The Sun.
London, England, 1848-06-16 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS, June 15.
Their Lordships met at Five o'clock.
The Earl of SELKIRK presented several petitions
against the Scotch Registration Bills.
The Earl of ROSEBERY presented a petition from
Linlithgow with a similar prayer; also several petitions
praying for an alteration in the Scotch law of entail.
POOR-LAW UNIONS—TRAMPS.
Lord PORTMAN presented petitions from a Union
is Somersetshire, and also from a Union in Dorsetshire,
complaining of the burdens cast upon parishes by the
great increase of tramps, and praying that some measure
might be adopted to remedy the evil.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE said that the subject
was under the consideration of the Government, and they
were much disposed to entertain a measure which should
make a new distribution of the charge incurred from re-
lief given to tramps, and extending it over the whole
union, iqstead of confining it to the parish in which the
relieving officer resided, and in which, consequently, the
relief had been given.
Lord REDESDALE thought some alteration in the
lag was necessary. As long as a tramp knew that by
applying to the relieving officer he could secure a gool
supper and a bed, so long he would be without any in-
ducement to endeavour to gain an honest living.
After a few words from Earl Fitzwilliarn, the Earl of
Chichester, and the Earl of Stradbroke,
Lord BEAUMONT said that he thought a much
severer test of destitution should be applied to tramps
than the test applied to the parochial poor.
CORN-LAWS.
Lord STANLEY gave notice that, to-morrow, he
should call the attention of their Lordships to the state
of the law regulating the importation of foreign corn.
It was not his intention to enter at all on that occasion
into the discussion of the question of protection.
ODD FELLOWS.
Lord BEAUMON presented a petition from a lodge
of Odd Fellows, in favour of the Bill for legalising this
society.
RAILWAYS AND STEAM NAVIGATION.
Lard MONTEAGLE called the attention of the
House to the grasping monopoly of certain railroad pro-
prietors who, by certain private Bills, were now endea-
vouring to monopolise the steam navigation of certain
ports, and contended that the provisions of those Bills
to that effect were in opposition to the standing orders
of their Lordships' House, which standing orders would,
he trusted, be strictly enforced. He wished to know
whether the Government had not provided steamers of
the greatest power to carry on the mail service between
Holyheed and Dublin.
The Earl of AUCKLAND said that the Admiralty
had been prepared to carry on the Post-office service
betwesa Holyhead and Dublin, and unless he could
feel assured that that service would be carried on
as effeetually by the railway company he should be sorry
to see that service transferred to them. At the same
time, if that service could be conducted by the company
equally and efficiently, and more economically than it
was conducted at present, it would be to the advantage
of the country that it should be transferred to the
company.
Th 3 Earl of GRANVILLE explained the history of
the gassing of the Bill through the House of Commons,
and said that the matter had been considered and re-
ported on by the Board of Trade.
Tie Earl of ROI)EN bore testimony to the admirable
manaer in which the Admiralty provided for the per-
formance of the Post-office service between Dublin and
Holyhead.
The subject then dropped.
POOR-LAW (IRELAND).
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE laid on the table
numerous returns relating to the operation of the poor-
law in Ireland.
RAILWAY COMMISSIONERS.

lord REDESDALE then rose, pursuant to notice, to
ask a question relative to the duties of the Railway
Commissioners, and the position in which they were
considered to stand with relation to the Government. lie
said the question was one of great importance, when
they considered the variety of questions to which it gave
rise, one of which had just been raised by a Noble Lord,
who, when he put his question, did not seem to be
aware of the presence of the head of that very Railway
Beard to whom all such questions ought to be referred.
ni
of all wthaiyn geChssouirm3ceeh-i
He would briefly recal to their Lordships' recollection
the circumstances under which that board had been
formed. In 1844, when the railway question was be-
coming of the greatest importance to this country, and
when it was evident to all that in the ensuing session of
Parliamen such a mass of Railway Bills would brought
forward, that unless some assistance were rendered to
the Committees on them,the public interests would suffer,
a Railway Department of the Board of Trade was
formed, to consider and report on those Bills. The
Noble Lord (Lord Granville) who presided over that
department, gave the greatest attention to those Bills
c
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the
question question mooted than it was seen that the Government
dTrade, and the Committee on every Bill had more
whichwiedignh weight than talhheea anrnetphtooors
Committee the latter was maintained as if no previous
public investigation had taken place. The House of
Commons at last became so sensible of the mischiefs
likely to arise from this course, that an address
to the Crown was moved for the appointment of
Railway Commissioners. At this period arose the
contest known as the Battle of the Gauges, and
the Government, aware of the importance of taking up
the subject in a serious manner, the report of the Board
and
cognizancet o fe r
of Trade was taken as a Government measure, resolu-
tions on the subject were moved in both Houses, and a
Bill introduced and passed as a Government measure to
settle the question. It was then thought desirable to
longing to that department, an report their opinions
specially by oradne,rissohof
üblodthsulelhousbeosaordf Pnoatrlmiaamkeenst.o
Com-
missioners, appointi
s sionetrhs e,
I wwaoia'
a board was necessary to guide Parliament for every en-
tsheesysiowno'uld be guilty of dereliction of duty, and be
consequently upset. He thought it unjust, as the Rail-
pswtioairylsgßoard had been of the greatest advantage to the
Parliament and the country, when questions of great and
paramount importance were brought before the two
Houses. There were also the gauge question and
others in which this board took a decided and
very useful step. He considered the Govern-
ment should take a decided line to pass a Bill
for the public bonefit, so as to add more power to this
board, which was at present little better than useless.
