The Sun.
London, England, 1840-05-19 00:00:00

CHURCH EXTENSION.

Mr. HUME wished to ask the Hon. Baronet the Mem-
ber for the University of Oxford whether he could state
to the House the exact nature of the motion he intended
to make on Thursday next relative to Church Extension,
and whether he intended to propose a vote of money
or not.

Sir R. INGLIS would answer the question to-morrow.

STEAM-VESSELS ANWPILOTS.

Mr. MACKINNON wished to ask the President of the
Board of Trade a question in regard to steam-vessels. The
Commission appointed on that subject had reported that all
steam-vessels navigating coast-ways, where the voyage did
not exceed 24 hours, and having competent persons on board,
should be exempt from taking a pilot, and he wished to
know whether it was the intention of her Majesty's Govern-
ment to take any steps in consequence of that report.
Mr. LABO LTC HERE would be most willing to bring
in a Bill on the subject of pilotage generally. A general
measure of that description would be desirable, but after
the vote which the House came to upon a Bill in-
troduced two years ago by Mr. Poulett Thomson,
which he believed to be perfectly sound in priu.
ciple, until he saw an altered feeling in that House and
a more general disposition on the part of Members repre-
senting certain places to suppress local interests in favour
of a measure for the general good, he thought he should
be but needlessly occupying the time of the House if he
were to ask them to consent to any such measure.
CANADA.

Mr. Sergeant JACKSON wished to ask whether it was
the intention of the Noble Lord, the Secretary for the
Colonies, to fix any day for the Bill relating to Canada?
Lord JOHN RUSSELL intended to bring forward
that question on Friday se'nnight.

Mr. BAINES wished to ask the Noble Lord, the Secre-
tary for the Colonies, whether he would have
any objection to lay upon the table of the House
the Report made by the Poor-law Commissioners
and Guardians respecting religious instruction in the
country. It was calculated to throw much light upon
the expected debate on Thursday.
Lord JOHN RUSSELL was not aware that he had
any such Report in his possession.
Mr. GOULBURN begged to ask the Noble Lord
when he intended to proceed with the Poor-law Amend-
ment Act?

Lord JOHN RUSSELL could not then state the day
on which he would be able to proceed with those Bills.
The order in which he intended to proceed was this. He
would take the Committee on the Canada Bill first, and
as Monday next was her Majesty's birth-day, Friday
was the first day on which it could be taken. He
would they proceed with the Ecclesiastical duties and
Revenues Bill, and then he would take the Bills relating
to the Poor Laws.

Mr. AGLIONBY wished to ask the Noble Lord
whether it was the intention of the Government
to bring in a measure for the establishment of County
Courts.
Lord JOHN RUSSELL had frequently told the
House that the Lord Chancellor wished him to postpone
the bringing in of that Bill, as the subject was then under
the consideration of the law officers. He had not had
any communication with the Lord Chancellor on the
subject, and could not at that moment answer the question.

IRISH REGISTRATION BILL.
Lord STANLEY moved the Order of the Day for
going into Committee on the above Bill, when petitions in
favour of the Bill were presented by Mr. Shaw ; Colonel
Vernon, from Armagh ; Sir Robert Bateson, from
eleven places in various counties in Ireland ; and Mr.
Dunbar, from Belfast, signed by 9,800 persons. Petitions
against the Bill were presented by Mr. Sheil, from
the county of Tipperary ; Mr. Hume, from Kilkenny, and
other places; Mr. D. Callaghan, from Cork; and by Mr.
M. O'Ferral.

