The Sun.
London, England, 1848-03-10 00:00:00

COUNTY COURTS.

Dr. BO\VRING moved, pursuant to notice, for a
tabular return of the amounts received monthly by
the treasurers of the county courts; of the name of
the bank in which such amounts are dely:sited, and of
the balances in hand on the Ist day of March, 1848 ;
also, of the amounts withdrawn monthly; showing
also in whose name the accounts are kept,
whether interest is allowed on the balances, and to
whom the said interest (if any) is paid; stating also
whether any and what amount of security has been
given, and the nature of the security. The account
to exhibit, in a separate column, the amount of suitors'
money unclaimed.—Agreed to.
THE LEGACY DUTY.

On the motion of Mr. lIUME the following re-
turns were ordered :—The amount of capital on
which the several rates of legacy duty have been
paid in Great Britain in the years ended the sth
day of January, 1847, and the sth day of
January, 1843 ; an 1 an abstract of the total
amount under each rate since 1797 : showing the
amount of capital on which the several rates of
legacy duty have been paid in Ireland, for the year
ended the sth day,of January, 1847, and distinguish-
ing the amount of each rate ; also, an abstract of the
total amount under each rate since 1797. Account,
showing the total amount of duties on legacies, pro-
bates, and administrations received in Ireland in the
years ended the sth day of January 1847, and
the sth day of January, 1848. Returns of the total
amount of revenue received in the United Kingdom,

in the year er.ded the sth day of January, 1847, fig
stamp duty on legacies, on probates, administrations,
and tesLinuntary invcoti,ries ; diltingui,hing the
amount from England ra,d Wales, from Scotland
and tiom 1; t.:ke. : total duty received in

England, Scotland, and Ireland since 1797,
distinguishing legacies from probates, adminis-
trations, and testamentary inventories ; also an
abstract of the aggregate amount from legacies
and probates, &c., in England and Wales, in Scot-
land and in Ireland. And account, showing the total
amount of duty on legacies, probates, and administra-
tions received in each year in Ireland since the year
1797 to the sth day of January, 1848 (in continua.
tion of Parliamentary Paper No. 71, of Session 1846).
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER did
not object to either of the last returns, because he
had not heard their purport ; he rose, however, for a
different purpose, namely, to express his disapproval
of the growing practice that now prevailed of Hon.
Members moving for unopposed returns without any
communication with the departments by which they
were to be furnished. Ile had no objection to the re•
turn moved for just now by the llonourable
Member for Montrose, which was taken out
of its turn.—(Hear, hear.) He had no objection
to a motion for return being taken out of its turn when
if an understanding to that cffect subsisted with the
department by which it was to be supplied; but when
the contrary was the case, he thought the convenience
of the House would be better consulted if such re •
turns were taken in their regular order. In all
cases, the departments to which the returns had
reference should be communicat(d with.—(llear.)
Mr. HUME said he communicated the purport of
his first motion to Mr. Wickham, one of the Under
Secretaries of the Treasury, four days ago, and that
he offered no objection to it.-- (Ilear, hear.) The
return with respect to the legacy duty he
had named session after session for the last
five and twenty years.—(Hear.) Ile asked the
House if there was any ground for the statement of
the Right Hon. Gentteman the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, so far as he was concerned ?
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER
said the consent of the Treasury should invariably
be obtained before Hon. Gentlemen brought forward
motions which they imagined would not be opposed.
Mr. HUME said Mr. Parker consented to his
other motion.

Mr. V. SMITH said the expense of printing and
stationary was one of the largest that came before
them, and that Hon. Gentleman, before moving for
returns, should consult the intelligent library officers
as to whtsher similar returns had not been mcved
for, as it was frequently found, after great expense
had been incurred, that all the :information required
was to be found in the archives of the library. He
was a member of the Printing Committee, appointed
at the instigation of the Speaker, and facts of
this kind had come to his knowledge in the
course of the investigations that were made.
It was very necessary that the suggestions
of seeking information from the officers of the
library should be attended to. When the Speaker
had been appealed to, he had invariably stated that
the matter rested entirely in the discretion of the
House.

Mr. PARKER corroborated the statement of Mr,
Hume.

Air. 111. J. O'CONNELL gave as his opinion, that
moving for unopposed re-turns without previous no-
tice, was a most inconvenient practice.
Mr. HORSMAN said many of the blue-books
presented to the House were utterly useless, and he
ventured to declare that the majority of thos ordered
to be printed last year, had iound their way to the
butter shop.
The motion of Mr. Waddington was then with-
drawn.