable. There was nothing more in them bearing
upon the subject. They would, therefore, be of no
value if produced in ertenso. There was, however, no
objection at all to produce them. The lion. Baronet
was correct in stating that a demand for labour had
sprung up.
SECONDARY PUNISHMENTS.

Mr. HUME wished to ask the Hon. Gentleman a
question with reference to a subject which had been
greatly discussed in that House—namely, secondary
punishments. He understood that a committee of the
Council of New South Wales had collected a
vast deal of evidence on the subject, and had made a
report. He wished to know whether there would be
any objection to produce the report and the evidence—
the evidence especially, as he believed the report went
far to modify the opinions entertained with respect to
transportation ?
Mr. HAW ES said that no official information had
been yet received of the proceedings of that committee
at the Colonial-office.
PROTESTANT CHURCH AT JERUSALEM.
Lord PALMERSTON, in answer to an Hon. Mem-
ber, said that those who had charge of the money
voted by the late Government for the building of this
church, had embarked in a more extensive plan than had
been at first proposed, and the consequence was that
they had spent all the money which had been vcted, and
a considerable sum in addition. The propriety of giving
an additional sum for the erection of the church was
under the consideration of the Government.
POOR LAW—WESTMINSTER.

Sir DE LACY EVANS wished to ask the Right Hon.
Gentleman the Secretary for the Home Department if
the proceedings of the Poor-law Cfanmissioners with
regard to the poor-law guardians of St. James's, West
minster, had received the sanction of the Home-office ?
Sir G. GREY said that he believed that the Poor law
Commissioners had no direct sanction, but they had ob-
tained the opinion of the Law Officers of the Crown.
and they had, no doubt, communicated the substance of
it to the different boards cf guardians, pointing out what
they considered to be the legal construction of the Act.
RELIEF WORKS (IRELAND).
On the order of the day for resuming the Committee
on the Irish Poor Relief Bill being read,
Mr. W. S. O'BRIEN desired to draw the attention of
the Government to the dismissal of labourers from the
public works in Ireland. It had beea intimated in
the Right Hon. Gentlemen the Secretary fur Ireland's
letter, that this dismissal should not take place until
other measures should have been adopted, such as the
temporary relief Bill. It appeared, however, that in
various parts of Ireland the labourer had been dis-
missed before any such arrangement had taken place.
He had received a letter from a Protestant clergyman
in the county which he had the honour to represent,
which stated that, not only had the engineers, but the
labourers, been dismissed from the public works, the
consequence of which would be most fatal. He
wished to know, were the Government prepared
to lay down any definitive principle upon which they
could act. As to the originalliproposition, no one could
complain of it; but he would press this matter on the
attention of the Right Honourable Gentleman. The
dismissal of so large a number of the people without
providing subsistence of any description was nothing
less than consigning those so dismissed to starvation.
Mr. LABOUCHERE said that the statement he had
made on a former occasion was that the rule which the
Government had laid down for itself was, that it being
expedient and proper to decrease the number of people
employed upon the public works—on a certain day the
number of persons employed upon those works in Ireland
should be reduced by 20 per cent. on the aggregate
amount. They had left to the Board of Works in
Ireland a discretion as to whether they should in
each particular instance strike off 20 per eent. of the
persons employed in the distriets. The Board of Works
had, in order to meet the views of the Government,
struck off only 12 per cent. in many districts, and had
increased the dismissals in others. He held in his hand
a letter from Captain O'Brien, which stated that though
a great many persons had been struck off from the pub-
lic works, yet the decrease of 20 per cent. had not been
enforced upon all districts. He was satisfied that,
considering the difficulty of so great a change,
the reduction had been carried into effect in
a most satisfactory manner, and without disturbance,
• xcept in one or two instances. The reduction had been
the more easily effected in a partial manner as there
were many persons upon these public works who ought
never to have been placed there at all. The result of
the reduction would be a beneficial effect upon
the;lcondition and cultivation of the country.
There wus another point referred to by the Hon.
Member. It was that, in many cases the parties em-
ployed were suddenly discharged from the public works,
giving them no time to obtain assistance from the Electoral
Division Committee& With reference to this he would
call their attention to a letter which had been received
from Colonel Jones the chairman of the board of public
works, from which be would read an extract. The Right
Hon. Gentleman read the extract, which was to the
effect that sufficient time had been afforded to
the parties discharged, to find employment under
the new arrangements of the electoral divi-
sion committees. The object which the Governmen,
to effect the change in a manner as
littleh
lao).m
d in
et viewt
o
calculatedi was
fthe
as possible to interfere with the em-
p people. The Hon. Member had also
stated that no means were afforded tor the finishing
of public works that were necessary to be
completed. He (Mr. Labouchete) begged leave to state
that this was not the case. It was arranged that any
works that now required completion should not be pro-
ceeded with without the concurrence of the Treasury.
The only difference was that any presentments made for
the finishing of public works, instead of being referred
to the Lord-Lieutenant for confirmation, should be sent
over to the Secretary for tile Home Department for his
approval.
Sir A. BROOKE wished to know whether it was the
intention of the Electoral Division Committees to sus-
per& the public works altogether ? If so, then
he
of makingw oultl
some a
rerna n
gt he
me e
nGt Government nme
whichn t tnh
je
nenxepe
odi ie n
joel
yy
the unemployed might again be put to labour on public
wo rks.Thatwas the most critical time of the year, when
tdr
ee d
somethingproprietors
shocouuld be ldlodtoenme
to employ the
thep:ople and
tHe also wished to know whether it was the ietention of
difficulty
t he Government to establish soup kitchens in all the.
lectoral divisions throughout Ireland? He took the
11 bcrty of suggesting the establishment of soup kitchens,
hheerleatn'o
be cause he believed that they were both economical and
adi tantageous. He himself had kept three or four in active
operation during the winter, besides giving the people
in lais locality rice.—(Hear.) But in the remote districts
it was almost impossible to get places for them, and to

obtain the supervision of respectable farmers. He recom-
mended the distribution in such localities f meal and rice,
as be had found that lib. of rice and IP. of meat made
131ns. or 141bs. of good nutric:ous fooo—far superior to
"stir-about." We, therefore, took the lib( rty of recon-
mending the Government to consider, in carrying out
their plans for affording relief, whether it would not.
be admissible to distribute meal and rice, in certain
proporti,,us, according to the wants and numbers of t.':e
families. He a-ked these questions, and made these
recommendations, bec..use he wished to know the in-
tentions of the Government before he proceeded to
Ireland.

Mr. LABOUCHERE replied the it was the inten-
tion of the Government, as soon as the Relief Act came
into operation, to reduce the number of persons em-
ployed on the public works as speedily as possible.
With respect to his recommendation with regard
to the distribution of meal and rice, he could
only say that the dispensation of relief had been
put in the hands of the Relief Commissioners, and that
its nature would vary according to circumstances ; he
believed that it would be admitted under the most judi-
cious arrangements. As the Hon. Gentleman was
going to Ireland, he recommended him to favour the
Poor Relief Commissioners with a visit as they would be
happy to
-avail themselves of,his experience.—(Htar.)