The Sun.
London, England, 1847-05-12 00:00:00

•
IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT
r.
The Royal &sent was given to-day, by Commission,
to the following Bills.—The Customs Duties Bill, the
Portland Ilarbeur Refuge and Breakwater Bill, the
Commons Inclosure (No. 2) Bill, the Prisons (Ireland)
Bill, the Harbours, Docks, and Piers Clauses Bill, the
Pile Piers Extensions Bill, the Ipswich Gas Bill, and
the Cheltenham Waterworks Bill.
The Lord Commissioners were the Lord Chancellor
the Marquis of Clarricardf-, and the Earl of Shaftesbury.
The LOY Cr 'V
001-

WORD CHANcELLoa to k his seat on the A\
seek at Five o'cleek.
MESSAGE FROM THE COMMONS.
Messeegers brought up Bills from the Commons.
THE FACTORY BILL.
Petitions in favour of this Bill were presented by Lord
ptanleY; Lord Wharncliffe, signed by 14;500 merchants,
actor), workers, and others; the Bishop of Oxford, from
in,raster manufacturers and factory workers in Bury and
f "'on ; and by Lord Brougham, from a number of
actory workers in Lancashire.
IMPERFECT FRAMING OF ACTS OF PAR-
LIAMENT.—LIBERTY OF THE SUBJECT.
I„.Lord BROUGHAM said he wished to call their
'aurthhiPs' attention to a subject on which he had
oftenbefore addressed them—namely, that nothing could
i) more slovenly, or a mere fruitful source of injury to
the Conemunity, and to suitors in courts of justice, than
theer imperfect mode in which many statutes were framed.
--le referred as well to public as to private Bills,
andintended to move for a return on the
b,,hject, owing to some circumstances which
recently come to his knowledge—that
there lurked in corners of local Acts clauses giving
tower to impose penalties of a nature which would never
Ve been tolerated if they had not been inserted in the
under cover of darkness. One of these objection-
able clauses
gave a constable power, if he found any per-
"in the street of any town, whom he suspected
either of having committed, or having any
intention to commit any offence, to take him into custody
lad to imprison him for forty hours, and if a policeman
thought that he (Lord Brougham)—(Laughter)—howlas
.
to commit an assault by seeing himhtafsint into
his hand up—(Laughter).—he might
ist4dy and imprison him for 40 . _ Now that_ would
'Pea great puishment for such a slight off Illere—(H, a ?
if he was found out after sunset and before eight in
the morning—and he might be out walking before seven
O'clock on a summer morning—if he was found loitering
about—(Laughter)—he was equally liable to a similar
term of imprisonment.
After a few words from Lord DErrararr and
_Lord
CAMPBELL the conversation dropp.
QUANTITY OF- WHEAT IN THE COUNTRY.
Earl HARDWICKE said that he wished to put a
question to the Noble Marquis (Lansdowne) of which
he had given him notice; and however the Noble Ma-
rquis might please to answer it—if he should answer it
14 a distinct manner it would be of great service to the
eountry—and if he should decline to answer the
silence
that he (Earl Hardwicke) should inter from his silence
the situation of this country in reference to its
supply of food was a bad one. He had been induced to
put this question to the Noble Marquis in consequence
of
4ig feeling a very strong impression on his mind that
one quantity of food in this country was not sufficient
t-susta, in the population, at the present rate of con-
:0-P40N-until the next harvest came on. He was led
that conclusion by seeing the very rapid decrease of
li:h:ttoiland finding that in the markets of this country—
in Oxford, Cambridge, and other places—that the coin-
Price Kith the farmers was so great as to raise the
of wheat during the past week from 965. per quarter
to 120 s. Upon further inquiry, he had placed in his hand
tandetuenent to which he begged to call the attention of
for although it was not what is usually con
sidered an u
official document, for unfortunately it was
nothing of
the sort, still it did appear that there were
ysorarae te persons who had endeavoured to ascertain, as se-
u ly as they might. the state and condition of this
coun-
ties and these persons bad written to all the coun-
iv— in England, for the purpose of ascertaining what
the
state of the country, and the quantity of corn
verb From that statement, to which he now begged
of shortly to refer, he collected -the condition
ss the counties in the worst state, and he could
W4_
orusre their Lordships, that those who were not in the
of condition were still very badly off. Two-thirds
thet
year since last harvest had already passed, and
therewere still four months to run before corn could be
bwrhoiue
nicati
brought into the market, and one-third of the produce
oetusght to remain was not here. He had commu-
wh fi
rcl:m a
b Mr. Playfair, in Scotland, on the sub-
turnstuL (The Noble Lord here read extracts from re-
teheeetv_ing that he
ehad received from several counties of
kh Scotland, and Wales, with the object of
counties
was about of
grain now was much under
114,441311 d quantity at this period of the year.) The
about one-third; whereas in all the
quarter's
referred to, with the exception of one, the
somber,er supply Was
r!llearheeelsytipapnyly was
about one-fifth, and, in a great
not more than an eighth, and in
at all. Under these circumstances,
matterght it was necessary to call public attention to the
cuminas he considered there was not a sufficient
coeuin " food for the population of this country till the
Opp zif harvest. He wished to know if the Noble Lord
the sue,te (the Marquis of Lansdowne) whether he was of
be
mrite ?Pinion, and whether he expecte.d there would
ne (LorrieLeut supply from foreign countries. As far as
head, 41ardwicke) could collect information on this
had, the continent of Europe there was little to be
roland and the countries on the banks of the
Danube, had but very limited stocks; the same was the
in
ty the countries on the Mediterranean and Black
Sea;ll their only hope was America, and there the probe-
of a supply was very small. If this were so, the
prospect was very dismal for this country, and he hoped
the greatest economy and care would be practised by all
Classes, in order that the country might be carried
through this trying period. It behoved all classes to cut
down every useless and superfluous luxury—that the
wheat would be ground up as a whole—and that no
starch would be used. lie trusted, also, that the landed
gentry, would use their influence in their respective
Counties, so that measures might be taken to keep the
corn from leaving the country.