Lord NIO R PET H presented petitions from two towns
holding the first rank in either that country or in Ireland
—they were from the towns of Liverpool and Belfast :
they had been both adopted at public meetings, that from
Belfast being signed by 8,000, and that from Liverpool by
upwards of 16,000. Both of them very emphatically
prayed that the Irish Registration Bill might not pass.
Mr. BARRON presented two petitions from Waterford
against the Bill.
Lord SANDON presented a petition from Liverpool,
agreed to at a public meeting, and signed in the course of
Oree days by 23,137.—': fory cheers.) To about 20000
of these the profession and place of residence were affixed.
He could fearlessly say that it was the most respectable
as well as the most numerous that had ever emanated
from that town.—(Hear, hear.) They prayed the
House to go into Committee on the Registration
Bill, and not to allow factious opposition to prevent the
third reading. The petitioners stated that the opposition
to it was personal, fraudulent, and mistaken—personal be-
cause it had been brought in by a particular individual
—fraudulent, because it was opposed, on the pretence of
keeping the franchise extended, the real object being to
permit the introduction of fictitious votes—and mistaken,
because it was founded on misapprehension of the prin-
ciple of the Bill.—(Cheers.) The petition, which was
of enormous size, was then carried up to the table
from the bar by Lord Sandon and Mr. Cresswell,
the two Members for Liverpool, amidst loud cheers from
the Opposition benches.
Petitions against the Bill were presented by Sir Win.
Somerville from Tyrone, Mr. V. Stuart from Waterford,
and Mr. M. J. O'Connell from three places in Kerry.
Lord STANLEY then moved that the Speaker do
leav3 the Chair.
Lord JOHN RUSSELL said he believed the motion
of the Hon. Member was a little informal, and that he
should have moved that the House should resolve itself into
Committee on the Bill.
Lord STANLEY replied, he believed his motion was
correct.
The SPEAKER assented.

On the motion being put,
Sir W. SOMERVILLE said, in rising to move that
the House should go into Committee that day 6ix months,
he addressed the House with more than ordinary
diffidence, because he believed this was the most important
occasion on which he had ever presented himself to the
notice of the House, but he trusted the vast importance, of
the occasion, and the mighty interests that were at stake,
the inconzeivable constvtenees which he conseielitiQustv

