The Sun.
London, England, 1848-04-07 00:00:00

ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS.

Mr. BOLTVERIE potitponed his motion relating to th•
Ecclesiastical Courts till after Easter.
WASTE LANDS OF IRELAND.

Mr. F. FRENCH then rose to bring forward his motion
for leave to introduce a-Bill to facilitate the reclamation
of Waste Lands in -Ireland,- and said the time had come
when that House must attend to the interests of Ireland;
the time had come when the people of that country
would take no excuse for any neglect of their
wants, and he therefore • trusted the House would
indulge him with its attention while he pointed
out a plan by which much of the misery and suffering
of Ireland might be mitigated.—(Hear, hear.) At the
present moment there were upwards of half a million
of agricultural labourers out . of employ in Ireland;
and if they did not adopt some such measure
as the one he was now about to propose, how were they
to find employment for this large multitude? Emigration
could not be resorted to, for the people were not
disposed to emigrate, • nor would the inha-
bitants of the British colonies receive them
if they were. What better course could be adopted,
under these circumstances, than by doing what had
already been done in' this country to a large extent,
namely, setting the unemployed to reclaim the waste
lands? All the Committee that had been appointed to
inquire into the matter had agreed in opinion that the
greatest good could not fail to result from the reclama-
tion of waste lands. The Committee of 1830 stated
that 5,000,000 acres of these lands might be profitably re-
claimed. It had been stated that bog land which was
reclaimed would, after a given time, return to its original
state ; this had been proved by practical experience cot
only in Ireland, but in Sweden and other parts of Europe.
Such a measure as this would prove of the greatest
advantage—it would reduce the rates and save the
property of the - country; and, in order to see
that the money to be voted was properly ex-
pehded, a central Commission should be appointed to
superintend the expenditure in the different localities.
As an indivividual Member, he had no power to provide
by his Bill for the raising new rates, but he proposed to
establish two unpaid Commissions, who should be added
to the Board of Works, and that the funds to be raised for
carrying on their operations should be provided by the
Chancellor of the Exchequer advancing money to the
counties upon the same terms and same principles that
the Russian Government advanced money to their land-
banks. The establishment of such land-banks in Ireland
would prove of great benefit to the people, while it would
avoid the necessity of making any demands upon the
public Exchequer. Without, therefore, troubling the
House any longer, he begged to move for leave to intro-
duce the Bill of which be had given notice.—(Hear.)
Mr P. SCROPE seconded the motion, and thought
that the Government should have brought in a measure
for improving the waste lands of Ireland as an auxiliary
means of raising the social condition of Ireland. He
was of opinion that if they had brought forward such of
measure when the potato crop failed, it would hay.
saved many millions to the people of this country, and
saved many lives of the people of Ireland. He could not
help attributing the absence of such a measure to the
observations of the Right Hon. Baronet, but he would
remind him that money might be lost in other ways
in Ireland than in throwing it into the bogs, as he
said. And the state of Ireland at present was such,
that it was not improbable that more money would
be lost there for other purposes. There were 740,000
persons employed under the Labour-rate Act last
year, and the same number of persons would be
without employment this year as the summer ap-
proached. They would not only be wandering about Ire-
land, but they would again come over to this country,
and overflow its labour market as they did last year.—
(Hear, hear.) What he desired was to substitute a spe-
cies of employment of a productive character, for which
labour now appeared to be thrown away. If the re-
sources of her land were fully developed, there would be
ample employment for the population of Ireland. By
giving effect to such a system, they would have a chance
of creating in that country the middle class which was
so much wanted there. The objection which might be
urged to all he proposed was very likely to be the diffi-
culty of finding money for all these works. He believed
however, that money would be advanced to capitalists
as fast as the works proceeded, and that there were
other means of raising money if it was required. With
all the evidence before them, he trusted the subject
would be taken in hand by her Majesty's Government.
If it were not, the responsibility must rest upon their
shoulders.
The question having been put,
Sir G. GREY said he did not offer any opposition
to the introduction of the Bill. The subject was very
important. There could be no doubt that much-employ-
ment might be found for the people of Ireland by the
reclamation of waste lands, and that such a measure as
the present would be of great importance as an auxiliary
to the poor-law. The subject, however, was surrounded
with difficulties, and if the Hun. Member got over them
he would be exceedingly fortunate. He (Sir G. Grey)
understood that no vote of money was to be asked for,
and certainly that was very much in favour of the Bid.
But he reserved himself en details until another oppor-
tunity.
:dr. S. CRAWFORD expressed his concurrence in
the object of the Bill ; and leave was then given.
POLITICAL OFFENDUHS.

Mr. F. O'CONNOR next rose to more an address to
her Majesty, that she would be graciously pleased
to extend her royal pardon to John Frost, Zepha-
niah Williams, and William Jones, and all poli-
tical offenders. The Honourable Member said he
addressed the House upon this occasion, as on all
other occasions of the same sort, with considerable diffi-
culty. He had himself been for some time past so inti
mutely mixed up with what were called political offender.,
that he could nut but feel that his bringing this subject
forward bore somewhat of a personal character. He
hoped that nothing which he might say with respect to
to the trial of Messrs. Frost, Wiiltama, and Jones
would prejudice the House against the motion which he
was about to submit for their consideration. The Hon,
Member then recapitulated the circumstances which
characterised the proceedings in question, and stated as
a fact that one of the jury came after the trial to him,
and admitted that he bad impersonated another person
whose name was on the panel. When the case was
argued before the judges in error, six were for quashing
the proceedings as informal, whilst nine were of opinion
that the verdict ought to be maintained. In claiming
the royal mercy in fd.vour of Frost, Williams, and
Jones, he did not so much rest his motion upon
any fault in the legal proceedings, as upon the
higher ground that Christianity taught a lesson of
forgiveness when error had been sufficiently expiated by
suffering. Besides, there must have been something
essentially good in the characters of the three persons in
question, for it had recently transpire d that Frost was
now tutor in a clergyman's family, a situation he could
not have held had he not been possessed of many admir-
able qualities. Were these persons, let him ask, to be
punished for the sake of terror, and in order to hold oul
an example to others? He therefore asked the Govern-
ment whether no concession was to be made in the case
of Frost and his companions ? hitherto no concession
had ever been wad© to public opinion by the Government