The Sun.
London, England, 1846-04-18 00:00:00

that the House would analyse the mode in which this
sum was to be exoended. The Right Honourable
Baronet hod brought in one Bill to encourage drain-
age ; and had that Bill been introduced last autumn,
it might have been attended with considerable benefit.
He was not going to say that that Bill might not be use-
ful in some small degree, but he was very much afraid
that the Right Hon. Baronet would find it altogether in-
applicable to meet this distressing crisis. The Right
Hon. Baronet enumerated among his measures, that
which granted certain loans, for the improvement of land
under the order of the Board of Public Works.
The Right Honourable Baronet also alluded to some
great undertakings fur promoting the improvement of
navigation in Ireland. He (Mr. S. O'Brien) had heard
of no such works being yet commenced. The Right
Hon. Baronet had, however, informed them that 20,0004
a part of the greater sum of 400,000, had oeen laid aside
for this purpose. The Right Hon. Baronet also stated.
that the County Presentments Act would bring into cir-
culation an expenditure of 100,000/. Now he, (Mr.
O'Brien) could inform the Right Hon. Baronet.
that, with only one c r two exceptions, the grand.
juries had decided that this measure was altogether
inapplicable to meet the present distressing crisis.
That Act would go, not to the benefit of the labouring
(lasses, but to people who did not require assistance.
Another of these measures was the Fisheries Act. He
thought that it was a very good Ate, and hoped it would
be successful, but so far as he had observed during his
residence in Ireland, it had not come into
operation, nor was there any appearance of it.
There remained only another Act fur him to speak of,
and that was the Public Works (Ireland) Bill. It would
be a very useful Act if the Government would only
facilitate its operation. Public meetings had been held
in many parts of Ireland to promote and expedite the
operation
by the provisionsofthisßill.Theof the B
amount sanctionedill tobe
expended was
A 0,0001., and that would just give Is. per head to a mil-
lion of people, and thus it seemed that in the course of is
few months a million of individuals would require the
assistance it was intended to give. A very large number
of applications had already been made to Government for
employment under the provisions of theßill. He confessed
that with reference to those provisions, they seemed most
desirable in their nature, but he thought that it was the
duty of the Government to bring to the aid of the local
r exertions made on this emergency the funds derived
from general contribution and from the giant of the
state. The consequence of such a proceeding would be,
tttt. the people, instead of applying. for public
d indiscriminate charity, would be employed, and the
works undertaken to give them employment would be
such as would be useful in themselves. He asked the
Right Hon. Gentleman to state to the House what he
knew with respect to the applications that had been made
for employment on those works, for which 58000 Z had
been granted. He (Mr. Smith O'Brien) believed that
the applications already made would warrant the expen-
diture of 500,0001. He could not refrain from expressing
his regret that Government should think it necessary to
couple the question of Ireland with the question of the
corn-laws. An attempt had been made to give
that country cheap food by opening the ports ;
but other documents independent of that were required.
He was one of those who differed from the great majo-
rity of the Hon. Members on his side of the House—be
meant a measure in reference to corn, which he had no
doubt would be of service to this country, but would for
many years be very injurious to Ireland.—(Hear, hear.)
If, indeed, the duty was to be taken off foreign oats, and
the article to be admitted into Ireland duty. free, he
would support it, because the price of oats in Ireland
had risen to an enormous height. Well, then, again he
would say that still more unfair and ungenerous had
been the conduct of the Government to Hon. Members
on his side the House who differed from him, in coupling
this measure with the question of the Repeal of the
Union.---(Hear, hear.) Was it fair then to taunt Hon.
Members on this side the House with throwing impedi-
ments in the way of the people of Ireland getting the
means of relief because they would not consent to a
measure which would be the greatest infliction that
country could suffer?—(Hear.) Why, the Irish Members
had no remedy. If they had not adopted this course
they would lose all confidence of the Irish people, unless
they opposed the Bill in all its stages.—(Hear, hear.)
But he trusted they would be able to compel even Eng-
lish majorities—even an English House of Commons—
to underitand at last that the arguments that Irish
Members used against this measure were so fraught
with justice, that that Bill could never pass the House.
—(Hear, hear.) The Right Hon. Gentleman had
spoken about alienating the feelings of the Irish people
from the Government of this country. He (Mr. S.
O'Brien) found that the feelings of the Irish people had,
by the conduct of the Government, been deeply,
perhaps irrevocably, alienated from this Parliament.
He regretted that the present Government had thought
it necessary to couple measures of coercion with those
which they had brought in for the removal of the evils
with which Ireland laboured. Yet such was the case.
What, then, he might ask, if the people of Ire-
land bad had a Legislature of their own ?
Would they have suffered these evils to continue
so long ? What would have been the course
pursued by an Irish Government ? An Irish Govern-
ment would have summoned an Irish Parliament to meet
early in November ; and would have suggested such
measures as would have anticipated the evil, and would
not have waited until the calamities had actually
occurred, till the last moment of relief ; and would have
taken such measures as would have effectually prevented
that mischief, for which sufficient provision could not
be made by the Government at present in power.
Neither would they have committed the error of
coupling measures of coercion with the measures for re-
lict, and would have used their utmost endeavours to
remove those evils by means within their command,
and would have found in their national resources
that guarantee of snccess which would have availed
to restore confidence, and save one-half of the mischief
which now was inevitable. Under these circumstances,
whatever loss of life might occur from the scarcity of
food known to prevail, and whatever the mischiefs that
might arise from consequent collisions, for these and for
all the other evils that might arise, he should hold the
members of her Majesty's Government wholly and
solely responsible.—(Cheers.)
Sir J. GRAHAM said, that however anxious he was
to answer to the responsibility which the Hon. Gentle-
man had thrown upon him, he felt responsible to the
House to bring the adjourned debate to as early a con-
clusion as possible, and he should, therefore, confine
himself to answer a few of the questions which the Hon.
Gentleman had put. In doing so, he would in the
first place appeal to the House, and he might also
appeal to the Honourable Gentleman himself, whether
he had ever concealed his opinion from the information
which he had received of the extent of the calamities
under which Ireland was suffering, and of the proba-
bility
as
that
thethe
summerpressu advanced.rewou Stillldincreas
moreera mightthet haa
diminish he
appeal to them whether he had ever endeavoured to con-
ceal the extent of the mischief, and whatever might be
the result, of this he felt assured, that the House and