believed would follow the adoption of the Bill of the
Noble Lord, would obtain for him the indulgence
of the House while he endeavoured to state
the reasons which had induced him to undertake the task
which he was just commencing. He thought it would be
necessary, if the House would allow hire, more particu-
larly as he knew that much misapprehension existed on this
subj-ct, and as he had seen put forward in that House, in the
petition just presented by the Right Hon. Baronet, and em-
bodied in other petitions presented, and in statements made by
different Members the House would naturally be lead;
and he knew that such an impression existed out of doors,
that the constituency of Ireland were so numerous, and of
so low an order, that property, respectability, and intelli-
gence were altogether overborne ; and that such a sate
of things called for active measures on the part of the
House to provide an immediate remedy. He therefore
begged the attention of the House to what the
facts were and would in a few words strike the difference
in numbers between the population and constituencies of
England and Ireland. In England the rural population
was eight millions and a half ; the constituency 344,000.
The rural population of Ireland was upwards of seven mil-
lions—the constituency not 60,000. This was remarkable,
but it was not enough for his purpose. He admitted with
regret that the difference in wealth between the two
countries was very great, and he would there-
fore enter more into detail.-4 Hear, hear, hear.)
He would be the last person who would wish to mislead
the House. And he would therefore think it his duty to
state nothing which he had not taken every pains to make
himself well informed on. He would state nothing
to the House which ho could not verify by official
documents. He would therefore confine himself particu-
larly in his statements to the counties of Meath and of
Louth, inasmuch as they were the counties in which he
resided, and on which it might be supposed he would be
able to afford the House the most correct information. The
Population of the county of Meath in 1821 was 159,000.
The population in 1832 was 176,000, showing an increase
of 17,000. Suppose the population had gone on increasing
in the same ratio, they would find that the population of the
county of Meath amounted at the present moment to about
190,000. At the registry which had taken place after the
passing of the Reform Bill the constituency was 1,570 ;
but he could state to the House, from documents on which
he could as confidently rely as on anything which was not
certainly known, that the population now about to be re-
gistered would amount only to 1,350 ; thus showing a de-
clining number of voters with an increasing population.—
(Hear.) When they saw such a state of things—when
they saw a declining constituency with an increasing
population, and that population increasing in wealth and
intelligence, they should see at least that they should not
proceed with any measure in a harsh or hasty manner, and
that the Noble Lord had not made out a prima facie case
for going into Committee aris;ng from the fact of the re-
gistry being overloaded by fictitious voters who had made good
their claims by fraud and perjury. But let them see farther
what tvas the state of those constituencies. Was the voice
of intelligence overborne in the county in question? Not
at ail. The constituency of the county of Meath was
composed as follows :—there are of 501. and 201. voters,
712 ; and of 101. voters, 810. Now, could it be said the
property was there overborne by number.; ? Let them next
look to the case of Dublin. There were in that county
4,165 voters, and of these there were 2,745 501. and 101.
rent charges, and 1,420 10/. voters. This, he thought,
showed nothing which could bear out the state-
ments of the Noble Lord, and imposed on tire
House the necessity of proceeding with caution
before they went on with a Bill of pains and of
penalties such as that introduced by the Noble Lord.
It showed, he believed, that they should proceed with
forbearance and with prudence, and that the animus which
should direct them ought not to be to restrain and
restrict, but as far as possible to encourage
the registration of voters, and to remove those obstacles
which it was very evident now existed against them.
The Noble Lord would perhaps say that there were abuses
in the present system. Undoubtedly there were. So
there would be in any system ; and so there would be in
every human system. But the object should be to throw
difficulties only in the way of the fictitious voter, and to give
every facility for the honest and bona fide voter.—(" Hear,"
from the Opposition.) Having now exposed the erroneous
ideas entertained of the existing state of the Irish consti-
tuency—he would now proceed to the plan of reform re-
commended by the Noble Lord. He could sincerely
declare that he was not influenced in his opposition
to the Bill by any personal feeling against the Noble
Lord.—(Cries of " Hear, hear, hear.") On the con-
trary, he should rather be disposed to give greater
consideration to any measure coming from so distinguished
a Member.—( Hear, hear.) He opposed the Bill upon
public grounds, and because he was convinced that every
one of the Noble Lord's provisions would tend to cripple
and to impair the franchise.—( Hear, bear.) He would
not occupy the House for any time, but would confine his
observations to the two main principles of the Bill. Upon
those two principles he considered himself fully warranted
in objecting to the House going into Committee, and pro-
posing as an amendment that they should go into Com-
mittee on that day six months. \Vhat was
the process which the Noble Lord proposed by
this Bill ? The unfortunate claimant under the
present system was obliged to appear before the
Assistant Barrister to confront attorneys, agents, and
overseers, to be examined, and cross-examined, or, to
use an expression familiar in Ireland, to be haggled
and cross-haggled. The Noble Lord by his Bill proposed
to bring the party before the Judge of Assize, and stated
that in proposing what would be a great benefit to
the claimant, namely, to bring the Registration Courts
close to his door, that be would introduce a clause to