Lord CAMPBELL said the consequence of the course
taken by the Noble Earl would be to excite what were
called meal mobs in Scotland.
The Earl HARDWICKE meant to do no such thing,
but he thought it his duty to bring the matter promi-
nently retitly before the notice of their Lordships. The Noble
reNoble
Marquis sat down by asking the question whether the
Marquis could state the supply of food in the country,
and also what was the quantity that might be expected
from foreign countries ?
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE said, in answer to the
Noble Earl, who had no doubt felt it his duty to bring
this subject before their Lordships, that Noble Earl
would admit that he (the Marquis of Lansdowne) would
exercise a sound discretion if he abstained, both on the
fart of himself and her Majesty's Government.
nom asserting anything like an opinion.
'Which would have the effect of misleading the
People or the trader. The Noble Earl had said truly
that the Government had no organised machinery by
,which they could become acquainted with the amount o'
min in the country. Every individual has the same
he--18 of collecting information as he himself bad or as
aiel.Cliesty's Government possessed on this matter, and
suniel.s folnra one was a more likely authority on such a
" extensive and accurate information than the
"'du 1
the' Et. to whom the Noble Earl had alluded. He die
Ofit proper to give any opinion on the sufficiency
inil amount of corn at present. But thus much le
end say in answer to the Noble Earl, that since the
into of harvest last year there had not been brought
ported this country very much more corn than was im
during the corresponding period last year ; so
ittlitunless the harvest yielded an equal return this year
couitalt° be presumed that the amount of corn in the
faCtiV: would not be sufficient. Yet, for the satis-
of the Noble Earl, he could state to him the enor-
mous amount--the increasing amount up to to this mo-
m:lent of importation of corn into this country. Up to
this Present moment the importation of corn was, for
January 661,000 qrs.
February
March
April 1,043,000
thereby indicating that in proportion to the increased
ainount of demand, and the press of that deficiencyof
which at the early part of this year the people of this
country bad but little warning' there had been a cor-
responding amount of importation to meet that deft
eiency. The same average amount of importation con-
tinned throughout the year would make an annual
importation of 9,000,000 of quarters. There was ano-
ther source of satisfaction to the Noble Earl, shoeing
the complete command of the market of the world which
this country had enjoyed ever since men understood
that no interference would take place with the course of
trade. Since that an increasing and unceasing action
bad been kept up, and since that. it had been well
now
that other countries had laboured under the
same evil—that in these large countries there had been
..„,,an increasing demand, so that the exports from the
United States to the whole of the world was 2,170.000
quarters, and of that amount no more than 500,000
iquarters found their way into the rest of the world,
leaving
to this country more than four times the
amount which had been sent to the rest of the nations.
Therefore he saw no reason for giving an opinion con-
trary to u that of those well acquainted with the question.
1"0 thought that there would be a sufficient supply for
ie,Le eOuntry.
treated ASHBURTON said the question was of the
011 ten importance in every point of view, but the reply
hi the
Noble Earl appeared to be less satisfactory to
sein-,,`'an it did to the Noble Earl ; for the additional
oesY of food to which he had referred bad had little
pr." effect upon consumption, upon demand, or upon
they The Indian corn crop was gathered late, and
herd `fore there might be some observation to come
a but he feared that the same would not
countries
to the wheat crops of America ; and the northern
Zbuuisnetroies of Europe were in a little better condition than
crops country both with regard to the potatoes, and green.
to
0---.1."e4r.) He called there Lordships attention
naturse things in
they order that they might see the exact
. they- ei• state of the country, and in order that
which ight knovv the exact nature of the calamity with
to deal. Evidence of the high price
441,n:tea rt el 'jet
y 1:4: od
at 120 s. a quarter.
'wl was to be found in the fact that
Lord
>UGH I'l toutnothing could be more
Ungeneroussaid
Cit,
0„ than attempts to conceal the fie of any se.
beifn food existing in the cow:, y. Had timely notice
01, giver, it might have prey a dearth from be-
nit mg a famine, by putting all cles-es of the commu-
.N,Yb, upon their guar.l. Much credit was due to the
e Earl for having drawn attention to the siehject.
" °_
country,_reign corn was to be imported into this country,
;PraCtight to be admitted without being subject t the
ce of bonding.
SOUPearl FITZ
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Govern-