the country would acquit them of any intentional
neglect, and would relieve the Government of all
responsibility foi the present condition of Ireland.
At the same time, he was aware, from the unusual cha-
racter of the calamities, that it was no small matter for
the Government to be called upon to feed an entire
people. Those aware of what the functions of a
Government were might readily understand that
there existed no machinery for that purpose ; and
it was necessary to create a machinery to meet
the case. Some allowance, therefore, must be

made if the arrangements were not so complete as to be
able to meet every possible phase of the evil. He must,
however, say, in reference to the statement made by the
Hon. Member, with regard to persons who bad died
from famine, that the Government had received no ac-
count of any deaths having occurred from this cause. He
did not rely- upon the circumstance of the poor-houses
not being filled as any argument of absence of scarcity.
In neither of those cases referred to were the work-
houses full. The Hon. Gentleman, and those surround-
ing him, who recommended large gratuities to be given
to the Irish people, one and all said, that with respect
to the able-bodied the mode of relief shoanuyldesotbarenteidnbtotyo
wages. On this point, then, they were all agreed.
Thheant,waass tthoe
wlehgaittimtahtee
Hmeondeeuraobfle Gmeeetinntglemthane evil.had
Tsaid with respect to the introductiounofitasllnrodewin
Ireland, he
sleieth(aStirthJea
GmoesveGririmaheanalt? had
n
responsi-
bility, had departed from the accustomed practice—he
had almost said the legitimate course—and
it ordered a
large importation of Indian cornlreland,eh of
t]
relief of the people during the continnueacfnct e
disease for the
and famine engendered by the failure
They did not, however, intend, neither didet.lYecytactoc crop.nsider
that that supply would meet all the demands of the Irish
people during this emergency. But at any rate its
introduction would, prevent an undue increase in the
price of provisions ; for instance, meal was one-third
dearer this year than during more than three of the
preceding years, but they anticipated that the introduc-
tion of this corn would prevent people from withholding
food from the markets in order to get high prices and
regulate the supply of the necessaries of life in
the different markets of Ireland. It was, how-
ever, difficult to regulate the supply of food, the
Government would do their best to do so. They never
attempted to say that the quantity of Indian corn was
sufficient to meet the demands of the Irish people ; but
they said this,—that the supply, regulated by proper
officers, would prevent the rising of the prices of food.
Large supplies of corn, in addition to those supplied by
the Government, had been imported into Ireland, which
was sold at a moderate price, now that the
duty had been suspended by a? 'Treasu
order, and was in consequence sold as cheap as oatmeal
It was found, as the Government anticipated. an
Gentleman
able and nutritious food. Now,
accompanied with loss of life,
he
was sure the Hon.
had justly observed, that cases oft.heextlire.arna e.
plenty.—(Hear, hear.) Now,
wished, if they
it was quite impossible that
existed in the destitution,
midst -
ewhinheartgee.vnecr.).,mig_inhst..tebead the
inthgafort generously and aiding
tGentlemaneffortshey
coofu itdh
ewoG
accomplishu
Government,
rwieieinseaofalone
them—(Hear.) influencet
Thems Hon.meet
Gentleman asked him what
adrnmmeitnta,thliat
they
the Government had done to meet the distress prevail-
ing in Ireland, but he would meet his question by
another, which was this—What had the wealthy
landowners of Ireland done?—(Cheers.) The Govern-
ment had used their very utmost to meet the evil.—
(Hear.) Nearly a fortnight ago a gentleman (as we
understood) proceeded to Ireland to facilitate the dis-
tribution of the food which the Governmenthad provided.
The Hon. Gentleman had referred to the Grand Jury
Act; that was a measure to which the Government
offered to advance 100,0001. for the carrying out of sub-
stantial public works, this would have circulated a great
deal of money, and would have employed a great number
of hands. It was left to the discretion of the Irish land-
lords. They have refused, and very generally so,
to avail themselves of it. He regretted that such was
the tech oil it had boa Elopted it would htTe km the