enable the Lord Lieutenant to institute fresh Courts
of Registry ; but the Noble Lord took away with one
hand what he gave with the other. He brought
the Registration Court close to their door, but he made
them walk 50 miles before they could reach the Judge of
Assize.—( Hear, hear.) The Noble Lord said he
would give costs ; what benefit would that be?
Look at the costs of the poor man, and the costs of the
rich. Si. costs against a poor man would ruin him.
But what would bo 5/. costs to the rich
man, deducted from the funds of the Conserva-
tive Club ?—( Cheers.) What would be Si. deducted
from the strong chest of the Carlton Club?—(Laughter
from the Opposition benches.) \Vhat would be 5/.
deducte' from the funds of the Spottiswoode Con-
spiracy ?—( Loud cheers from the Ministerial benches.)
It was very well known that there was a difference of opi-
nion among the Judges as to the value of the franchise—
that some thought it ought to be restricted, whilst
others were favourable to its extension.—( Hear, hear.)
Suppose, then, that the claimant who had passed the or-
deal of the Assistant- Barrister, should be brought before a
Judge of Assize who happened to be one of those that were
favourable to the franchise and accordingly allow the claim
to pass ; then, suppose, next year, having again under-
si one the same process, he has to appear before a Judge
isles is unfavourable to the franchise, and his claim is dis-
allowed.—( Hear, hear.) Was it right to mulct that
man in costs?—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") He might
have had to bring his witnesses fifty or sixty miles.
Now no one knew better than he how ready the Irish peo-
ple were to do a good turn to one another, but every man
neigh: not be able to go fifty or sixty miles at Iris own
expense to serve a neighbour—indeed it would be too
much for any claimant to ask his friend without paying the
costs. The claimant, therefore, who was unable to do so
would be disfranchised. He solemnly declared he thought
that a more vexatious, troublesome, or expensive system
no ingenuity could devise, and he would ask any fair and
reasonable man whether it was not a matter of cer-
tainty, by such a system of annoyance, that people
would be worried out of their franchise, or deterred
by the example of their neighbours, from making any
claims ?—( Cheers.) The franchise would be destroyed,
and the representation of Ireland thrown into the
hands of those who possessed the longest purses,
and were best able to endure the annoyance of
those expensive and vexatious oppositions.—(Cheers )
Such a Bill as that would entail upon the country an -un-
ceasing agitation.—( Hear.) It was not in effect an annual
registration but it was a perpetual agitation, Hon. Gentle-
men who did not reside in Ireland, might not under-
' stand the effect of the Bill ; but that any gentleman who
resided in Ireland, and understood how much that
country stood in need of repose and quiet, should advocate
it, surprised him.—( Ironical cheers from the Tory benches. )
He understood the meaning of that cheer from Hon. Gen-
tlemen opposite perfectly well. Ile would say he was as
anxious as any man could be to see the tranquillity of that
country firmly established. He had made as many sacri-
fices as any man to obtain tranquillity for that country.—
( Cheers from the Ministerial side of the House.) But he
differed from Hon. Gentlemen opposite as to the means of
securing that tranquillity. He was satisfied they never
could expect tranquillity until they did justice to the people.
—( Loud cheers.) He did wonder how Gentlemen, re-
siding in Ireland, and knowing the country, could support
such a Bill as that.—(Cheers.) Their support of
the present Bill was to him perfectly incomprehen-
sible.—(Lond cheers.) He would admit that the Bill
of the Noble Lord would bo successful at last—( Cheers
from the Tory benches)—it would be successful at last in
destroying the franchise—(Cheers from the Ministerial
benches) but not until it had left behind it a
spirit of and rancour, and had divided land-
lord from tenant even more than they unfortuately were
at present—( Hear, hear, hear)—not until it had
left behind it, he had almost said, a feeling
of revenge.---(Loud cheers.) No man can calculate the
dreadful effects likely to be produced by that Bill ; and
he solemnly believed that those effects would not be worn
out during the lifetime of the youngest man now in ex-
istence.—(Loud cheers.) He must suppose that Hon.
Gentlemen in that House understood the provisions of
the Bill, but he was satisfied that much misapprehension
existed in Ireland, or they never would have had those
petitions which were presented in its favour. Many persons
had given their support to the Noble Lord's Bill who
were not at all cognizant of the nature of its details. The
Hon. Baronet the Member for Londonderry had presented a
petition from the town which he ( Sir William Somerville)
had the honour to represent in favour of that Bil: New
in Drogheda the Conservative party, as they were called—
but, having consented to the destruction of the Municipal
Corporations, and being now desirous of the destruction
of the franchise, he thought they might as well drop
the name of Conservatives—in Drogheda, however,
the Conservative party had an organ. Let them see
whether the Conservative party in Ireland were well
informed upon the subject. The Honourable Ba-
ronet then read a paragraph from the Conservative paper
belonging to the town he had the honour to represent.
It stated that the Bill did net give an annual regis-
tration of the entire registry—if it did, they would be
amongst the very first to deprecate such a troublesome pro-
ceeding. It did provide for an annual revision, and it was
not only a troublesome proceeding, but it was a dangerous
and a mischievous one, and he hoped Hon. !lembers
belonging to Ireland, would pause and re-co :seder the
question before they gave their vote for ale com-
mittal of such a Bill. Let such a 13111 pass,
and there would not be a 101. voter in Ireland,
not be summoned before the Judge of Assize—(Oh, whocoll.lw,
voter °0
1 )
—they certainly would so long as there wf(a)rs
many •ears.
left in tire registry, but that would not. be,
ofwas justiceiw th
i ni
in Tr7arlca.t"iunitaoteCi9tnot)letrnpntg;