He should also say that the amalgamation of railways
should be looked to by the Government, in which this
board has taken a decided position, and he believed no
other board stood in the same position as this. He
would refer to the superintendent of Woods and Forests,
and to other such boards, and ask was there not a very
great difference between the Railway Boar.] and these.
In fact, he thought that the power of the Railway Board
was done away with when it was transferred to the Pre-
sident and Vice-President of the Board of Trade.
When it was known to both Houses of Parliament that
lines were made more for the good of companies than for
the advantage of the public, there was a feeling on the
part of the House that more stringent measures were ne-
cessary, and that this board should have full powers.
It was also thought desirable to continue this board,
which in those powers would be the means of restor-
ing confidence to the country, and with such an intention
a Bill was brought into the House of Commons, which
he regretted to say was allowed to drop, and thus the
board has not the power over railways which would be
advantageous to the public interest. Such a state of
things he (lid not think creditable to the Government or
to the Railway Board.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE admitted the im-
portance of the subject, which related to the conduct of
the railway system in this country, and the amount of
interference which was more or less incumbent on the
Government and Parliament. The question of the
Noble Lord raised two points; first, whether it was ex-
pedient that there should be such a board intrusted with
the charge of inquiring into the state of railways and
the accidents arising out of them ; and, secondly, if
so, what should be the duties of such a board. lie
had no hesitation in saying, that though there had
been an alteration in the administration of the board,
consequent on the person who had been at its head
ceasing to exercise those functions which had been
personally intrusted to him ; and though the office
which that gentleman held, and the salary attached
to it, had, on a principle of economy, been suppressed,
yet the Railway Board itself existed, entrusted with
all the same functions and precisely in the same relation,
in respect to the Government, as before; and, though the
Noble Lord seemed to think that the board had become
of little importance, and insignificant in the eyes of Par-
liament, yet he (the Marquis of Lansdowne) considered
that its labours were of real importance, the Commis-
sioners and their paid officers operating, from week to
day, for
nthe e
nt publicand benefit,
the and
iszetkh,eanadssfiarotamncedsoyf
Parlia-
ment. In order that the Noble Lord might know how
numerous and important the functions of the board were,
he would state the various paints to which its attention
to
ohe da
Government
was particularly and constantly directed. They embraced
lines in reference to their fitness for the purpose of
the opening of railways, and the examination of the
ac-
cidents which unfortunately. too frequently occurred ;
public travelling; inquiries into those cases of
the regulation of cheap trains ; the consideration of
all the bye-laws relating to these subjects, and all the
miscellaneous powers relating to lines ; references
under special Acts of Parliament, of disputes occurring
between company and company, references under the
standing orders, and the special duty of making reports
thereon; and the cc isideration of a vast number of colo-
nial railway schemes, which from time to time were sub-
mitted to the Commissioners. Not less than 780 lines
had been inspected and reported on the course of last
year, and in the present year a greater number wonld
be inspected. Extensive investigations had been made
in citses of accidents, and, in respect to 22 of those cases,
special reports had been made by the engineers acting
under the authority of the Commissioners, and valuable
suggestions had been made by the engineers, which, in
most cases, if not in all, wero willingly acted upon by
the companies. The Commissioners had also inserted
in Acts of Parliament a number of special clauses
relating to a variety of d;fferent subjects. It could
not be said, then, that the board was not discharging
useful and important duties, or that it was not in the
full exercise of those functions with which Parlia-
ment had intrusted it, and with which he thought it
should be intrusted, for these duties ought to be per-
fonred, for the public convenience and safety, under the
authority of the Commissioners, by paid officers, care-1
fully selected and experienced, whose attention was not
liable to be distracted by other occupations. The Noble