EVENING ED iTION.

or calculated to destroy the incipient confidence which
the people were beginning to repose in the Government,
than the passing of such a measure. The Noble Lord
would say that these provisions might be altered in Com-
mittee ; but if so, it was nothing but a waste
of the time of the House to introduce such a measure.
The appeal to the Judge of Assize was said to be one of
the main provisions of the Bill, but he would rather
sec the appeal to the Assistant-Barrister and the Judge
done away with, and confided to other parties. Ha
had received a letter from Mr. Murphy, the Assistant-
Barrister for Cavan, on the subject, in which he said--
That he spoke the unqualified and unhesitating op'-
Mon of every Assistant-Barrister, and every member of
the Irish Bar—( No, no)—whatever his political
opinions might be, when he said that Parliament made
a grievous mistake when they inflicted upon
Assistant-Barristers the duty of registering voters. That no
imputation had been cast upon them, but that at the:present
moment, when an Assistant-Barrister was appointed or
transferred from one county to another, the sole question was
what his politics were, and this was regarded in judging of
every act and decision he made, whether in a civil or cri-
minal court. If these objections were well founded, as to
the Assistant-Barristers, with what additional force did this
not apply to the Judges in their exalted and sacred
character ?—( Hear, hear, bear.) Mr. Murphy went
on to say that, in his opinion Parliament should
endeavour to restore to the Assistant-Barristers the con-
fidence they formerly possessed in the estimation of
the country, and protect the Judge from suspicion. In
these sentiments he (Sir William Somerville) cor-
dially agreed, and he could not conceive how
any person who knew anything of Ireland could
differ from him, still less how they could propose an
annual system of registration, or what was still more
preposterous, an appeal to the Judge of Assize.
With regard to certain clauses of the Bill he had heard no
one say that they were not most unjustifiable. Every man
said that to compel a man who had established his right to
the franchise to appear before the Judge of Assize,
and to
pay costs if his claim was disallowed, was monstrous. Be
had heard no one say that bringing that man many miles
to appear before the Judge was not also monstrous. Be
had heard no man say that an appeal to the Judges of Assize
conferring on them the odious task of disfranchising the
people was not calculated in the least degree to destroy their
confidence in the administration of justice, an" to undo
all the good that had been effected for Ireland within the
last five or six years. The only answer he had heard to
those objections to the Bill of the Noble Lord was, that
the present Master of the Rolls in Ireland had brought
forward a Bill containing the principle of annual registra-
tion, while the Hon. and Learned Member for Dublin
had supported the measure, and that the Hon. Member
for Limerick had brought in a Bill containing a clause of
a similar nature. It should, however, be remembered,
that the Bill of the Master of the Rolls only permitted
the opening of the registry under certain circumstances.
For his part, lie should say that so long as there was any
danger of placing the hostile parties in Ireland in per-,
petual collision, he should be loth to introduce a system of
annual registration into that country. Had Sir M•
O'Lod,lati attempted anything like this annual revision or
annual registration, whether supported or not by the Hen'
Member for Dublin, he (Sir William Somerville) would
always have opposed it, believing that it would be de-
structive of what he had more at heart than anything els°
—the peace end prosperity of Ireland.—(Cheers.)
then, run the risk of so fearful a result ?—( Hear, bear.)
The only reason the House was called upon to do so was;
that the Noble Lord might attain office.--( Cheers, and
" Oh, oh," from the Opposition,) The Spottiswoode
Conspiracy had failed, so the Irish franchise was to be de-
stroyed.—( Cheers.) The Irish Members obstructed the
Noble Lord's attainment of office, therefore they were to
be removed, at any cost.—( Hear, hear, hear.) No mad
more sincerely admired the Noble Lord's high talents than
he ( Sir William), but among the admirers of his legisla-
tion he certainly could not reckon himself.—( Hear,
bear. )
Supposing that the Bill were carried, the Liberal Irish
Members would certainly be removed. But the result
would be the stifling of an immense amount of public
f
eeling, which must somewhere find vent, and which
would endanger the peace of the country.—(Cheers.)
See what a mass of public feeling would be unrepresented in
Ireland. He asked how would you control it ?--(Cheers)
Would such a state of things be safe?—(Cheers.)
If he sat on the other side of the House, he would b 0
sorry to bring about such a state of things. (The
Hon. Gentleman here spoke in so low a tone, his
sinking to a whisper, apparently from exhaustion, that be
was scarcely audible.) There was no Gentleman on
either
side of the House who would do more than he would do
to put down immorality, or to take away every inducement
to fraud or false swearing.--(Hear, hear.) But he en-
treated the House not to be led away by the statements
which they had heard on the other side. He looked upon
that as the dangerous part of the question—as it were, the
opium ingredient—( Hear, hear.) And he supposed they
should be told that every Member who was opposed to
going into Committee upon the Noble Lord's Bill was fa-
vourable to fraud, imposture, and false swearing—( Hear'
hear)—just as they were told, when it was attempted to
cripple the arms of her Majesty's Government on an occdN
sion of great national emergency—that every one whoi,
not vote for the attempt was friendly to the smogg”ns;
of opium--( Cheers.) If the Noble Lord was
why
desirous of putting down the false swearing, if
did he not define the franchise ?—( Hear, hear, hear.) ur..,
he would not do that, why did he not try his hand
little nearer home ?—(Cheers.) Had he seen nothing
nearer home to rouse his indignation ? Had there been
no false swearing, no fraud, at Cambridge and Ludlow ?
But on the late occasion, when those transactions were
exposed, who heard the Noble Lord express his indigna-
tion? The Noble Lord's indignation appeared to be re-
served for the poor Irish ; and the rich and powerful man,
whose example was ten times as pernicious, was allowed to
go unyueished. Let the House apply another test to the
sincerity of the indignation, professed at immorality. Tke
Hon, Member for Belfast (Mr. E. Tenncnt) had Pre-
sented a petition that evening, in which fraud and :
rality were denounced in very indignant terms.
Thel
d Po
Cti t
tition stated that " the deficiency of the law he
great facilities to the commission of perjury and the
nity of offenders, and so tended to densoralizatweed
to the deficiency of the law, and define the
These were very fine words ; but why not put an
close ?—( Loud cheers.) It was impossible for any
man fran-
man to say that the effect of the Noble Lord's Bill would
not be not only to reduce, but to destroy the franchise ot
the poorer classes.—( Hear, hear.) He would call the at
of the House to the language in another petition
from Belfast, agreed to at a meeting convened to petition
the House against the Bill. The Rev. Mr. Montgomery
stated at that meeting that he had seen persons swear t`,..,
the premises of a voter were worth no more than 71., °,"'S
that, when the same premises came into the possession 0.!
true Protestant, they were sworn up to the proper stadd
ard. By the Noble Lord's Bill the man elainslOg
the franchise would be discouraged, bat the man who
opposed it would be encouraged, because fresh power of and
novance, and fresh weapons of opposition would be place
in his hands. He would now tell the Noble Lord, Wad
apart from all party considerations, he most sincerely tend
deeply regretted the introduction of the Bill. He had
bat
hoped the time had come when every man in t d
House was convinced it was necessary to proceed
in their legislation for Ireland with caution, prudence. I'l.
bearance, and he would almost say with kindness.--( a
hear.) In the late debate upon confidence in Ministeris!
everything connected with Ireland was studiously kept
;onit_
of view. He had thought that a very shabby procee gni
—(Hear, hear, and laughter)—but he took it as a le
that Gentlemen in that House did not agree with thoca,
who maligned Ireland out of it.--( Hear, hear.) tic 'for
glad that the Right Hon. Gentleman the Member
.a,
Tainworth expressed himself on that occasion witho
a total
absence of all bitterness and malignity, indeed his obseLr
vations stood out with a most favourable contrast to ae..
remarks of the Noble Lord.—(Cheers.) He decolYurch
gretted that the Noble Lord should proceed with s mt.
hurried, helter-skelter legislation. It was no light.„, 4
ter to have the people of Ireland quiet, when the privatioda
they underwent were considered. The Noble Lords 91
was neither more nor less than a disfranchising measure;
and those who would inflict such as a Bill as that
he
Ireland, wanted not the will but the power to inflict 1301
same on England.—(Cheers.) He considered the be
would degrade the administration of justice, and bring tdo
Judges into contempt—that it would strengthen the "ilere
of those who were already too strong, and who °v ea
abusing the power they possessed, while it would Wea ea
those who were already too feeble; in fact he considea
it an unjust, partial, hasty, and wanton measure', an
would therefore, in conclusion, mese that it be comi'''ty
that day six months. (The Hon. Baronet sat dew
amidst loud cheers.)
Mr. JAMES GRATTAN seconded the amen— .eto
His lion. Friend had gone so clearly and minutely
every argument against the Bill, that it would not the
necessary for him to trespass on the indulgence 0' id
Whichdeprive He believed in his conscience the Bill t
deprive the lower classes of Roman Catholics of that ee
ethheisye. A were cßleilalrmlyeerneteitefair
entitled to,
unea
jmusetly",,atshneeveelreciteitvreodfurcacd
into the House. Even at pressent Ireland could searec/,
be said to be represented, but the Noble Lord i
Bill would still further reduce the re resentatioo.
A worse Bill had never been int-educed intoPthat Be,a;„'
and his respect for the House had much diminished, ""1,,1'i-tj
by a majority of 16, they affirmed the principle of a
eli-
which must tend to reduce Ireland again to party and like
gious strife. He opposed the Bill because he did nes. test
to see Protestant against Catholic and Catholic ega as
Protestant, which the Bill would certainly do. ,1-1/eie
ble
astonished to see such a Bill brought in by the metier
Lord—he might have expected it from the Hon. irr but
for Belfast, who was once a Radical and a Repel"' '.ted
having now changed his opinions, it was to be ell), his
that he would do all in his power for the purposens:_ow
new party. The poor Catholic farmer would ,t 5 "80
; yet the Noble L.'
come forward to register from fear of their landlord
their agents—they were intimidated
was not allowed to wait for the progress which stiehmli`,;liiit
raidatiou and the refusal of leases to Catholics
have done for his party, he was hurried on by the Inse
Member for Belfast and others of the violent part
was anxious to record his sentiments early in the debate,A
for he was
would not he allowed to proceed any further. o
decidedly opposed to the Bill, which he hop'
Dr. L E FRO Y said he would nut follow the tvr OLa
Members through their declamation. It appeared !vine,
their wish to lead the House altogether from gi
the Bill on the table a calm and sober consideration;od
( Hear, hear.) They had carefully avoided
ewhoes
question. Were they aware that it was not nunot.
whether the Irish Registry might he opened or
.e
Twelve Committees had determined to open it, and scs
came to a different conclusion. In what situation wit!
candidate placed—it was impossible for him to know wn,c he
ther he ought to go before a Committee or not, for
could not possibly know what his fate would be, notwith
standing he had a clear case. It was a disgrace that
question of such importance should remain unsettled, b-
e-
cause it was injurious to both the represented and the ea",
didates. Even the last Committee, that appointed to tr!
the merits of the Longford petition, earnestly called tl
attention of the House to the unsettled state of that qi?,",:
tion, and prayed fiat. its being settled at the earliest possief
moment. Ile trusted he would have the votes of tact